Bird's Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

Bird's Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes feature Oreo cheesecake filling baked in muffin pans and decorated with chocolate eggs for a cute, yummy Easter dessert!

Mini Oreo Cheesecakes decorated like bird's nests

Easter is on the horizon! However, since stores are rather overzealous about setting up for the next holiday before the current holiday is even over, I've had a bag of white Cadbury Mini Eggs in my pantry for over a month now. Well, last week, I finally figured out what to do with them. Say hello to festive, effortless Bird's Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes!

Easter Desserts

Mini Cheesecake Inspiration

Years ago, when I was throwing lots of bridal and baby showers and didn't yet have kids myself, I discovered Paula Deen's recipe for Mini Cream Cheese Tarts, which were basically little cheesecakes baked in a muffin pan using whole Nilla Wafer cookies as the individual crusts. I typically baked them in my mini muffin pans, using mini Nilla Wafers, and then prettied them up with drizzled chocolate, fresh raspberries, and mint leaves. I thought I was pretty fancy, y'all...ooo la la.

Bird's Nest Desserts

For some reason, I hadn't thought about or made that recipe in years. But it popped into my head when I was pondering my bag of mini eggs last week. And while I didn't have any Nilla Wafers on hand, I did have a box of chocolate sandwich cookies, so I decided to give my cheesecakes an Oreo twist!

Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

I chopped up half a dozen cookies to incorporate into my cheesecake filling, which I adapted a bit from Paula's original recipe. Then I lined each muffin cup with a liner and plopped an Oreo (actually, my cookies were 365 brand, but same difference) into the bottom of each one. I poured my filling on top, baked 'em until puffy, and then allowed them to completely cool (during which time they deflated, as expected, thereby creating the perfect indentation for my impending decorations).

Easter Dessert Recipes

My eggs were at the ready but I still needed something for my birds' nests. I decided on chocolate shavings, so as not to deviate too far from my chocolatey cheesecake theme. Alas, my skills are pitifully pitiful when it comes to shaving chocolate, so instead, I finely chopped a bar of milk chocolate into long shards. To-may-to, to-mah-to.

Mini Cadbury Eggs

And the result is these cute, fun, Bird's Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes! They are SO easy to make, y'all. Remember, the crust involves an already-made, store-bought cookie and the filling takes a matter of minutes to whip up. And -- as one would expect when cheesecake and Oreos and chocolate are involved -- they are quite yummy. How perfect would these be as an Easter dessert? Although they'd actually be great for any spring occasion or celebration...parties, showers, classmate or teacher treats, you name it!

Cheesecake with Oreo Crust

It doesn't get much easier than muffin pan cheesecakes. And it doesn't get much tastier than jazzing them up with Oreos! But don't think this recipe is only reserved for springtime or Easter. You can make these any time of year and enjoy them unadorned. Or you could even decorate them for other holidays. So whenever you have a chance to try them -- whether it be March, April, October, or December -- I hope they're a hit!

Bird's Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes | Easter Dessert Recipe ~ simple cheesecake filling is studded with Oreos, baked in muffin pans, and topped with chocolate shavings and candy eggs for a fun, easy treat that's perfect for spring! | FiveHeartHome.com

More Easter Treats

Bird’s Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes ~ Easy Easter Dessert!

Bird's Nest Mini Oreo Cheesecakes feature Oreo cheesecake filling baked in muffin pans and decorated with chocolate eggs for a cute, yummy Easter dessert!
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 18 mini cheesecakes
Calories: 196kcal
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Ingredients

  • 24 Oreos/chocolate sandwich cookies, DIVIDED
  • 12 ounces (1 ½ packages) cream cheese, at room temperature
  • â…“ cup sour cream
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 milk chocolate bar, shaved or finely chopped into long, thin shards (about 1 ½ ounces total)
  • 36 mini candy-coated chocolate eggs, such as Cadbury Mini Eggs

Instructions

  • Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Prepare muffin pans by lining 18 muffin cups with paper liners. Lay an Oreo in the bottom of each lined muffin cup. Chop the remaining 6 Oreos and set aside.
  • In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese until smooth. Blend in the sour cream and beat until fluffy. Add the sugar, vanilla, and one egg at a time; beat until well blended, scraping the bowl as needed. Fold in the chopped Oreos.
  • Evenly divide the cheesecake mixture between the 18 prepared muffin cups. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the cheesecakes are puffed up and set in the middle. Allow the cheesecakes to cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then remove them to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely. Refrigerate them for several hours before removing the paper liners (which will help prevent the cheesecake from sticking to the liners).
  • Before serving, sprinkle each cheesecake with shavings/shards of chocolate (to resemble a bird's nest) and place two candy-coated chocolate eggs on top. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Notes

  • I like to chop the Oreos so that some are finely chopped and some are coarsely chopped, because I prefer having little pieces of cookie distributed through the cheesecake with some bigger chunks as well.
  • It's okay to decorate the cheesecake several hours or up to a day ahead of time. But if you decorate them too far ahead of time, the candy-coated chocolate eggs will attract condensation in the refrigerator and the coating will start to break down.

Nutrition

Calories: 196kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 41mg | Sodium: 146mg | Potassium: 84mg | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 310IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 1.7mg
Made this recipe? I'd love to see on IG!Mention @FiveHeartHome or tag #FiveHeartHome!

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