Monday, June 24, 2013

Golden Oreo Cheesecake Bars




Here's a recipe that I found online. Actually, I think someone else found and pinned it or tweeted it or posted it on FB, I can't remember. I immediately wanted to try it because they had me at Oreo. Frankly, any recipe involving Oreos is fine by me. They're my very most favorite store bought cookie, and, well, lets just say it, I'm kind of a little bit addicted to them. Don't judge me....
 Anyway, you've probably tasted regular Oreos, but have you ever tried the golden ones? They're AWESOME. I love that they still taste like Oreos, even though they're not chocolate. Love 'em! If you haven't tried them, then here's the perfect excuse to go get some.
 At first,  I thought the cheese mixture wouldn't be sweet enough, but trust me, the caramel and cookies make up for it. They're easy to make and rich and just SO fabulous. You seriously need to try them.
 I doubled the entire recipe and baked it in a 9x13 pan and it turned out beautifully. Like I always say, more is more! Be sure to let it chill for several hours in the fridge so it'll firm up before you slice them, and keep them in the fridge until you're ready to serve. And as always with any Oreos, you definitely need an ice cold glass of milk to go along with it. Make 'em for your next party! Your family and friends will thank you!


28 Golden Oreos, divided 18 and 10
3 tablespoons, melted Butter
1 cup Caramel bits (or 24 wrapped caramels)
1 tablespoon water
2 pkgs (8 oz each) Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup Marshmallow Fluff
1 egg


 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crush 18 Golden Oreos (cream and all) in a large ziplock bag or a food processor, until they are very fine crumb.
Pour crumbs into a 9 inch square pan. Add 3 tablespoons melted butter and combine using the back of a spoon to mix and press firmly into the bottom of the pan. Bake crust for 10 minutes or until golden. Let cool 10-15 minutes.
While crust is cooling unwrap your caramels, or if using caramel bits, pour into a bowl and add the 1 tablespoon of water. Set aside.
Now coarsely chop the remaining 10 Oreos. Set those aside as well.
 Beat the softened cream cheese and marshmallow fluff with a hand mixer on medium speed. Beat until combined and smooth, scraping down the sides half way through.
Add the egg and beat for 30 more seconds on medium speed until incorporated.
Stir in the coarsely chopped Oreos.
Pour the batter into the prepared crust. Spread evenly into the pan. Now melt your caramels and water in the microwave for 60 seconds. Stir halfway through. When melted, drop by spoonfuls onto the batter.
Using a knife, swirl the caramel into the cream cheese batter. Don't go too deep or you'll mess up the crust.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until center is set. Cool for 20 minutes on wire rack and then transfer to the refrigerator until they firm up, or overnight. Cut into squares when completely chilled. Enjoy!

Tips:
As always, whenever I'm making any kind of bars or squares, I like to line the pan with parchment paper, letting it hang over the edges a couple inches on each side. After it's baked and chilled, you use the paper like a sling to lift the entire batch out of the pan in one piece. Now you can place it on a cutting board, and (using a big sharp knife) you can make nice clean perfect cuts. It also saves your pan from being ruined if you try to cut the squares while it's still in the pan.
For the crust, I think it's easier to combine the butter with the Oreo crumbs before you put them in the pan, so I just threw the Oreos and the melted butter into a food processor and let it go until no large pieces remained.
For a little variation, obviously you could use regular Oreos instead of the golden ones.
I bet you could also do a slammin' peanut butter version of this recipe. Doesn't that sound good? You could use Nutter Butters (my other favorite sandwich cookie) instead of Oreos, and peanut butter instead of the caramel. I would thin it out and sweeten it a little, though.
Oh, btw, before you measure the Fluff, spray a rubber spatula and a measuring cup with nonstick spray. You'll find it'll be a lot easier to measure and it won't be as messy. Otherwise, it'll stick to everything and you'll have Fluff from one end of the kitchen to the other. Not that I'm speaking from experience or anything.....

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