My Oreo Cheesecake Cake features a whole Oreo cheesecake sandwiched between two fudgy chocolate cake layers. It’s a stunning cake that is perfect for celebrations!
Decadent Oreo Cheesecake Cake
If you were a fan of my cheesecake stuffed chocolate cake, you are going to love today’s recipe! Today’s Oreo cheesecake cake is the cookies and cream version of that oh so decadent recipe, and it’s just as much of a showstopper. Just like my other cheesecake stuffed cakes (have you tried my carrot cake cheesecake?!) we’re stuffing an entire Oreo cheesecake inside a rich chocolate cake. It sounds complicated, but it’s nothing you can’t handle!
This Oreo cheesecake cake was actually one of my older recipes on the blog. Aside from new photos, I’m tweaking the recipe itself just a bit as well; the original version used a cream cheese frosting, but I felt that was a bit rich, or, perhaps, redundant, with the cheesecake layer. Today we’re using my stabilized whipped cream frosting instead, which is lighter and complements the other flavors without overwhelming them.
Note that you will need to start this recipe a day or so in advance, since the cheesecake needs to chill for several hours before it can be added. I personally like to make mine the night before I need it.
What You Need
You need quite a few ingredients to make this Oreo cheesecake cake (we are making a whole cheesecake stuffed inside a cake and covered in frosting, after all!), so I’ll just go over a few before we dive in:
- Oreos. You can use regular or “double stuf” Oreos here. You’ll need to break them up before adding them; I like to just do this by hand. Keep in mind we want discernible Oreo chunks in the cheesecake, so don’t make your pieces too small!
- Cream cheese. Make sure you are using full-fat, brick-style cream cheese for the cheesecake. The spreadable or low-fat kinds just won’t work properly.
- Gelatin. This will stabilize our whipped cream so it holds its shape nicely without melting or weeping. It’s a critical ingredient in the frosting! Regular homemade whipped cream doesn’t hold up quite as well.
- Buttermilk. Buttermilk makes today’s Oreo cheesecake cake beautifully tender and moist. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, my easy buttermilk substitute will work in a pinch.
- Cocoa powder. Use natural cocoa powder. This is critical because our chocolate cake relies on baking soda to rise. Buttermilk helps activate that baking soda, but the acidic natural cocoa powder is another key component in helping this cake rise properly.
SAM’S TIP: Make sure your heavy cream is as cold as possible before whipping it. This will make the whipping process much easier, and faster too!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Oreo Cheesecake Cake
Cheesecake Layer
- Line your springform pan with a sheet of parchment (remove the ring to do this, then place the ring on top of the paper).
- Cream together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
- Stir in the sour cream, then pause to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Add the eggs one at a time, taking care not to over-mix.
- Fold in the Oreo pieces, then pour the batter into your prepared pan.
- Bake for 40 minute at 350F and let cool to room temperature before chilling.
Cake Layers
- Whisk together the dry ingredients, then stir in the oil.
- Add the eggs one at a time before stirring in the buttermilk and vanilla.
- Add the hot water or coffee carefully and gradually. Stir until the batter is uniform.
- Divide between two pans that have been lined, greased, and floured.
- Bake for 35 minutes at 350F and let cool completely before assembling.
SAM’S TIP: Your cakes should bake up pretty level, but if you need to level them before assembling, I recommend using this cake leveling tool. I demonstrate how to do this in my how to decorate a cake post.
Frosting
- Whisk together the water and gelatin until the gelatin is fully dissolved, then set aside for 5 minutes to solidify.
- Whip the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla in a separate bowl until thickened.
- Once your gelatin has solidified, microwave it briefly until it is completely liquified and smooth again.
- Gradually drizzle the liquid gelatin into the cream mixture with the mixer on low speed.
- Increase the mixer speed to to medium high and beat until the cream reaches stiff peaks.
Assembly
- Place one cooled cake layer on your serving platter and top with a smooth layer of frosting.
- Remove the sides of your springform pan and use the base to flip your cheesecake onto the cake layer (don’t forget to remove the parchment!). I demonstrate this in the video for my cheesecake stuffed cake, if you need a visual.
- Top with a another layer of frosting, then add your final cake layer.
- Crumb coat your cake and let it chill in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
- Add your final layer of frosting, then decorate as desired.
