Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut each pepperoni about half way up the top, bottom, left, and right side – in the pattern of a cross.

Place the pepperonis in a mini muffin pan, allowing the cut sides to overlap and create a cup.

Bake pepperonis in a preheated oven for 5 minutes, until crispy.

Remove the pepperonis from the pan and use a paper towel to absorb the residual grease from the muffin pans. Return the pepperonis to the pan.

Next, spoon half a teaspoon of pizza sauce into each cup.Then place a small cube of mozzarella cheese on top of the sauce.

Return to the oven for 2 – 5 minutes, until the cheese has melted.

Remove pepperonis from the pan, transfer to a plate, then garnish with diced fresh basil (optional).