M&M Cheesecake with Chocolate Covered Pretzel Crust
The broken record strikes again.
I mean, I've poured melted chocolate over the crusts of cheesecake before. I've even done chocolate covered pretzel crusts before. Somehow though, I don't really hear anyone complaining.
Okay, that's slightly a lie. People always complain about something. But seriously, "the crust is too thick"??? I don't get that. If you're looking for a pitiful crust of crumbs, walk away now.
Anywho, the star of this cheesecake is obviously the M&Ms. You guys already know my feelings on M&Ms if you've read this post. You can't just sprinkle some M&Ms on top of a cheesecake right before you serve it and think it's a done deal. No. M&Ms are meant to be baked.
Although, sprinkling some extras on top at the end won't kill you either.
- M&M Cheesecake with Chocolate Covered Pretzel Crust
- For the Crust:
- About 6 cups of pretzels (or enough to make 2 cups of fine crumbs)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup melted butter
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
- For the Cheesecake:
- 3 8-ounce packages of cream cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 1/2 cups M&Ms
- Preheat the oven to 300ºF.
- Crush the pretzels. I did this in the food processor which gave me about 2 cups of crumbs. If you don't crush them as finely, you'll probably have something closer to 3 cups which is also fine.
- Combine the crumbs, sugar, and butter for the crust and press firmly into the bottom and sides of a 9 inch springform pan. Sprinkle with the chocolate chips and bake for about ten minutes or until chocolate chips are melted. Spread around with an offset spatula (a spoon will also work if you don't have an offset spatula). Put the crust in the freezer while you prepare the filling.
- Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, and sugar until combined. Add the vanilla and eggs beating just until combined. Pour into chilled crust.
- Bake for about 40 minutes. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and sprinkle on the M&Ms. Continue baking for another 40 minutes (or until the cheesecake is set about 1 1/2 inches from the side, it might take a little longer. Don't worry though, I think mine was slightly underbaked and it was still a smashing success).
- Turn off the oven and open it about 4 inches. Allow the cheesecake to stay in the oven for about 30 more minutes (this helps the cheesecake to cool slowly and prevents cracking). Remove the cheesecake from the oven and cool 30 more minutes. Refrigerate six hours or overnight.
- Serve with whipped cream and more M&Ms (I used mini and regular for decoration).
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