Thin Mints cheesecake is a rich, creamy dessert that combines cool mint and rich chocolate with the iconic Girl Scout cookies for the perfect decadent dessert. This is an indulgent yet refreshing dessert and absolutely perfect for Thin Mints lovers!
I always look forward to the end of January, because the end of January means it's Girl Scouts cookie time! I loved Girl Scouts as a kid, as a Girl Scout leader and now as a baker too. As a baker, I love using Girl Scout cookies as an ingredient in other desserts. Thin Mints are dreamy in cupcakes like my Thin Mints Cupcakes recipe, and they're dreamy in cheesecakes too. The nostalgic flavor of Girl Scout cookies just elevates any other dessert. It's that place where the familiar meets the unexpected. Pure dessert bliss!
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Ingredients
- Thin Mints cookies
- Oreo cookies
- Salted butter
- White sugar
- Cream cheese
- Eggs
- Peppermint extract
- Chocolate melting wafers
See recipe card for quantities.
HOW TO BAKE A CHEESECAKE WITHOUT CRACKS
Okay, let's get to one of the biggest issues with cheesecakes: unsightly cracks. Cracks don't make the cheesecake taste any differently and, of course, they could be covered up. But, there are two main things to know to avoid cracks: baking temperature and water baths.
Bake at a lower temperature
For temperature, cheesecakes turn out best when baked at a lower temperature. For that reason, I bake almost all of my cheesecakes, including this one, at 325 degrees.
Use the moat method for the water bath
The most basic way to do a water bath is to wrap the springform pan with aluminum foil and place it in a roasting pan with water and then hope it doesn't leak. But, have you ever wrapped it super carefully with the extra wide aluminum foil only to discover that it still leaked? Yes, me too. Instead, I use the moat method. To use the moat method, place your 8 or 9 inch springform pan inside a 10 inch cake pan. Then place the 10 inch cake pan into a larger roasting pan with water. With this moat method, there is no possible way that water gets in to your springform pan. I've never had a cheesecake crack when I've combined a lower baking temperature with the moat method.
Steam baths
Ok, say you don't have a roasting pan big enough to fit your springform pan and cake pan. You can do the steam bath method, which usually works. I will say it's not quite as fool proof as the moat method though. But you can fill a 9x13 pan with one inch of water and place it on the oven rack directly beneath the springform pan. (If you have a cake pan, you can still put the springform pan in a cake pan according to the above moat method.) The water in the pan creates steam and a humid environment in the oven which helps to prevent cracks.
Variations
- Decorating - there are many, many ways to decorate a cheesecake. You can use a ganache instead of the melting chocolate for a drizzle with a softer texture. You can do straight lines of drizzle back and forth across the top. You can add a whipped cream topping. Extra full cookies on top. No cookies on top. So many options!
- Cookies - the reason that this recipe has part Oreos and part Thin Mints is Thin Mints are expensive, so I like to keep my recipes to one box of Thin Mints or less. You need a few leftover to sample after all! I also feel like Thin Mints have a little too much fat to use all Thin Mints in the crust. However, you could easily replace all the Thin Mints with Oreos for a mint Oreo cheesecake though.
- Food coloring - my personal preference is minimal food coloring, but you could easily add some green food coloring to the cheesecake filling. If you want to add food coloring, add it at the beginning with the cream cheese blocks.
Equipment
To make the best cheesecakes, a stand up mixer or hand held mixer is needed. Also, a springform pan is super helpful if you want to take the cheesecake easily out of the pan. However, if you don't have a roasting pan big enough, you can fill a 9x13 pan with an inch of water to create a steam bath instead.
Storage
Store the Thin Mints cheesecake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days.
Next Level Tips
- Always use room temperature cream cheese and room temperature eggs for cheesecakes.
- The very best way to avoid cheesecake cracks is to bake at a lower temperature and use the moat method, as described above and in the FAQs. This is where you place your springform pan inside of a cake pan and then put the cake pan in a roasting pan with water. This avoids leaky aluminum foil yet still doesn't allow direct heat on the springform pan.
- Allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven without touching it for two hours. Then move the springform pan to a cooling rack and allow the cheesecake to come to room temperature before placing it in the refrigerator.
- Cheesecake needs time to set in the refrigerator after baking. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours; however, overnight is best.
- I love to use offset or artsy designs on the tops of cheesecakes. If you like a dead-center kind of centerpiece or a ring of whipping cream swirls around the edges, go for it. I've done lots and lots of those. Currently, I go for more of an artsy look. This one was decorated with some random swirls using Ghirardelli dark chocolate flavored melting wafers and chopped Thin Mints. It was done within minutes. It can be that easy!