SAM’S TIP: A crumb coating makes the frosting go on much smoother! I usually apply a thin layer of frosting then transfer the cake to the freezer for about 10-15 minutes before applying the final, thicker layer of frosting. It will go on so cleanly!
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope! My cheesecake recipes are designed to bake up beautifully without a water bath. I provide lots of tips for avoiding cracks in all of my cheesecake posts, but really, cracks aren’t so important in a recipe like this where the cheesecake is covered up.
If you are still concerned about cracks, you can take a few general precautions: use room temperature ingredients, don’t over-beat the batter (particularly the eggs), and let the cheesecake cool slowly in a warm spot.
Nope! You can add the entire sandwich cookies to the cheesecake batter, filling and all. Just make sure to break them up a bit before tossing them in.
Because of the cheesecake center and the whipped cream frosting, this cake must be refrigerated. I recommend storing in an airtight container to prevent the cake from drying out (as fridges notoriously do). You can also freeze this cake.
The original version of this recipe included a ganache drip–feel free to add that here if you’d like to make your Oreo cheesecake cake even more decadent 🤤
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cake
Ingredients
Cheesecake
- 24 ounces (680 g) cream cheese softened (use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese)
- ⅔ cup (133 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup (115 g) sour cream
- 3 large eggs room temperature preferred, lightly beaten
- 12 Oreo cookies broken into small pieces
Cake
- 1 ¾ cups (219 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (165 g) light brown sugar packed
- ¾ cup (75 g) cocoa powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (237 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil (may substitute olive or avocado oil, but these oils may impart subtle taste)
- 2 large eggs room temperature preferred
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (237 ml) buttermilk
- ½ cup (118 ml) very hot or boiling water or coffee (must be steaming)
Frosting (see note)
- 2 batches stabilized whipped cream frosting click link. I recommend doubling this recipe, or at least increasing by 50%, in order to have plenty of frosting.
- 12 Oreo cookies pulverized to fine crumbs, optional
Recommended Equipment
- Ateco 846 piping tip optional
Instructions
Cheesecake
- NOTE: You will need to prepare cheesecake at least 6 hours or overnight before you wish to assemble the cheesecake!
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line an 8" springform pan with parchment paper (I remove the bottom, cover with parchment paper and return the rim (parchment paper will be sticking out the sides). This helps to make the cheesecake more easily transferable to the center of the other cake.
- With mixer on low-speed, beat together softened cream cheese, sugar and vanilla, scraping down the sides with a spatula occasionally to ensure ingredients are smooth, lump-free, and well-combined.24 ounces (680 g) cream cheese, ⅔ cup (133 g) granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Add sour cream and stir until combined.½ cup (115 g) sour cream
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just mixed after each addition (and scraping down the sides after each addition).3 large eggs
- Stir in Oreo pieces.12 Oreo cookies
- Pour cheesecake batter into prepared springform pan.
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 40 minutes or until edges are set and cheesecake is just slightly jiggly in the center.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature before transferring to fridge to cool for at least 6 hours. Do not remove from springform pan.
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and generously grease and flour two 8”-round cake pans.
- In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugars, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.1 ¾ cups (219 g) all-purpose flour, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, ¾ cup (165 g) light brown sugar, ¾ cup (75 g) cocoa powder, 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda, ¾ teaspoon salt
- Add oil and stir well (mixture may be dry).1 cup (237 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil
- Add eggs and vanilla, stirring until combined.2 large eggs, 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- With mixer on low-speed, gradually stir in buttermilk until batter is uniform.1 cup (237 ml) buttermilk
- Add hot coffee or water and stir until combined. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl as needed.½ cup (118 ml) very hot or boiling water or coffee
- Divide batter evenly between prepared pans.
- Bake in center rack of 350F (175C) oven for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out mostly clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow cakes to cool in pans for 10-15 minutes then carefully invert onto a cooling rack to cool completely before assembling.
Frosting & Assembly
- Prepare frosting according to recipe instructions.2 batches stabilized whipped cream frosting
- Once cake and cheesecake have both cooled completely, carefully transfer one chocolate cake round to cake stand/serving platter and layer the top with the a thin layer of frosting.
