Reese Cup Cheesecake

Wow, wow, wow.  When my honey asked me for a Reese's Cheesecake, I was more than happy to oblige.  Honestly, I didn't expect it to be THIS GOOD!  This recipe was adapted from the Food.com recipe for the Ruggle's Reese Cup Cheesecake.

What you'll need:


For the crust:
4 1/2 cups oreo cookies (crushed)
1/2 cup butter melted

For the filling:
2 lbs cream cheese (softened)
5 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup of smooth creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
24 Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Miniatures (broken into pieces, divided)

Topping:
2 ounces sour cream
1/2 cup granulated sugar

**This is a plan-ahead dessert....cheesecake will need to chill for 4 hours prior to serving**

Preheat oven to 275°.

Make the Crust:

1.  Combine Oreo cookies (I crushed mine using a food processor) and melted butter.  Stir until the cookie crumbs are completely coated.
2.  Pat mixture into bottom and up the sides of a 10-inch spring form pan.

Make the Filling

1.  Beat room temperature cream cheese in bowl of an electric mixer until smooth.
2.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3.  Add sugar, peanut butter, and cream.  Mix until smooth.
4.  Stir in vanilla.
5.  Fold in peanut butter cups with a rubber spatula.
6.  Pour filling into spring form pan that has been prepared with crust.
7.  Place spring form pan into a larger, deeper baking pan.
8.  Pour HOT water into bottom pan, until it reaches 1 inch up the sides of the spring form pan.
9.  Bake at 275° for 1 hr and 45 minutes or until firm and lightly browned.
10.  Spread topping mixture over the cake and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
11.  Turn off the oven and allow cake to cool IN THE OVEN for 1 hour.  (This prevents cracking)

To Make the Topping:

1.  Combine sour cream and granulated sugar and mix well.

Garnish:

When the cake has completely cooled, remove it from the oven and top it with remaining chopped peanut butter cups.  Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.