Cookie Cup Cheesecake Bites with Sprinkles

On Friday, I got the urge to bake. I didn't know what I wanted to make, but I was going to make something. I turned to one of my most trusted sources for inspiration. Pinterest. I thought I'd look at food for awhile, but instead I picked the first thing I saw. I do that at times, picking the first thing I see.

Sophomore year of high school, I went dress shopping with a friend of mine for winter formal. Her mother, my friend, and I arrived at our first store at 10:30 am. I walked in the store, and saw the most gorgeous dress. My heart leapt wildly in my chest as I took the dress off to the dressing room. I slipped it over my head, and... perfection. I immediately bought it. It was 10:50 am. My friend proceeded to try on what seemed like 5000 dresses. She didn't find her dress until 5:00 pm that day. Which means we were shopping all that time. And after she found her dress? She announced it was time to find shoes. I still hate shopping with people to this day.

The point is, my picker is not broken. I'm pretty definitive about what I want, and that's what I want. I don't need to look at recipes for 5 hours to know what I want to make. I'm perfectly satisfied making the first thing I see. With good reason! These are delish. I found it hard to retain self-control. I only made half a recipe, but I still need to get these out, out, OUT of the house. I think I'm going to drop off the rest at the mother-in-law's later today :)

Ingredients (makes 12 cookie cups):

Cookie Crust-
3/4 stick of butter, softened
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 large egg, room temp
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Cheesecake Filling-
1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup sprinkles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin liners. Set aside.
2. To make cookie cups, cream butter and sugars in a large bowl. Don't cream too much, you don't want the cookie cups to rise too much! Add the egg and vanilla to the bowl, mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour through salt. Add flour mixture to the butter mixture. Mix until combined. Dough will be thick. Fold in chocolate chips.
3. Press about 1.5 tbsp of dough into bottom of muffin tin. Bake in oven for 10 minutes, then remove. Cookie part will not be done, but it will be going back in the oven.
4. To make the cheesecake filling, mix cream cheese through vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Mix until smooth. Fold in the sprinkles gently, being careful not to over-stir (sprinkles will bleed their color).
5. Pour 1 tbsp of cheesecake filling onto the cookie cups, spreading it to make sure it covers the cookie.
6. Bake cookies in the oven for an additional 15-18 minutes. Check cookies often to make sure they don't brown on the top (cover with foil if cookies begin to brown). Cookies are done when tin can be shaken, and cream cheese doesn't jiggle in the middle.
7. Remove from oven, let cool in tin 5 minutes. Remove to a baking rack, and let cool completely. Cookies can sit out for 24 hours, after which they should be covered and refrigerated.

*Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction*