I must say that this is one of the easiest and most delicious desserts that I have ever made and had the chance to eat. When I was growing up, my mom used to make these for my family and I remember going back for seconds and thirds the same night. I also remember that she never used to complain when I asked her to make these. . . now I know that it was because the recipe is so simple and that one can have a dozen amazing cheesecakes in just about a half hour. I hope you enjoy and eat up!

Step 1: Get Ingredients and Equipment

The first thing is to get all of the ingredients. There are surprisingly few ingredients in making these:

- One box of Nilla Wafers

- 16oz cream cheese

- 3/4 cup of sugar

- two eggs

- 12 baking cups

- cherry pie filling (or whatever flavor you want to top your cheesecakes with)

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In addition to the ingredients, a mixer, mixing bowl, and muffin pan are the other accessories that will be needed. If you are making a full meal in addition, be aware that these will require the use of an oven and adequate fridge space.

Before continuing on to the next step: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees!

Step 2: Add Ingredients for Base Layer and Mix Until Fluffy

Before starting on the base, make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature to be able to mix easily. After that, add cream cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl. Mix until light and fluffy. (Make sure to start out slow! If you turn the mixer on full right away, lots of the mixture will splash out of the bowl all over you and the counter!) Leave out the mixture to soften while continuing on to the next step.

Step 3: Line Pan With Baking Cups and Nilla Wafers

Grab the muffin pan, Nilla Wafers, and the baking cups. Line the pan with a single layer of baking cups (Extra points for a cool pattern). Then, line each baking cup with a single Nilla Wafer

Step 4: Add Base Layer

Using a big spoon, scoop out enough base layer and put into each baking cup until the cup is 3/4 full. Do not make any more full than this because the cheesecake will rise! Using a second smaller spoon, make sure the base layer is fully even across the surface of the baking cup so that the cheesecakes will bake evenly.

Step 5: Make Sure Oven Is Ready and Cook

Wait until the oven is at 375 degrees. Place the muffin pan in the oven for 15-20 minutes. (The way that you will know that they are done is that the edges of the baking cups will start to turn golden brown and the top of the base layer will have a sort of hard shell.) You do not have to wait for the cheesecake to cool before continuing onto the next step.

Step 6: Add Topping

Using a tablespoon, add one scoop of cherry pie filling (or whatever flavor that you desire) on the top of each cheesecake. It may be hard to get the pie filling out of the spoon so I just use another smaller spoon to scoop out the rest of the pie filling stuck to the tablespoon between each cheesecake.

Step 7: Chill and Then Serve

Place the cheesecakes in the fridge to cool completely. Once cool, you are ready to serve! The last time that I made these I just ate them exactly how they are right now and they were delicious. My mom used to put whipped cream on top when I was younger so that works just as well.

In conclusion, these are a great dessert to make for any event as they are easy to transport, easy to make, and even tastier to eat. This dessert gave me a lot of joy as a kid, so I hope that they will give you and your guests a lot of joy as well. I am sure my mom would love to know that her recipe is inspiring new bakers and that she can provide a sense of joy to others through her recipe as well. Thank you!