Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake with Oreo Crumble Crust and Chocolate Ganache

My husband might be the most spoiled man on the planet. 

He's also pretty darned skinny, too. 

So when his birthday comes around, I like to make things a little extra special, and go a little over-the-top with his desserts. Instead of asking him for what he likes specifically, I usually ask for a few flavors he'd like. 

This year, he said cheesecake and cookie dough. 

I'm usually deathly afraid of making full-cheesecakes. They tend to crack or under cook and it makes me crazy! This time around, I made sure to pay extra attention to the sensitive mixing and baking processes, and it worked beautifully! After the cheesecake cooled, I dumped on a layer of chocolate ganache, and piped on a couple homemade whipped cream towers. 

Let's just say, he was a little more than pleased. 

this was the only pic I could get of the inside - the day after - with the small shortened piece that remained

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake with Oreo Crust, Chocolate Ganache, and Whipped Cream

ingredients:

cookie dough balls:
1/2 C butter, slightly softened
1/2 C sugar
1/2 1/2 C packed light brown sugar
2 T milk
2 t vanilla extract
1 C all-purpose flour
1/4 t salt
1 C mini chocolate chips

crust:
4 T butter, melted
2 1/2 C oreo cookie crumbs

cheesecake filling:
4 (8oz) blocks of cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 C sugar
4 large eggs
1 t all-purpose flour
1 t vanilla
1 C sour cream
1 C mini chocolate chips

garnish:
chocolate ganache (I always use Alton Brown's recipe HERE)
1 C heavy whipping cream
1/2 C powdered sugar

method:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. to make the cookie dough balls: In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla and blend together. Mix in the flour, salt, and chocolate chips. Dough won't be the same texture you're used to for cookies, roll it into balls anyway. Place on wax paper and place in freezer until we're ready to drop them into the cheesecake.
3. to make the crust: Prepare your spring form pan by greasing the bottoms and sides. In the bowl of your food processor, blend together the butter and oreo crumbs until a crumble forms. Press into the bottom of the prepared spring form pan until flat and slightly up the slides. Set aside. No baking yet for this little lover.
4. to make the cheesecake: In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, sugar, eggs,and flour until smooth. Add the vanilla, sour cream, and chocolate chips - mix until just blended. Do not overmix.
5. Pour half the batter onto prepared crust. Place cookie dough balls all over the cheesecake layer (I used about 25, and ate the rest. No shame here.) Pour the rest of the batter onto the cookie dough layer.
5. Bake for one hour (mine ended up being about an hour and half). Turn off oven, and then prop oven door open a few inches. Let cake sit in the oven for 30 more minutes, then take out to cool on a cooling rack. Chill overnight if you can.
6. When cool, dump the ganache over the surface of the cheesecake and pipe on a few whipped cream spirals. Serve chilled.

recipe adapted from: the girl who ate everything