I love cheesecake. Creamy, dreamy, thick, and scrumptious cheesecake. Topped with raspberry sauce, stuffed with snickers, swirled with salted caramel, or infused with pumpkin (hello, pumpkin swirl cheesecake and even no-bake pumpkin cheesecake!). I like cheesecake just about every.single.way. So much so, I even created recipes for mini cheesecakes, no-bake cheesecake, no-bake cheesecake jars, and easy cheesecake pie. Cheesecake options galore!
But I’ve never had cheesecake in… cookie form. And to be quite honest, I never thought I could actually eat cheesecake in a cookie form. Unless it was cookie dough cheesecake. Chunks of cookie dough IN a cheesecake. OMG. Can someone bake that and send it to me please? I digress.
The thought came to me one day. Can I replace butter with something other than… butter… in a cookie recipe? Applesauce or mashed banana would certainly make the cookie healthier, but that’s not what I was looking for.
And sure, shortening would work and does wonders in cookie recipes—makes a cookie nice and puffy! But I wanted something a little different. Something I’ve never tried before. Thicker and creamier than butter, I figured cream cheese would make one stand out cookie. I’ve never used it in a cookie recipe before, so I was a tad skeptical at first. And I most certainly did not want to ruin perfectly good cookie dough with a recipe flop. Who has the time for a recipe failure? Not me.
I crushed up 18 double stuffed Oreos and tossed them into the cookie dough. Keep the regular Oreos for Oreo balls and Oreo cookie crust. For these cookies, Double Stuf = only way to go. I kept some of the Oreo pieces a bit large because I wanted to be able to taste the chunks rather than have crumbs throughout each bite.
I chilled the dough for 24 hours. I find that the longer I chill cookie dough, the chewier and thicker the cookie will be. Chill the dough for at least one hour if you’re strapped for time. 😉
I plopped 12 large mounds of dough onto a silicone baking mat and crossed my fingers the first batch would turn out OK. Well thank my lucky stars! These cookies came out creamy, dreamy, chewy, and unbelievably soft! Can you really go wrong with cream cheese & butter? I think not.
And aren’t they cute? I love the Oreo chunks & speckles.
If you love cheesecake and you love Oreos, you’ll go nuts for these guys. It’s two desserts in one! I couldn’t stop tasting them. Quality control, people.
And for your next Oreo-inspired dessert, try cookies and cream cake or cookies and cream pie next!
Print
Oreo Cheesecake Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Replacing some butter with cream cheese makes gives each bite a taste of cheesecake. These indulgent cookies won’t last long!
Ingredients
- 2 cups + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 10 Tablespoons (142g) salted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 ounce (28g) full-fat brick cream cheese*
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 18 Oreos, crushed into tiny pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Mix the flour and baking soda in a bowl and set aside. With an electric mixer or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugars together. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well. Gradually add the flour mixture and stir until a dough forms (may take a couple minutes of stirring). Fold in the crushed Oreos.
- Chill dough for at least 1 hour or up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
- Scoop 2 Tablespoons of dough for each cookie. Roll it into a ball. The cookies are rather large, but if you’d like them smaller, make each dough ball only 1 Tablespoon. Drop dough ball onto a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Make sure the balls of dough are tall. Do not flatten them. Bake for 10-11 minutes or until edges are slightly browned. The centers should appear soft and puffy. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to a cooking rack. Cookies stay fresh at room temperature for up to 7 days.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
- Cream Cheese: Do not use light or fat free cream cheese in this cookie recipe. You are replacing butter (fat) with cream cheese (another fat), so reduced fat cream cheese or fat free cream cheese would significantly alter the texture and taste. Use brick-style cream cheese, not the cream cheese spread sold in a tub.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Could I change out the Oreos for strawberries? Or edit the recipe a bit? Aiming for strawberry cheesecake cookies
Hi Niah, you could try freeze-dried strawberries in place of the Oreos. Let us know how it goes!
Can I double this recipe in one bowl?
Hi Joy, yes, you can double this cookie recipe.
Can I make this dough then freeze it? Best way to store if wanting to make ahead?
Definitely! Here’s our guide to freezing cookie dough.
Can this be baked in 8 x 8 dish? what would be the time?
Hi NQF, an 8-inch or 9-inch square pan should work for making these cookies into bars. We’re unsure of the exact bake time, but keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness.
Is the 1 ounce cream cheese measurement correct? I made this recipe a long time ago, and I could’ve sworn that the cream cheese portion was more than 1 ounce…..???
Hi Monique, could you be thinking of our cookies & cream cookies instead?
I bought oreos today, but failed to read the top portion that doubled stuffed oreos are needed for this recipe. Is regular okay? Should I just swipe in some of the cream from the oreos but not the chocolate part to balance it out?
