Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake

It tastes as good as it looks!  Cheesecake is my favorite!  My all time favorite cheesecake has been Caramel Brownie Cheesecake for years, but this recipe now ties for first place.  It is very rich, so a small sliver will do, and I think cheesecake tastes better with coffee.  May be it's the bitter taste of the coffee that rounds out the rich sweetness of the cheesecake.  Don't be turned off by the amount of work it takes to make this recipe.  It is worth all the effort.  First, you make the oreo crust from scratch and set it in the refrigerator to chill.  Then, you make the eggless cookie dough from scratch, scoop out balls of dough onto a plate, and let them sit in the freezer while you mix up the cheesecake.  After you mix the cheesecake ingredients, you fold in the cookie dough and some more chocolate chips and pour into your crust.  It has to bake for an hour, sit in the hot oven with the door cracked for an hour, cool to room temperature on a wire rack for about an hour, and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.  So don't plan on making this the day you want to eat it.  Cheesecake keeps in the refrigerator for a week, and I think the taste gets better every day.

Ingredients:
For the crust:
24 Oreo cookies (whole cookie, including the filling) crushed
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

For the cookie dough:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 Tbsp milk
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

For the cheesecake:
32 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Grease a 9 in springform pan with Crisco and flour.
3.  Mix butter and Oreos for crust and press into the bottom and halfway up the sides of the pan.  Set in refrigerator.
4.  To make cookie dough, cream together the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
5.  Add the milk and vanilla, and mix until blended.
6.  Blend in the flour and salt just until combined.
7.  Stir in the mini chocolate chips with a spatula.
8.  Scoop teaspoon size portions of the dough and place on a large plate in the freezer.
9.  To make the cheesecake, beat the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt with an electric mixer until creamy and no more lumps of cheesecake remain, about 3 minutes.
10.  Add the heavy cream and vanilla, and beat to combine.
11. Beat in the eggs and yolk one at a time, beating for about 15 seconds before adding the next.  Using a spatula, scrape down the sides and evenly incorporate.
12.  Fold in the balls of cookie dough and the mini chocolate chips.
13.  Pour the filling into the chilled crust and spread into an even layer.
14.  Place the pan on a foil lined baking sheet, and bake 45-60 minutes.  The outer couple of inches should look puffed and the center still jiggly.
15.  Turn off the oven, crack the door, and leave the cheesecake inside for an hour.
16.  Place cheesecake on a wire rack to cool to room temperature, and run a knife around the edge of the cake
17.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

*Leftover cheesecake can be stored in refrigerator for up to one week.