Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake

If your favorite thing about cookie baking is nibbling on the dough, then this chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake is the recipe you’ve been waiting for. It’s exactly what you imagine: a rich, lush cheesecake loaded with chocolate chip cookie dough.

The cookie dough is baked right into the cheesecake, contrasting it pleasantly with texture. If the idea of eating dough with raw eggs in it doesn’t appeal to you, relax. The cookie dough in this recipe is egg-free.

Ingredients for Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake

• Chocolate cookie crumbs: Graham crumbs are the usual choice for a cheesecake crust, but chocolate cookies work better with the cheesecake’s flavor profile.
• Sugar: White granulated sugar is used in the crust, cheesecake filling and cookie dough. It’s simply a sweetener in the filling and cookie dough, but it also helps give the crust structure and hold the crumbs together.
• Butter: Melted butter binds the crumbs in the cheesecake’s crust and lends its rich flavor to the cookie dough portion of the recipe.
• Cream cheese: Cream cheese is the signature ingredient in American-style cheesecakes, bringing richness, protein and a bit of a tang to the filling.
• Sour cream: Like the cream cheese, sour cream gives the filling a hint of tartness to balance the sugar and add to its richness.
• Vanilla: Vanilla lends a pleasantly complex flavor to the filling and cookie dough.
• Brown sugar: Many cookie recipes call for brown sugar because it gives baked goods a hint of butterscotch flavor. Here, it replicates that role to make the cookie dough taste like it should.
• All-purpose flour: Flour brings together and binds the rest of the “cookie dough” ingredients.
• Miniature chocolate chips: Most of the chocolate chips go into the cookie dough, and the rest are used as garnish on the finished cheesecake.

Directions

Step 1: Make the crust

In a small mixing bowl, combine the cookie crumbs and sugar and then stir in the melted butter. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of a greased 9 inch springform pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet.

Step 2: Prepare the cheesecake filling

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Next, add the sour cream and vanilla, then the eggs and beat on low speed until the filling is just mixed. Carefully pour this over the crust.

Step 3: Mix the cookie dough

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugars until they’re light and fluffy, about five to seven minutes. Add the water and the vanilla, then slowly add the flour and mix until it’s thoroughly incorporated. Stir in 1 cup of the miniature chocolate chips.

Step 4: Add the cookie dough to the cheesecake

Drop the dough over the cheesecake filling 1 teaspoon at a time, gently pushing each scoop of dough into the filling. The dough should be completely submerged.

Step 5: Bake the cheesecake

Bake the cheesecake at 350°F until the center is almost set but still jiggly, approximately 45 to 55 minutes. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and cool it on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cheesecake. It will shrink as it cools and if it clings to the sides of the pan, it’s more likely to crack. Cool for one hour longer, then refrigerate the cheesecake overnight.

Step 6: Finish the cheesecake

The next day, loosen and remove the pan’s sides and sprinkle the cheesecake’s top with the remaining miniature chocolate chips. Any leftovers should be refrigerated promptly.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Variations

• Buy store-bought cookie dough: This isn’t a complicated recipe to make, but you can save a step and a few minutes of prep time by using store-bought cookie dough. Most supermarkets now carry cookie dough made with pasteurized eggs and flour, so it’s safe to eat raw. Depending on the size you buy, you may also have a leftover dough that you can turn into cookies (a clear win!).
• Swap in your favorite alternative: Chocolate chip cookies are a near-universal favorite, but they’re not the only option. If you’re a big fan of oatmeal raisin cookies, peanut butter cookies, snickerdoodles or something else, by all means, feel free to make up a batch and use that instead. For food safety reasons, you can omit the eggs or make the dough from pasteurized eggs.
• Turn the cheesecake into cheesecake bites: If chocolate is your thing, you can double down by turning this cheesecake into cheesecake bites. Prepare the crust and filling as directed, but bake it in a 13X9-inch pan instead of a springform. Then, cut it into small pieces and dip them in chocolate.

How to Store Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Because of its moist, high-protein filling, cheesecake is quite perishable, so it needs to be kept refrigerated when you’re not actually serving it. A cake dome or a reusable cake transporter is ideal for keeping the cheesecake covered without the risk of damaging its appearance. You can leave it uncovered if you press a piece of wax paper against the cut edges to keep them from drying out.

How long will chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake last?

If you’re careful to keep it refrigerated and return it to the fridge quickly every time you take it out to cut a few slices, it can last fo four  to five days. If it stayed at room temperature for an hour or two, eating the remainder within three days is prudent.

Can I freeze this cookie dough cheesecake?

Yes, the cheesecake freezes well. You can freeze it whole in a suitable airtight container or a large airtight freezer bag, or ele cut it into smaller portions (perhaps a quarter-cheesecake each) and package those individually for the freezer. Defrost your portions overnight in the refrigerator before serving (or enjoy a still-frozen slice on a hot day). If carefully kept airtight, your cheesecake will last three to four months in the freezer.

Can I make this cheesecake ahead of time?

It has to be made at least one day ahead of time so it can rest overnight in your refrigerator (otherwise, the texture won’t be right). It will keep for four to five days in your refrigerator, so working any further ahead will shorten the storage life of any leftovers. How you want to balance those considerations is up to you. If you opt to freeze the cheesecake, you can make it up to three months in advance and thaw it when needed.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Tips

How can I keep my cheesecake from absorbing “off” flavors in the fridge?

Keeping your cheesecake under a cake dome or inside a cake carrier helps a lot. If you don’t have one of those, you can tent it with foil or slide it into an oversized bag to keep the air out (stick a handful of toothpicks into the cheesecake to hold the cover away from its surface). You can also tackle off-odors at their source by carefully double-wrapping any potential sources of unwanted flavors such as onions, fresh garlic or highly spiced leftovers.

The filling didn’t want to mix smoothly. Is that normal?

Your cream cheese may have needed to soften a bit more. Also, it helps if the sour cream and eggs are at room temperature before you begin. That’s partly because if they’re fridge-cold, they’ll chill the cream cheese and make it harder to mix, and partly because warm ingredients will just blend better. That’s especially true of the eggs because it’s the lecithin and other emulsifiers in the eggs that give you a smooth, consistent filling.

Why does it say to beat in the eggs “until they’re just mixed”?

When you beat eggs vigorously, you incorporate a lot of air. That’s fine if you’re making a sponge cake, but in a cheesecake it’s a problem. All of those air bubbles will make the filling rise as it bakes, but then as it cools it will deflate and you’ll get cracks in your cheesecake (we cover this in our roundup of useful cheesecake tips). The only exception to this rule comes with Japanese-style cheesecake, which uses beaten egg whites to achieve a light and airy texture that’s very different from American-style cheesecakes. The difference is that Japanese cheesecakes incorporate extra ingredients to stabilize the filling and keep it from deflating as it cools.