- Run a knife around the inside edge of the springform pan to loosen the cheesecake and remove the sides of the pan. Carefully place the cheesecake on top of first chocolate cake layer and spread another thin layer of frosting over the cheesecake (if there is moisture/condensation on the cheesecake, simply pat dry with a paper towel before frosting).
- Place second chocolate cake layer on top of cheesecake layer
- Frost cake all over. If desired, use your hands to press cookie crumbs part-way up the sides of the cake and sprinkle over the top of the cake. If decorating cake with additional frosting on top, I recommend a large closed-star tip, like the Ateco 846 that I used in photos (linked in the "equipment" section).12 Oreo cookies
Notes
Baking pans
You may use 9″ pans for the cake and a 9″ springform pan for the cheesecake, if preferred, just note that you will have to bake for slightly less time.Frosting
I like the lightness of the stabilized whipped cream frosting with this cake, but feel free to substitute your favorite frosting (I originally shared this cake with my cream cheese frosting).Storing
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This cake may also be tightly wrapped and frozen for several months.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Jordann
Quick question. Iโm planning on making this for Christmas and only have a 9 inch springform pan and 9 inch round so thatโs what I was going to use. I know you said that if you do that you would reduce the baking time. My question is by how much. When should I start checking my cakes and cheesecake? Thanks
Sam
Hi Jordann! I haven’t personally done it so I don’t have an exact time, but I would start checking it about 5 minutes earlier, so around 30 minutes on the cakes and probably around 30-35 on the cheesecake. ๐
Imani
Amazing
Christina
Would it be okay to make the chocolate cake layers a week in advance and freeze them, and then assemble the cake while the chocolate layers are still frozen?
Sam
Hi Christina! I haven’t tried, but I think it could work. ๐
guadalupe hernandez
When do you add the oreos into the cheesecake? I can’t seem to find that step.
Sam
O no I am so sorry! Add them in between steps 6 and 7. I will fix that. ๐
guadalupe hernandez
Thank you , no worries.
Lynn
How much sour cream ? Cup and half. Or half cup? In reeference to cheesecake. I added cup and 1/2 by think was supposed to be 1/2 cup
Nikki Collins
Do you not use a water bath for your cheesecake layer?
Sam
Nope, no water bath required. I actually never use them when making cheesecake anymore.
Claudia | The Brick Kitchen
This cake is insane!! So clever to pop a whole cookies and cream cheesecake inside a chocolate cake, seriously drooling over here. Love it <3
Anu-My Ginger Garlic Kitchen
Sam this cake is gorgeously sinful. I am drooling over these stunning images. AMAZING and stunning looking cake. I need this beauty in my life. Wonderful share! Have a happy weekend! ๐
Sam
Thank you so much, Anu! Hope you have a wonderful weekend, as well!
#OverCaffeinatedMama
This looks delish! One question. So when do you add the crushes/pulverized Oreos to the whipped cream frosting while whipping it to peaks or after by hand folding it in?
Sam
You would want to fold them in by hand after whipping to stiff peaks. ๐
Jess @ Flying on Jess Fuel
What a pretty cake!! I’m jealous of your skills! And oh my gosh, it sounds SO amazing. I want to faceplant into it!
Sam
Haha, I was pretty happy with how the decorating turned out but I strongly believe it was just a fluke because I always struggle so much decorating cakes! Thank you, Jess!!
Ashley
She-devil of a cake – that make me chuckle!! But whoa, this cake looks insane! In a very good way! So decadent! Love cookies and cream anything!
Sam
Thanks so much, Ashley!
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary
Honestly I don’t even have any words for this beauty. I think you said it all perfectly in your post. Plus I’m entirely too busy drooling and oggling the photos to think! This.is.AMAZING! Like, hold the phone, pass me a fork and grab my Epi-Pen because I HAVE to have this! Chocolate allergy be damned! Sam, you have outdone yourself! Pinned! Cheers, girlfriend! <3
Sam
Haha, thank you so much, Cheyenne! I’m so glad you think it is epi-pen worthy!! ๐
mila furman
Damn. This looks amazing. YUM!!!!
Sam
Thank you, Mila!
Mir
This is one wildly amazing cake! And it has a miniskirt, so I’m down with that. I think the slices came out beautifully, as did the decoration. Nicely played!
Sam
Thank you, Mir!! ๐