Death by Chocolate Oreo Cheesecake Cake

 

 

Both of my kids celebrate their birthdays in August.  My son will be 26 and my daughter 23 years old.  I love celebrations and as you know I love cooking and baking, so of course I had to make a spectacular birthday cake.

My newest inspiration is Pinterest, with a collage of photos to inspire and delight the mind.  After much debate I decided on a layered cake, sandwiching an Oreo cheesecake.  Now I had to decide what type of cake to layer with my cheesecake.

My daughter loves Red Velvet Cake and my son Chocolate Cake or Red Velvet.  Once deciding on the layers it was unanimous to frost the cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, a favorite of ours.

What I’d forgotten was to take into account the altitude here in the mountains, and I left my book at home, “Pie in the Sky,” the perfect book for high altitude baking.

The Oreo cheesecake turned out just as planned, but the Red Velvet Cake sunk in the center.  Since it flopped, we sampled what turned out to be a grainy cornmeal textured Red Velvet Cake – inhaling could cause serious choking!

Back to the drawing board.

With cheesecake in the freezer, I rummaged through what books I had with me, and online.  I saw one recipe for a high altitude Chocolate Espresso Fudge Cake that looked moist and creamy, but decided since we’d already spent a fortune on ingredients that failed, we’d go with what we know is sensational.

Do you remember my Chocolate Avalanche Cake? Eating it is totally orgasmic!  With that in mind I decided with my kids approval, to make the chocolate portion of that cake, which constitutes 2 layers, with the Oreo Cheesecake layer sandwiched between.  I’ve made many chocolate cakes from scratch but none are as moist and delicious as this.  Since it is our second go around, we needed a sure thing.

Don’t let the semi-homemade portion of this recipe change your mind.  Trust me on this one – it’s outrageous!

Here’s the recipe:

 

Before starting this recipe be sure to read it thoroughly.  I would suggest making this layered cake over two days.  First, I’d make the Oreo Cheesecake on Day 1, freezing it, then make the Death By Chocolate Cake, and once cooled place in the refrigerator.  On Day 2, make the Cream Cheese Frosting, chill then assemble the layer cake and apply a *crumb coating – placing back into the refrigerator for at least an hour.  Apply the final coat and serve.

 

Death By Chocolate Oreo Cheesecake Cake

serves 8-10

Ingredients:

CHEESECAKE:(Adapted from: Erin’s Food Files)
20 ounces bar cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cups sugar
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
6 coarsely crushed Oreo sandwich cookies

DEATH BY CHOCOLATE CAKE:

1 cup sour cream

4 eggs

½ cup canola oil

½ cup water

1 box Devils Food Chocolate Cake mix (no pudding added)

3.4 oz. Package of Vanilla Instant Pudding mix

12 oz. package semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
24 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

12 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

CHEESECAKE:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

**Set a kettle of water to boil for a water bath.

Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese on medium speed until fluffy, scraping down side of bowl as needed. Gradually add sugar, beating until fluffy. Beat in vanilla extract and salt. Beat in eggs, one at a time, scraping down side of bowl after each addition. Beat in sour cream. Fold in crushed Oreos.

Cut parchment paper in a circle and line the bottom of the cheesecake pan. Wrap bottom half of pan in heavy duty foil. Pour in batter; place in a roasting pan.

 

Pour in boiling water to come halfway up side of springform. Bake until just set in center, about 45 minutes. Remove pan from water; let cool 20 minutes. Run a paring knife around edge; let cool completely. Remove outer ring of springform pan, but leave metal bottom. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze.

CHOCOLATE CAKE:

Mix first 4 ingredients well.

Add Devils Food Chocolate Cake mix, Vanilla Instant Pudding mix, and Chocolate Chips

Mix all together and pour in two 9″ round cake pans that have been sprayed with non-stick spray

Bake  at 350F degrees for 25-30 minutes (at 9,000 feet I baked the cake at 375F degrees for 30 minutes).

Let cool 15 minutes then invert on a rack – for best results refrigerate at least an hour before crumb coating

FROSTING:

Beat cream cheese, 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla.

In another bowl whisk cream and 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar to firm peaks. Fold in cream cheese mixture. Chill 1 hour or until firm but spreadable.

ASSEMBLE:

Remove cheesecake from freezer and remove metal bottom.  Carefully peel parchment paper off bottom of cheesecake.

Remove chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting from refrigerator.

Lay one 9” chocolate cake round on cake plate.  Spread a thin layer of frosting over top of cake.  Place cheesecake on top spreading another thin layer of frosting on top, then lay final chocolate layer on top of cheesecake placing another thin layer of icing on top of the cake as well as the sides.

*This is called a crumb coat – Crumb coating, also known as dirty icing, a cake, does not, as its name suggests, mean adding crumbs to the outer coating of a cake. Instead, crumb coating is the step that most pastry chefs take to make sure that all the loose crumbs on a cake are trapped in an initial coat of icing so that when you add the second (and actual) icing layer no crumbs mix with the icing and look bad.

Remove layered cake from the refrigerator and ice the entire cake with the remaining Cream Cheese Frosting.  Serve immediately or place back in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Death By Chocolate Oreo Cheesecake Cake is everything and more you’ll ever want from a birthday cake or celebration cake.  Change it up however, you like, using different layers and icing to suit your tastes.  You’ll think you died and went to heaven!

**Water Bath –  Some foods require moisture in the oven, as well as a milder heat source than the direct heat of the oven, such as custards, puddings, and cheesecakes.

