Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

Fact: Oreos are milk's favorite cookie.

Fact: Cheesecake is my favorite cheese based dessert.

Fact: Cookies are wonderful.

 Fact: Oreo Cheesecake Cookies are an amazing experience.

Facts have never been so fun. Seriously, though, these cookies are amazing. They're so unique and delicious. Cream cheese in a cookie, who would've thought?

I don't really know how to describe these cookies. Think chocolate chip cookie plus sweet cream cheesy taste plus a nice rolling in Oreo crumbs for an extra dose of chocolate flavor. I tried my best, I really did.

Cookie Dough!

Despite their complex flavor, they're very simple to make. The cream cheese mixes into the dough right along with the butter. There's no egg in this dough so use your willpower to not eat it all. (It is quite delicious cookie dough ;) ). The dough is chilled in the refrigerator for a bit, then rolled in crushed Oreo crumbs. Bake 'em up, cool, and eat. It's as easy as A B C.  Cue the Jackson 5.

In the oven, they go.

Ahem. Back to cookies. If you're looking for something different in the world of cookies, these are definitely the way to go. I've never had another cookie like it! I also want to try using the cookie dough as a truffle filling in the future. If you sneak a taste of the cookie dough, you will completely agree with me on that.

Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, at room temperature
• 3 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips, mini or regular
• 1 cup Oreo crumbs (about 8 Oreo cookies)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper. 
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter, cream cheese, and salt on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add the sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla until combined. On low speed, mix in the flour until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
3. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes. 
4. Roll the cookie dough into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in Oreo crumbs, coating the dough. 
5. Bake the cookies for 8-9 minutes. Cool for 1-2 minutes on the baking sheet. Remove from baking sheet and allow to cool completely. 

Makes about 30 small cookies. Recipe adapted from Food Beast.

I don't mean to be a bad influence but...

If you happen to have extra chocolate chips, cream cheese, and Oreos, then you happen to have all the ingredients for the famous Oreo Truffles. If you haven't tried them, you need to! They are super easy, no bake, and so good! There's a reason they are as famous as they are. I didn't have enough extra to make a whole batch so I eyeballed my proportions and made a mini batch with just four truffles.

Here's what I did:

Oreo Truffles

1. Crush Oreo cookies so they are very fine crumbs. Mix with a small amount (I used 1 oz) of softened cream cheese. If the mixture is too dry, and not creamy, add a bit more cream cheese. If the mixture is too creamy, add more crumbs. (I used about 6-8 Oreos if my memory serves me correct.)
2. Shape the mixture into small balls, about 1 inch in diameter. 
3. Melt chocolate chips in 30 second increments in the microwave. Stir between each time. If the chocolate overcooks/seizes, try adding a small amount of vegetable oil to make it smoother. (I had extra melted chocolate so I dipped pretzels and pineapple. It's not the worst problem to have! ;) )
4. Using two forks or spoons, dip and coat the balls in the melted chocolate. Place on a plastic tray or parchment paper. 
5. If you're in a hurry to try them, place in the refrigerator to allow the chocolate to set. They set in about 10 minutes in the refrigerator.

And of course, if you're a sane person who wants to make a normal batch of Oreo truffles, using measurements and such, here's the link to recipe: http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/easy-oreo-truffles-95085.aspx.

Enjoy your Oreo treats!