Keep the heat out of the kitchen and make a pan of these No Bake Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars for your next party. Filled with crunchy chocolate cookies and creamy cheesecake in every bite, these easy, make-ahead bars will quickly become your new summer go-to dessert.
Cookies and Cream Cheesecake is always a crowd favorite! These easy no-bake bars need to go to the top of your must-make list for your next party, barbecue or just because it's Monday.
Your family and friends will thank you. Promise.
Why this recipe works
Sometimes the best desserts are the easiest ones.
You know the ones I'm talking about, right? Short ingredient lists and one-bowl wonders that don't even need to go in the oven but still look and taste like they are complex and time consuming to put together?
That, my friends, is my summer love language when it comes to desserts.
These No Bake Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars hit all of these important criteria. It's got the chocolate cookie crust that my friends and family go crazy for, is topped with layers of whipped cheesecake and has chocolate cookies wedged in between it all.
These cheesecake bars are light and airy but full of flavor; kinda like a summer version of the dense, baked cheesecake we love.
Best of all? They aren't too sweet thanks to a generous scoop of tangy sour cream.
It's a dessert nirvana.
Ingredients
- chocolate cookies or chocolate sandwich cookies
- butter
- cream cheese
- sugar
- sour cream
- whipped topping or whipping cream
- Mini Oreo Cookies
Helpful Equipment
- We love USA Bakeware. This 8 x 8 pan is a workhorse in our kitchen.
- This precut parchment paper makes lining the pan an easy task.
- A good food processor makes cookies crumbs for the crust a no brainer.
- A quality hand mixer makes light and creamy cheesecake batter
Instructions
- Lining the pan is the first step. You’re going to need an overlap of parchment paper or nonstick foil to use as handles to lift the cheesecake bars out of the pan when you’re ready to cut and serve them.
- Next up is making the chocolate cookie crust. In a small bowl stir together some chocolate cookie crumbs with sugar and melted butter. Evenly press into the bottom of the prepared pan and pop it in the freezer while you make the batter. Pro Tip: I like to use the bottom of a drinking glass to press the chocolate cookie mixture into the pan to keep the crust even.
Preparation Tips
- Make sure your ingredients are room temperature. Room temperature cream cheese and sour cream make the batter nice and smooth.
- Use a large bowl to cream the sugar and cream cheese so the batter doesn't spray all over your kitchen.
- Make sure your batter is smooth before you spread it in the pan
- Pop your chocolate cookie crust in the freezer while you are making the cheesecake filling to get it to set quickly.
- Freeze the bars to get them set, but remove from freezer 30 minutes before serving otherwise they are difficult to cut.
The contrasting layers of cheesecake and crushed Oreo cookies make these bars pretty enough to serve to company but easy enough to whip up on during the week when the sweet tooth craving hits.
We love cheesecake bars! In fact, we have 8 cheesecake bar recipes on our site!
If you want a fruity version of no-bake cheesecake, check out this No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Bar recipe!
More Cheesecake Bar Recipes
- Lemon Cheesecake Bars- Garnish with Lemon®
- White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars- Garnish with Lemon®
- Gluten Free Cherry Almond Cheesecake Bars- Garnish with Lemon®
No Bake Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
- 20 chocolate sandwich cookies ground into crumbs in food processor
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup sour cream
- 8 ounces Whipped topping thawed (or 1 cup whipping cream, whipped to stiff peaks with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar)
- 2 cups mini chocolate sandwich cookies coarsely chopped divided
Instructions
- Line the bottom of an 8 x 8 pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- In a small bowl combine cookie sandwich crumbs with melted butter until all of the butter is absorbed. Press the chocolate cookie crumb mixture into the bottom of the pan and press with fingers until mixture is compacted. Freeze for 15 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, place cream cheese and sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Add sour cream and mix until combined. Fold in thawed Cool Whip or homemade whipped topping and stir until combined.
- Pour half of the cream cheese filling on top of the crust. Scatter 1 cup of the chopped cookies over the batter and gently add the rest of the cream cheese filling over top. Scatter the remaining chopped chocolate cookies on top. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours or until set.
- Cut into squares and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info not guaranteed to be accurate.
You don't need to turn the oven on to get an amazing summer dessert. These No Bake Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Bars are always a crowd favorite!
That always happens to me – a recipe that just sticks in my mind! And I can see why this one did – they look and sound delicious! Happy Cheesecake Day!
My daughter loves cookies and cream and I decided to make this for her (well, I made it for the whole family, not *just* for her!). I only replaced the sour cream with creme fraiche, but did everything else as per the recipe. We looooooved it so much! It was so easy and it tasted even better the next day! Thank you for sharing such an awesome recipe! 🙂
Love the addition of Creme fraiche. So happy your family loved it!
Love how simple this recipe is! It's such a great idea to make desserts like this one for summer parties so you don't have to think about it when guests are around!