Rich, chocolatey Oreos make this cheesecake a decadent treat. But hidden in its deliciousness is a healthy flax seed crust and tofu that you won’t even notice is there!
For my daughter’s birthday she asked me to bake her a cheesecake. I decided to bake her an Oreo cheesecake since that’s her number one favorite cookie.
I love adding healthy ingredients in everything I cook and bake, even in something as indulgent as an Oreo cheesecake. I just can’t help but sneak something healthy in it!
For the crust, instead of using Oreos, I made one with flax seeds, sugar and olive oil. The crust comes out crunchy and sweet, no one noticed it was made from flax seeds and no butter.
Good reasons to cook with flax seeds:
- Loaded with omega-3 fatty acids which may help reduce inflammation and lower the risk of heart disease
- High in fiber and protein
- Contains many nutrients such as magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, copper, and thiamin
For the filling, I use a mix of cream cheese, Oreos and tofu blended all together. This gives the cheesecake an extra boost of nutrition. Also, because tofu has such a mild taste it was covered up by all the other sweet and delicious ingredients.
Good reasons to cook with tofu:
- Excellent source of protein
- Good source of iron, calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc
- Contains isoflavones that may help in preventing some cancers, heart disease and osteoporosis
Best part is, no one will notice they ate flax seeds or tofu!
FOR MORE HIDDEN TOFU RECIPES, CHECK OUT:
- Healthy frittata with hidden tofu
- Homemade soft cheese rolls with hidden tofu
- Pesto pasta with hidden tofu
Oreo Cheesecake with Hidden Tofu and Flax Seed Crust
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 3/4 cup ground flax seeds
- 4 TB olive oil
- 3 TB sugar
For the filling:
- 8 OZ cream cheese softened at room temperature
- 7 OZ tofu about 1/2 a pack
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1/2 cup cream
- 8 Oreos
For the topping:
- 7 Oreos chopped
Instructions
To make the crust
- Preheat oven to 375°F or 190°C.
- In a bowl, combine ground flax seeds, olive oil and sugar. Mix well.
- Transfer into a greased 5 inch round cake pan. Use a spoon to distribute it evenly and press the mixture into the pan to create a firm crust.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Take it out of the oven and let it cool while you prepare the filling.
To make the filling:
- Preheat oven to 375°F or 190°C.
- In a blender, put cream cheese, tofu, eggs, salt, vanilla, flour, cream and Oreos. Pulse until just combined. Don’t over mix or there will be a lot of air bubbles.
- Pour mixture into crust.
- Bake for 40 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let it cool.
- Put it in the refrigerator overnight or at minimum 4 hours.
To make the topping (optional):
- Chop Oreos and put in on top to decorate. Note: you may want to put some whip cream on so the Oreos have something to stick to. I didn’t because I wanted to save on some of the calories 😛
