Italian Pepperoni-Cheese Puffs

    Happy Holidays Everyone!!  I'm sure you're all in the middle of your baking, shopping, and the rest of your holiday preparations.  And many of you are probably finished and just waiting for the celebrating to begin.  I, on the other hand, have not baked one Christmas cookie yet!  Now, granted, the house is decorated and looking pretty festive, but the real baking doesn't usually start until two weeks before Christmas.  I always intend on starting earlier, but somehow, two weeks before the big day, is always when it begins.  Maybe it's because, when I home schooled the kids, we would be doing our school work up until
that time.  Then, when we were on Christmas break, I'd dive into all the baking.  Well, whatever the reason, it always gets done.  Then it's kind of like a baking marathon around here...... I love it!

    Since this is such a busy time and there are so many parties/get-togethers going on, I thought a quick and tasty appetizer idea would be a great thing to share.  These are like mini savory cream puffs, Italian-style!  They're very light and go well with a little pizza sauce on the side.

One Little Tree.....Two recipes

    When I was a little girl I spent a lot of time with my Italian grandparents (my dad's parents).  They had a small house but a yard and garden area that seemed to go on forever....at least that's what it seemed like at the time.  They grew all sorts of vegetables and had several fruit trees like cherry, pear, fig, and mulberry.  My grandmother would sell flowers that she had grown.  I remember sitting outside with her, waiting for people to come and buy the plants.  They had a long, narrow hallway at one side of the house that I always thought of as a sun porch because it was lined with windows and was filled with african violets and various other plants.  My grandmother had the greenest thumb I've ever seen.  She even had a miniature orange tree in the dining room!