Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cups (Recipe)

As part of the Social Committee at my work, we decided to organize a bake sale to raise money for our party fund, which was the perfect opportunity to try out a few of the recipes that I've been dying to make! The one at the top of my list was 'Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cups'. There's nothing better than cheesecake and Oreos...and when you put them together, the combination is deadly...deadly delicious that is!

The recipe was quite simple and left little room for error. To recreate this scrumptious dessert, here is what you need:

Ingredients:

42 Oreo cookies (30 whole and 12 coarsely chopped)
2 pounds (4 8oz packages) of cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sour cream
Pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 275° F.
2. Line muffin tins with paper liners and place one Oreo cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.
3. With an electric mixer on medium high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth.
4. Gradually add sugar and beat until combined. Then add the vanilla.
5. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine.
6. Beat in sour cream and salt.
7. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.
8. Add batter to cookie-lined cups and fill almost to the top.
9. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, for 22 minutes.
10. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
11. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

A word of caution...the recipe indicated that it would yield 30 cups, but my batch could have made double this amount had I not ran out of Oreo cookies. Instead, I made 36 cheesecake cups, and I used the remaining filling to make an entire cheesecake. I whipped up a graham cracker crust for the bottom.

Verdict: Combination of cookies and cream is nearly perfect

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Bake Time: 22 minutes at 275° F

Rating: 7.5/10

I also used this opportunity to bake chocolate chip cookie cups and salted chocolate toffee bark, which were equally delicious! Check out these recipes here:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups (I filled mine with white/chocolate chips and skor bits): http://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/144643/Make-it-Your-Way-Cookie-Cups/detail.aspx

Salted Chocolate Toffee Bark: http://www.ezrapoundcake.com/archives/18367