Although you don’t absolutely have to use a water bath, cheesecakes tend to crack without the moist heat and custards can become rubbery if they’re not baked in a water bath.

A Water Bath is a pan of water placed into an oven. The hot water provides a constant, steady heat source and ensures even, slow cooking for recipes that call for a water bath.

The best type of pan to use for a water bath is a roasting pan or other pan with sides at least 1-1/2 to 2 inches high. That will allow you to put enough water into the pan so it won’t all evaporate before your pudding or cheesecake has baked.

 

 

ENJOY!!!

 

 

 

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36 comments

  1. Well that would be a great way to go!

  2. I am a Leo, too and my birthday was five days ago. There was no one to make this lovely Oreo cheesecake for me but I did spent some wonderful time with my family on the beach. I have never made a cake with water bath. Got to try.

  3. What a wonderful mom you are, Vicki to go through all this for your kids’ birthdays, It looks amazing and I’m sure every bite was savored!

    • From what I can tell of all the moms that post comments on my blog they would all do the same thing. We love our kids and I will always do whatever it takes to make them happy. I love them.

      This cake was sensational and have to say there’s barely any left and it was HUGE!

      Thank you for your comment.

  4. My birthday is in three days time – want to whip one up for me? 😛
    Seriously your kids are super super lucky, this looks crazy fantastic!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

  5. We DO think alike! Great celebratory cake…I’m sure your children loved it! I think I’d be a wreck trying to bake in a high altitude…so glad you found the perfect recipe 🙂

    • I wasn’t a wreck but it was a pain to have to make another cake. Next year I won’t forget my book. What’s funny is that sometimes it works out fine while other times it doesn’t. Oftentimes it’s because of the amount of baking soda or baking powder that I’ve used. Adjustments always need to be made with altitude. If I lived here full time I’m sure I’d have a better handle on it.

      Thanks for your comment.

  6. It may be Death by Chocolate but Heaven would certainly not be far away! This sounds fantastic. I love over-the-top birthday cakes and this one looks amazing.

  7. Happy birthday to both of them! This cake would be surely the ultimate birthday treat I’d want anyone to bake for me! They are so lucky to have you!

  8. Happy Birthday to both of them. I had my birthday last week.
    A heavenly looking cheesecake cake!

  9. Happy birthday to your son and daughter! That sucks about the red velvet cake, but it looks like it all turned out for the yummy best!

    • It was a bit annoying but I’ll try it again when we get back to sea level. It could have been the recipe as well, I imagined it more chocolaty tasting. That said, this cake was superb so it didn’t matter.

  10. Well, you certainly named this cake correctly! 🙂 What a cake! How can the birthday kids NOT love this cake?!?! Happy birthday to them both!

  11. Eek! I’m so sorry to hear about the Red Velvet flop but honestly, I’d have been happy with another FABULOUS oreo cake. My word, that looks AMAAAAAAZING 🙂

    Happy birthday all around!

  12. Happy birthday to both of your kids! One of my sisters and I have back-to-back birthdays in June. My mother always baked 2 completely different cakes – a big deal back then when sweets were very occasional treats. Your cake looks wonderful. My wife is the real baker in our family – I’ll have to show her this! Good post – thank you.

    • I normally make 2 different cakes, one for each of them. However, my son will be gone for his birthday so we decided to celebrate both birthdays together this year. They didn’t mind except for the fact that my daughter managed to blow out the candles first so I guess when my son gets back in town we’ll have to have another cake for him so his wish comes true!

  13. Oh wow… this looks amazing. I love the deep rich chocolate cake coupled with the decadent looking cookie filling! Certainly a “Death by..” cake!

  14. Hi Vicki,
    Your kids are really lucky to have a talented mom like you. This looks phenomenal!

    Also, thank you so much for your wonderful comments on my blog. You really made my day!

  15. This is a fantastic cake! If this is a death by, I’m ready to go. 🙂

  16. What lucky children you have Vicki! And what a delightful cake too 🙂

  17. I will save this for my cookie monster.

  18. Whoa! Looks so good! Your children are so lucky to eat your cakes growing up. It’s interesting that altitude makes the baking a little different experience. I’ve heard about it but wasn’t really aware of details. Happy Birthday to your daughter and son! 🙂

  19. Beautiful cake, I love baking special cakes for my children’s birthdays;-)

  20. You are makign me so hungry! This is so beautiful 🙂 I’m making a birthday cake for a family member right now!

  21. OMG!!! dieing to get a piece..that sounds and looks absolutely delicious!!…Just curious…will it ship to Virginia? 🙂

  22. Made this for the first time for a New Years Eve dessert. Decided to forgo the buttercream frosting and opted to cover it in fresh whipped cream, stabilized of course. WOW!! This decadent, delicious dessert impressed everyone!! The directions were spot-on and overall, quite an easy cake to make. Mind you, I am novice at baking. This not only earned me bragging rights amongst my family and friends, but made me proud to be able to provide such a fresh & unique treat. Thank you Vicki!! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!

    • Hi Frantastic treats, thank you so much for sharing your comments with me. I always love to hear from those that have tried my recipes. I’m thrilled that your creation turned out superb and everyone loved and raved about it.

      When I made it as well it was gobbled up in no time. I appreciate your comments and hope you and your family have a Happy, Healthy New Year!

      Feel free to contact me anytime if you have questions regarding any of my recipes.

      Happy Cooking!

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