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Kiddos and grown ups will love this peanut butter cup cheesecake and so will you! Easy and no baking necessary.
Easy Summer Dessert
Now that the warmer weather is almost upon us–and in some places it already is there–the last thing you want to do is run your oven!
This cheesecake is entirely no bake so no oven is necessary. The only thing you have to do is allow enough time for a thorough chilling before serving it.
The original recipe calls for at least 2 hours chilling, but I’d advise making it the day before and chilling it overnight for the best results.
Oh That Crust
This is one of the most delicious no-bake crusts I’ve ever tasted.
It starts out not with Oreos (although you can use them if you want) but with chocolate wafers. Yep the kind that you use to make that retro dessert with whipped cream–that looks like a zebra when it’s cut.
Funny enough, I had those wafers on hand because I intended to make that dessert. OK, I ended up eating them LOL because I really like those cookies, so I just bought more and used them for this.
It’s important here to use unsalted butter in the crust. Otherwise it will taste salty and ruin the delicious flavor. Maybe that’s because the older I get, the less into salt I am. However, the recipe called specifically for the unsalted variety and something told me not to substitute.
Anyhow, I read years ago in a baking book by Rose Levy Beranbaum that you should always bake with unsalted butter. She’s a huge expert so this has to be so.
Cheesecake Filling: Watch The Sugar
When you’re making up the cheesecake filling, go slow with the sugar. It’s perfectly OK to taste it since there’s no flour nor raw egg in the mixture.
The reason I say this is that the crust is sweet, the peanut butter cups are sweet as well, so you want the cheesecake to be a bit on the tart side to offset that. So start with 2 tablespoons of sugar and see how it is. I found 3 tablespoons to be the best amount for me–it made it slightly sweet but preserved enough tartness to balance the candy and the cookie crust. Your tastes may vary so start small and work up to what’s right for you.
The Recipe
No-Bake Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake
Ingredients
- 40 chocolate wafer cookies like Nabisco’s Famous Wafers
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 17 peanut butter cups
- colored sprinkles
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar
Instructions
- Lightly coat a 9-inch spring form cake pan with cooking spray.
- In a food processor, pulse the chocolate wafers to form fine crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse to combine. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of the pan and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Meanwhile, using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the heavy cream and vanilla, mixing just to incorporate. Increase the speed to high and beat until thick and stiff, about 2 minutes. Fold in sour cream.
- Arrange the peanut butter cups on the bottom of the prepared crust, breaking them to fit, as necessary, to fill any large gaps. Spread the cheesecake filling over the top of the peanut butter cups and sprinkle with Reese’s pieces. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
