This Oreo Cheesecake is rich, dense, and supremely creamy! It’s baked in an Oreo cookie crust, studded with delicious Oreos, topped with chocolate ganache, and crowned with the most luscious Oreo whipped cream!
As a cookies n’ creme fanatic, Oreos have been a favorite of mine for quite some time. I’m sure I’m not the only one who used to scrape the creme filling off of the cookies, just to create one big quadruple-stuffed Oreo to enjoy at the end. Although Oreos are phenomenal on their own, they’re absolutely stellar when baked into various desserts, especially cheesecakes.
When I was a kid, my mom used to make the most delicious Oreo cheesecake. She actually found the recipe in the newspaper (remember those?), and she would make it for special occasions. So with that incredibly fond memory in mind, I decided it was time to make my own version…
As you can see, this Oreo Cheesecake is BRIMMING with Oreos. Not only is the crust made of crushed Oreos, but the cheesecake filling is chock full of Oreo pieces. It’s even topped with the most heavenly Oreo whipped cream! And if you count the Oreos nestled between the swirls of whipped cream, that’s FOUR TIMES the Oreo in this cheesecake!
So, how does one make a bombshell of a cheesecake like this?
Well, it starts off with the crust of course! Just take some Oreos, crush them up finely (either in a food processor or in a plastic bag with a rolling pin), and combine them with some butter. Like most people, I enjoy the filling more than the crust, which is why this crust recipe only makes enough to press along the bottom of the pan, rather than up the sides. Don’t worry, there will be plenty of Oreo deliciousness to enjoy in the rest of the cheesecake!
Moving onto the batter…just a warning, there are a whopping 2 pounds of cream cheese in this cheesecake. This is pretty standard for most New York style cheesecakes since it gives the cheesecake its dense richness, smooth tanginess, and firm texture. It definitely ain’t your light and airy no-bake cheesecake, that’s for sure.
The batter begins by whipping some cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, salt, and cornstarch together. The cornstarch helps to firm up the filling and it’s also supposed to prevent cracking…we’ll get to that topic later on. Once those ingredients have been incorporated, the eggs are added, mixing just until combined. Once the eggs are added, you want to avoid over-mixing since it’ll produce more air in your cheesecake, causing it to rise too much, thus forming cracks.
Next, we add the Oreos! I prefer big chunks of Oreos throughout my cheesecake, so I very coarsely chopped them up before folding them into the batter. As the cheesecake bakes in the oven, the Oreos soften into that wonderful “just dipped in milk” texture. Mmmmm…
Now that you’ve got your batter made up, pour it into the crust, smooth out the top, then bake it in the oven for about 80 minutes at 325ºF–no water baths, no special temperature changes, no nothing. Although I’ve tried countless techniques when it comes to achieving the sought-after crackless cheesecake, I have yet to find one that actually works. So for this cheesecake, I kept the baking simple. Besides, the whole thing is going to be covered in ganache anyway, so does it really matter??
Because of how dense cheesecakes are, they require several hours of cooling time. I usually bake cheesecakes the night before I want to serve it, allow it to cool a couple of hours at room temperature, then refrigerate it overnight.
Once it’s fully chilled, it’s time to jazz it up with some extra sugar! The ganache is simple. Just heat up some heavy cream (either in a saucepan on the stove, or in a glass measuring in the microwave) and pour it over some chocolate chips. Cover it with plastic wrap and allow it to sit for a few minutes so that the heat from the cream softens the chocolate chips. Remove the plastic wrap, stir until smooth, and then pour the ganache on top of the cheesecake, spreading it evenly over the entire surface of the cheesecake. Cracks begone!
Continuing with the theme of this Oreolicious cheesecake, I decided to whip up some OREO whipped cream. Because plain whipped cream just wouldn’t cut it! All you have to do is whip some heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla together until light and fluffy. Then stir in some finely-crushed Oreos–that’s it! As for decorating, I used a Wilton’s 1M tip to pipe the whipped cream along the border of the cheesecake. Then I nestled half-cut Oreos evenly throughout the whipped cream border.
I served this cheesecake at a recent get-together, and needless to say, it was a hit. You can usually tell by how clean people leave their plates when they’re done eating. Not one morsel of cheesecake was left on the plate! So for those of you who absolutely despise dish-washing, I’d say this cheesecake is a great life hack 😉
Oreo Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust:
- 17 Oreos
- ¼ cup butter melted
Batter:
- 32 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 1 ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 eggs
- 15 Oreos roughly chopped
Ganache:
- 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
Oreo Whipped Cream:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 5 Oreos finely crushed
To Decorate:
- 6 Oreos cut in half
Instructions
Make the Crust:
- Crush the Oreos in a food processor until finely ground. Add the melted butter and mix until all the crumbs are moistened. Press firmly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Refrigerate while you make the filling.
Make the Batter:
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese on high until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and continue beating for another 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the cornstarch, vanilla, and salt, and beat until incorporated. Beat in the eggs, two at a time, until combined--try not to overmix. Fold in the chopped Oreos.
- Pour batter into the crust, smoothing out the top. Bake cheesecake for 70-80 minutes, or until center appears nearly set when shaken.
- Transfer the cheesecake to a wire rack and allow to cool for at least 2 hours before covering cheesecake and chilling in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.
Make the Ganache:
- Place chocolate chips into a medium bowl. Pour heavy cream into a small saucepan on the stove and heat over medium-high heat until it begins to boil. Immediately pour hot cream over the chocolate, cover bowl in plastic wrap, then allow to sit for 4-5 minutes. Remove plastic wrap and stir until smooth. Set aside to cool and thicken slightly.
Make the Oreo Whipped Cream:
- In the chilled bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the heavy cream on high until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and continue whipping until stiff peaks form. Stir in the crushed Oreos by hand. Transfer whipped cream to a piping bag fitted with a Wilton's 1M tip (or star tip).
To Assemble:
- Run a knife around the edges of the pan, then remove sides of the springform pan. Pour ganache over the cheesecake, spreading it out to the edges. Pipe Oreo whipped cream along the border of the cheesecake. Space Oreo halves evenly around border. Refrigerate until ready to serve.