FAQ
Yes! However, you can carefully speed up this process if you forgot to set out the cream cheese and eggs. Most microwaves now have a soften option. You can carefully soften the cream cheese in the microwave to room temperature but not melted. For the eggs, you can place them from the refrigerator into a bowl of warm (not hot) water to quicken up the process for the eggs. However, I do recommend letting the cream cheese and eggs come to room temperature naturally on the counter. Unless you're in a pinch, of course. We've all been there!
The reason we pack the crust tightly, but not too tightly, into the springform pan is so that we can easily remove the bottom of the springform pan without the crust crumbling. After the rim of the springform pan is off, take a cake lifter (or metal pizza peel or a very large spatula) and gently slide it in between cheesecake crust and bottom of springform pan. Don't lift the cheesecake up in the air. Instead, use the cake lifter to slide the cheesecake sideways off of the springform bottom onto a serving plate or a round cardboard cake board. You can buy a cheap cake lifter on Amazon or at a Hobby Lobby type store in the baking section. If you're using a large metal spatula, run it under the entire outer edge first before using it to gently slide the cheesecake.
The moat method creates a barrier between the springform pan and the direct heat of the oven. Kind of like in the olden days when castles used moats to protect the castles from invaders! So, in the moat method, we place the springform pan into a larger cake pan before putting the cake pan into a larger roasting pan with the water bath. There ends up to be a moat (of air) that separates the springform pan from the cake pan and the water bath. I highly recommend doing it this way as it works great.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Thin Mints Cheesecake
Equipment
- 1 Stand or hand mixer
- 1 8 or 9 inch springform pan
- 1 10 inch cake pan optional
- 1 large roasting pan optional
Ingredients
Crust
- 1½ cups Oreo cookies (approx. 20 cookies) centers removed
- ½ cup Thin Mints cookies (approx. 5 cookies)
- 6 tablespoon s salted butter melted
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- ½ teaspoon pepermint extract
Cheesecake filling
- 4 cream cheese blocks (8 ounces each) room temperature
- 1 cup white sugar
- 4 eggs room temperature
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
- ½ cup Thin Mints (approx 5. cookies) chopped
Cheesecake toppings
- ½ cup melting chocolate wafers melted
- Thin Mints (approx 2. cookies) chopped
- Additional Thin Mints for decoration
Instructions
Make the crust
- Preheat oven to 325°. Spray 8 or 9 inch springform pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- Remove the white centers of the Oreos and discard. Use a food processor to grind the Oreos and Thin Mints into small crumbs. [It's ok to have some bigger pieces of cookies as the grind doesn't need to be too fine.]
- Mix the cookie crumbs, melted butter, peppermint extract and 2 tablespoons of white sugar together until well combined.
- Add the crust mixture to the springform pan. Pat down flat with hands or a flat measuring cup with medium pressure. It should be packed firmly but not too hard.
Make the Filling
- Place the room temperature cream cheese into the mixing bowl and mix on low speed until creamy and all lumps are gone. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Add the white sugar and peppermint extract to the mixing bowl and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Next, add the eggs one at a time. Mix on low speed just until each egg is combined before adding the next egg. Between eggs, scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Gently stir in the chopped Thin Mints cookies until evenly distributed.
Bake and Cool the Cheesecake
- Add the filling to the springform pan. Place the springform pan in a larger cake pan (or cover sides of springform pan with aluminum foil). Fill the roasting pan with one inch of water. Carefully add the springform pan in a cake pan (moat method) or with an aluminum foil wrap into the roasting pan with water. [See FAQ or post description on why the moat method is preferred.]
- Bake at 325° for about 60 minutes until the center is mostly set. Then, turn off the oven and open the oven door to start cooling. Leave alone for two hours. After two hours, remove the cake pan (or wrapped springform pan) from the oven and the water bath and let cool on a cooling rack until room temperature.
- Before placing in the refrigerator, run a knife around the edges to loosen the cheesecake from the sides. Cover and refrigerate a minimum of 6 hours but preferably overnight.
- After 6 hours, or preferably the next day, remove the rim. Also, remove the cheesecake from the bottom of the springform pan (see FAQ if needed) if so desired and decorate the cheesecake.
Decorate the cheesecake
- Melt the melting chocolate wafers in the microwave according to the package instructions. Most melt in less than 60 seconds. Using a decorator squeeze bottle, a piping bag or a spoon, drizzle the chocolate onto the cheesecake. Top with chopped and/or whole Thin Mints cookies.
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