Now this is the kind of Butterfingers I wouldn’t mind being.
Happy Thursday, all! This gorgeous sonofabih was a long time in my mental making, and, luckily for you, much less time in my physical sharing. She was a labor of love that I cannot wait for you to experience.
Butterfinger cheesecake was a treat my mom bought from the frozen aisle at the store, before taking it upon herself to learn a homemade version that blew everyone’s socks off upon first bite. No idea what recipe she used. I suppose I could’ve asked, but we have this one now, so why not give it a go?
Fun fact: I actually don’t love Butterfingers as a lone candy, but swirled into a decadent No Bake Butterfinger Cheesecake, I’ll take the chewy, crunchy bits any day. A creamy whipped peanut butter base is speckled with chopped candies, laid atop a peanut butter Oreo crust, and finished with silky ganache and even more candy. Like a Halloween treat in a springform pan.
Save this for exquisite gatherings like the holidays upcoming, or birthdays! Or to woo your boo on a random autumn weekend.
Butterfingers On Your Fingers
Hang with me here, fellas. There’s a lot of steps, none particularly hard, and be sure to reference the photos as needed if you’re more a visual learner.
Step 1: Prep the pan. Grease an 8 or 9 inch springform pan with butter or oil, just a nice light coating. Cut out a circle of parchment and fit to the bottom of your pan, as flush as possible. The size of the pan isn’t terribly important, but will impact how tall your cheesecake is. My pan was 9 inches.
Step 2: The crust. In a food processor, combine lots of peanut butter Oreos with a stick of melted butter. Pulse until cohesive and reduced to a fine crumb. The bits should stick together easily when pressed between your fingers.
Press the crumbs into your springform pan, forming them up the sides as well. The crust should rise 1 1/2-2 inches upwards, in a decently thick layer (around 1/8 inch, maybe less). Once you’ve got a good layer, press firmly with the bottom of a glass to stick the pieces together further. Cover and refrigerate while you prep the filling.
Step 3: The filling. First up, whip heavy cream in a stand mixer or with your hand mixer until firm peaks form, about 4-5 minutes of speedy whippage later. The peaks will stand up on their own but should not be overaerated. Smooth but sturdy. Here, you can either move the whipped cream to a separate bowl and reuse the first bowl, or grab a second clean bowl for the cream cheese filling.
For the cream cheese component, whip two blocks of very soft full fat cream cheese (don’t skimp and use low fat, you heathens) with creamy peanut butter and powdered sugar. Do not overmix this: just keep going until the mixture is smooth and well-combined.
Tip: I do not recommend a “natural” stir variety of peanut butter. Something like Jif or Skippy Natural is okay, however.
Working 1/2 cup at a time, fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture, adding more only when the previous 1/2 cup disappears completely into the cream cheese. When all is incorporated, fold in lots of chopped Butterfingers.
Pour and spread the filling into the Oreo crust, smoothing out the top. Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours. I prefer overnight.
The ganache: The following day, or 6 hours later, prepare the ganache topping. Microwave dark chocolate chips until smooth, about 1 minute, zapping another 20-30 seconds if any little chunks remain. Pour in your heavy cream and whip until satiny and glistening.
Spread the ganache over the chilled cheesecake. It will set up quickly, so work at a good pace here. Sprinkle more crushed candies atop the ganache, leaving about 1 inch of space around the border for the frosting. Cover and pop back into the fridge for another 15-20 minutes or so.
The frosting: You don’t NEED the frosting rim, but it looks so pretty and adds another peanut butter layer to the rich concoction. To make, whip softened butter with creamy peanut butter and vanilla, then add powdered sugar and some heavy cream and blitz until very smooth. If needed, add another 1-2 tablespoons of heavy cream to soften the frosting if it seems too stiff.
Pipe the buttercream around the border of the cheesecake, with any tip you’d like.
Slice up a big piece and DIG IN. YOU’VE EARNED IT, MOFO.
Leftovers? Leftover cheesecake will keep well in the fridge for up to a week. Do not leave at room temp. Frozen cheesecake lasts up to 3 months. Be sure to thaw slices or the whole cake in the fridge for at least 8-12 hours before consuming.
Make this, love this, love yourself, cheesecake-style.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Peanut butter snacky time:
No Bake Peanut Butter Bourbon Truffle Pie
No Churn Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookie Bars
no bake butterfinger cheesecake
Ingredients
Oreo crust
- 3 cups peanut butter Oreos
- 1 stick butter, melted
butterfinger cheesecake filling
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 16 oz plain cream cheese, very soft
- 1 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 cup Butterfinger candies, crushed
chocolate ganache
- 3/4 cup dark chocolate chips or chunks
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup Butterfinger candies, crushed
peanut butter frosting
- 4 tbsp butter, softened
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar 1
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2-4 tbsp heavy cream
Instructions
- Grease the bottom and the sides of an 8 or 9 inch springform pan. Both sizes are fine – the 8 inch will be a bit taller. Cut a circle out of parchment paper to fit the bottom of your pan. Press gently to adhere.
- In a food processor, pulse the Oreos and melted butter into a very fine crumb. Scrape down the sides of the processor bowl with a spatula as needed. Dump the crumbs into the prepared pan and press across the bottom and up the sides, in as even a layer as possible. The crumbs should climb around 1 1/2-2 inches up the sides, depending on the size of your pan. To adhere further, press the crumbs in place with the bottom of a jar or glass. Place thep an in the fridge.
- In a bowl, beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form, about 4-5 minutes. The cream should stand up on its own without being too stiffly aerated. Gently scoop to a separate bowl.
- Beat together the cream cheese, peanut butter, and powdered sugar until creamy and combined. Working 1/2 cup at a time, add the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture and gently fold with a spatula. When the last of the whipped cream is incorporated and no streaks remain in the batter, fold in the chopped Butterfingers.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared springform pan, spreading evenly with a spatula. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 6 hours, but preferably overnight.
- When the cheesecake is set, make the ganache. Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave for 1 minute. Stir until completely smooth. You may need an additional 20-30 seconds of heating time to fully melt the chips. Whisk in the heavy cream until a silky texture.
- Spread the ganache over the chilled cheesecake, covering the top entirely. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped Butterfingers. Chill an extra 15-20 minutes to reset.
- In a bowl, whip the butter, peanut butter, and vanilla extract until combined, then add the powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. Beat until fluffy, adding 1-2 more tablespoons of heavy cream as needed to achieve a smooth texture.
- Pipe swirls of the peanut butter frosting around the perimeter of the cheesecake. ENJOY!
