Cookies and Cream Cake

If you’re a fan of cookies and cream ice cream, you have got to try this cookies and cream cake! Rich, dense and full of cookie goodness, this cake is what dreams are cookie lovers’ dreams are made of! The cake is made with cream cheese, giving that characteristic vanilla cream taste, cookies baked into the cake and pureed into the frosting, and covered with chocolate ganache. Every bite will send your taste buds into a tizzy!

Cake Ingredients: 

2 cups all-purpose flour (I like Bob’s Red Mill)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened (I used Tillamook)
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
8 oz cream cheese (I used Philadelphia)
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 cups oreos, roughly chopped

Frosting Ingredients: 

2 cups butter, softened
5-6 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup finely crushed oreos (I crushed mine in the food processor)

Ganache Ingredients: 

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and grease and line three 6″ cake pans. Whisk together the dry ingredients, flour through salt in a medium bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar, and beat until well combined. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl as needed. Add the cream cheese and buttermilk, mixing until all ingredients have come together. The batter may look piecey at this stage, which is ok!

Add the dry ingredients, mixing on low speed until just combined. Stir in the oreos by hand with a spatula, making sure they’re evenly distributed within the batter. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pans, and bake about 38-42 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs.

For the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time, and then add the vanilla extract. Add the finely crushed oreos, starting the mixer on low and increasing the speed to high for about 3 minutes. If the frosting is too wet, add another cup of powdered sugar. If it’s too dry, add a tablespoon of heavy cream.

For the ganache: Heat the chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave-safe bowl for about a minute, or until the chocolate chips are completely melted. Allow to cool slightly, and then drizzle down the sides of the cake, finishing by covering the top of the cake as well. Let set in the fridge until hardened before adding any frosting decorations on top.