No-Bake Halloween Candy Cheesecake Recipe
Halloween is the absolute perfect holiday to get creative in the kitchen, especially when it comes to all things sweet treats. Halloween-time treats tend to fall into one of two categories: they look festive or they taste festive, and they almost always boast some sort of seasonal ingredient.
- 25 Oreo cookies
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 pint heavy cream, divided
- 1 (11-ounce) package soft caramel candies, unwrapped
- 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 chocolate peanut butter cups
- Halloween candy, to garnish
- To prepare the crust, in a food processor, pulse the Oreo cookies to fine crumbs.
- Add the melted butter and salt and pulse lightly to combine.
- Press the Oreo crumbs into and about halfway up the sides of a 9- or 10-inch springform pan.
- Chill until ready to use.
- Clean out the food processor bowl. Then process 1 ½ cups heavy cream to medium peaks.
- Transfer the whipped cream to a large bowl.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the remaining ½ cup cream and caramels in short spurts, whisking often, until melted and smooth.
- In the same food processor bowl (without cleaning), pulse the cream cheese and salt until smooth.
- Add half of the caramel mixture and pulse to combine.
- Scrape down the sides, then add the remaining caramel, reserving 2 tablespoons for drizzling, if desired, and pulse until smooth.
- Fold the cream cheese mixture into the whipped cream until uniform. Taste and add optional confectioners’ sugar, if desired, for additional sweetness.
- Space the peanut butter cups out in the Oreo crust.
- Spread the cheesecake filling over the peanut butter cups in the crust.
- Cover and chill at least 4 hours.
- Run a knife or spatula around the edges to loosen, then unmold the cheesecake.
- Top with Halloween candy, drizzle with reserved caramel if using, and serve.
Aside from how adorably on-theme this cheesecake is in both looks and taste, it's also a great fall treat because it's so easy to make. Regular cheesecake takes some time and finesse in the kitchen, but no-bake cheesecake is easy to prepare and requires absolutely no oven use (not even for the crust!). I also love all the sweet tiers of flavors that this dessert has to offer, ranging from the chocolatey Oreo crust to the rich, caramel-infused cheesecake filling itself to the pops of peanut butter cups hidden throughout. Despite the seemingly over-the-top sweetness on display, the signature cheesecake tanginess makes this a surprisingly balanced dessert.
For the highest level of spooktacular appeal, I recommend topping off your cheesecake with all sorts of holiday-themed treats, like candy corn, Halloween Oreo chunks, gummy worms, and Reese's Pieces, along with a drizzle of caramel to go all-out on the sugar rush (because it is Halloween, after all).
Gather the ingredients for no-bake Halloween candy cheesecake
This cheesecake recipe starts with the crust, for which you'll need Oreos (ideally Halloween ones for those extra pops of orange), melted unsalted butter, and kosher salt. Next up is the cheesecake filling, which calls for heavy cream, soft caramel candies, softened cream cheese, kosher salt, and peanut butter cups, which you'll arrange along the crust before you pour in the filling. You may also want some additional confectioners' sugar on hand, should you like your filling a little sweeter.
Finally, you'll need plenty of candy to top off the cheesecake, and it's really up to you and your family or guests' preferences. I opted for goodies like Reese's Pieces, chopped Halloween Oreos, gummy worms, chopped peanut butter cups, and candy corn, but any candy that generally falls into the color/flavor theme will work here.