Hi Emma! Regular Oreos will be just fine. You may also love our more updated recipe for cookies & cream cookies.
How come salted butter sticks? Would unsalted butter sticks work too?
Tried this recipe the other day and my family loved it! Mine turned out a bit too white and soft though, so I think I lacked with my flour and/or baking time. But overall, I love this recipe- so easy to follow and tastes amazing! <3
best cookies I have ever had! I keep making them and everybody loves them!
I made 2 batches of these for my family. And they were gone in 2 day..then I did another batch and substituted the oreos with butterscotch chips and added walnuts and those two were awesome…Thanks for this Awesome base cookie recipe.
Loved this recipe but, my batch didn’t flatten and seemed undercooked after I took it out the first time any suggestions?
These cookies are absolutely amazing! Gonna try making them with Golden Oreos!
Do they have to chill an hour?
Hi, Sally!
I’ve made these a few times now, and thew always turn out beautifully with rave reviews <3 I'm actually making two batches right now because I had a half bag of gingersnaps and wanted to let you know that this recipe also makes some AMAZING cookies if you add in a tablespoon of molasses and substitute crushed gingersnaps for the oreos! This is an awesome base recipe in and of itself (I should reaaally try it with cinnamon oatmeal or something next<3) but our family just wanted to say thanks for posting this!
Your variation sounds incredible! I’ll have to try it sometime 🙂 Thanks, Megan!
Hi Sally
I would love to try out this recipe, is it possible to provide the recipe in grams?
Thank you!
Hi Hana, Just about all of my more recent recipes are written with gram measurements as well! If you come across older recipes like this one there are many easy online conversion calculators like this one: https://www.convert-me.com/en/convert/cooking/
Hi Sally, I would like to make a oreo-matcha cookie, do you think this recipe would work if I just add matcha powder (culinary grade!) in the recipe? Thanks!! 🙂
Made these last night. I reduced my oreos to crumbs – still good but I’ll try it in chunkier form and use double stuff next time. I’m thinking using a different flavor oreo would also be fun – like cinnamon roll flavor. My husband is not a big chocolate fan but he really loves these cookies as is and so do I.
When I’m in a baking mood and no clue what I want to make, I always come browse your site. So reliable. Amazing recipe again! Thanks.
Just made these for a summer BBQ, wanted something without chocolate chips because it was 33’C out and didn’t want a gooey mess. And these were just perfect, absolutely devoured instantly. I made them with brown butter (because I’m obsessed with brown butter), and turned out fabulously. Honestly, Sally, your recipes are so solid, and reliably amazing. Keep up the delicious experimenting 🙂
Hi sally,
I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong, but every time I make one of your soft baked recipes (this one, red velvet cookies, cranberry white chocolate) it’s always a flop. They never brown, they have a ‘cakey’ texture and they always taste just a bit off.
What could I possibly be missing?
Nicky, do you think you are overmeasuring the flour? Weigh the flour- it helps! You can also try baking an extra minute or two longer. Do you live at high altitude by chance? Because that could be the issue as well.
Interesting – I was measuring with cups, but not weighing the flour. Thanks for the tip – i’ll weigh from now on!
Hello Sally!
I’m planning on making this AMAZING recipe for my boyfriend soon but I was planning on adding a twist to it. I would also want to try making this into a pillow cookie and stuff brownies inside!! Do you think that this would make the cookie TOO SWEET…? I want it to be just right and not OVERLOADED WITH SUGAR XD
While I love these cookies so much, I find them way too sweet with 1 1/2 cups of sugar. I reduce the brown sugar to 3/4 cup and the white sugar to 1/4 cup and they are still plenty sweet. If you plan on stuffing them with brownies I would definitely cut down the sugar.
Do they need to kept in the fridge to last longer?
I wouldn’t keep them longer than 8-10 days in the fridge. They’ll be quite hard, though. I like storing them at room temperature to preserve softness. Storage instructions in step 3.
Hi Sally, absolutely love your site and have made a few things from it. All GREAT. I want to make these cookies for my college daughter’s next care package. She loves cheesecake and Oreos so this is a win-win!
I do have one question. I only buy and use unsalted butter. If I use unsalted butter would 1 tsp of salt be the correct amount to add?
Hi Lisa! Add about 1/4 teaspoon of salt if you use unsalted butter. These are a great cookie to send in a care package! So sweet of you.
Can you use whipped cream cheese rather than the block for this recipe
Hi Emily – yes, you can.
Made these today and turned out perfectly! Must try these cookies, they are my husbands and sons new favorite cookie. I love your site it’s my first and favorite go to for recipes. I always look forward to what’s next on your site. Like you I am addicted to baking so keep the recipes coming 🙂