1 cup crushed vanilla wafers (about 30 wafers)
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg, room temperature, lightly beaten
TOPPING:
1 pound pitted canned or frozen tart red cherries
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Red food coloring, optional
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Combine crumbs and butter; press gently onto bottoms of 12 foil-lined muffin cups. In another bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla. Add egg; beat on low speed just until combined. Spoon over crusts.
2. Bake until centers are almost set, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool completely.
3. For topping, drain cherries, reserving 1/2 cup juice in a saucepan; discard remaining juice. To reserved juice, add cherries, sugar, cornstarch and, if desired, food coloring. Bring to a boil; cook until thickened, about 1 minute. Cool; spoon over cheesecakes. Refrigerate, covered, at least 2 hours.
These little cheesecakes make a fun dessert that's just right for cooks who don't have a lot of time for fussy recipes. Plus, you get to eat the whole thing yourself!
TOTAL TIME: Prep: 20 min. + chilling Bake: 15 min. + cooling
YIELD: 12 servings.
Nutrition Facts
1 mini cheesecake: 213 calories, 12g fat (6g saturated fat), 44mg cholesterol, 127mg sodium, 26g carbohydrate (21g sugars, 1g fiber), 2g protein.