Eek! Where did the week go? One minute I was babysitting my friend's 3 adorable little girls, then next slurping ramen with a girlfriend...then in the blink of an eye, it was mid week and I was attending a party to celebrate a friend's tubal ligation (hey people have baby showers, why not celebrate a woman's choice not to have children? I think it's a GREAT idea) and now whammo! it's already the end of the week. And boy not only did the time fly but it got super cold! It went from sunny Sacramento to chilly and wet. I was at Mr.S.'s and poor Pepper pup was so cold (he is a poodle after all) that he was huddled under the covers and quite frankly, I didn't blame him.


Well, if you're short on time and you want to put something nice and warm in your belly, then these Gruyère-Scallion Mini Popovers will be right up your alley. The recipe is from my Williams-Sonoma "Small Plates" cookbook and was originally called, "Gruyère-Chive Mini Popovers," but I didn't have any chives in the cottage so I subbed in scallions and they tasted mighty delish. You can serve them up as cute hors d'oeuvres or as a side dish to some warm soup. They're the perfect bite-size accompaniment.

Gruyère-Scallion Mini Popovers

Ingredients

Canola oil for greasing pans

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1 Tbs. finely sliced scallions

1 1/4 cups milk, at room temperature

2 eggs, at room temperature

1 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted

3 oz. Gruyère cheese, coarsely grated


Instructions
1.  Preheat an oven to 450°F. Generously oil 24 wells of 1 large or 2 small mini muffin pans.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, pepper, and scallions. In a large measuring pitcher, whisk together the milk, eggs and butter. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and whisk together until just combined (don’t worry if some lumps remain).

3. Fill the prepared muffin cups to within about 1/4 inch of the rims. Place 1 scant tsp. grated cheese in the center of each filled cup. Bake, without opening the oven door, for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake until the popovers are brown, crusty and fully puffed, 8 to 10 minutes longer.

4. Transfer the popovers to a platter and serve warm. Makes 24 mini popovers.