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Oreo crumb crusts


JeanneCake

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I've been using Oreo crumbs (the food service pack of crumbled cookies, which I grind in a food processor to make crumbs) to line the bottom and sides of a lightly buttered removeable bottom cheesecake pan for all of my cheesecakes that call for a chocolate crust. No matter what method I use, the crust is always way too moist after baking. My pecan-graham crusts aren't this wet so I've tried cutting down on the melted butter (from 1/3 cup to 5 cups crumbs to no butter at all) but still, the crust is wet. I can add dry crumbs to the side of the cake to alleviate the bare spots and make it look more uniform, but anything that adds time subtracts $ so I'd like to fix this.

I don't bake the crust prior to pouring in the batter; sometimes I prep the pans the night before and chill them but I do not always have this much spare time so most of the time, I am prepping the pans right before making the batter. I press the dry crumbs onto the sides and bottom, then use the bottom of a 3" pan to compress the crumbs on the bottom of the pan. It's not a thick layer on the sides, more to mask the sides, but the bottom is a thicker crust.

Does anyone have any suggestions? Or does everyone else who uses this product have the same issues? Any ideas for a substitute perhaps?

Thanks,

Jeanne

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There is a considerable amount of shortening in the filling of those cookies. When you bake them, the shortening obviously melts and adds to the liquid content.

You may be able to counteract that with some flour in the mixture, but it would affect the overall color of the crust. Maybe some other kind of dry agent to absorb the extra fat would work.

Another option for the hardcore is to buy the regular Oreos, and twist each one open - discarding the filling (sacrelidge!)... Unless you can get the cookies seperately in bulk, without the filling.

Screw it. It's a Butterball.
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There is a considerable amount of shortening in the filling of those cookies. When you bake them, the shortening obviously melts and adds to the liquid content.

You may be able to counteract that with some flour in the mixture, but it would affect the overall color of the crust. Maybe some other kind of dry agent to absorb the extra fat would work.

Another option for the hardcore is to buy the regular Oreos, and twist each one open - discarding the filling (sacrelidge!)... Unless you can get the cookies seperately in bulk, without the filling.

Actually, shortening is 100% fat - no water - so even if it melts it probably isn't the cause of the soggy crust. There are most likely two culprits:

1) more sugar in the cookie crumbs which would tend to absorb water from the filling.

2) the more refined flour in the cookies is much more absorbant than the whole wheat flour of graham crackers.

I would lightly prebake the crusts to dry them out and help moisture poof them, and if you have to store them overnight, I would leave them out at room temp rather than in the cooler (which can be very humid).

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I've always used the Oreo crumbs that come in a box whenever I make chocolate crusts, and they never turn out soggy.

Same here. I was thinking that perhaps using a removable bottom cheesecake pan in a waterbath might contribute to a soggy crust, but then if that were the case, all her cheesecake

crusts would be soggy. I'm sort of stumped on this question to be honest.

Oh by the way, I've been able to buy in straight Oreo crumbs from my suppliers in the past.

It's just the cookie part, ground into crumbs without the creamy centers. A real time saver in

that I didn't have to grind my crumbs in the food processor.

:smile:

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The only "crumbs" I can get from my distributor is in a blue box that is labelled crumbled oreos for food service use (it says crumbs on the box, but they're really just broken cookies). I can't use them as is because the chunks are pretty big which is why I'm grinding them in the food processor. I've never tried anything else (like Nabisco's Famous Chocolate Wafers) because of expense. I've thought about switching to chocolate graham crackers, but those aren't available from any of the distributors I do business with, which means buying them retail.

What do the crumbs you're able to get look like? How are they packaged? Maybe I need to be getting something other than these crumbled cookies.

It is very true that the walk in is humid (so is my two door True reach in) so I will keep the crusts I'm able to do in advance (always wishful thinking!) out on the rack.

Thanks!

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The only "crumbs" I can get from my distributor is in a blue box that is labelled crumbled oreos for food service use (it says crumbs on the box, but they're really just broken cookies).

Yeah, I used to get those too, but I didn't like all the shortening in those pesky creamy centers, and I didn't like the extra step of grinding it all myself, so on a whim I asked my supplier if I could get pre-ground Oreo crumbs without the creamy centers. I half expected a look from him like, "Are you crazy?", but he looked up Oreo on his computer and found out that yes, he did stock "Oreo crumbs". So I got my delivery a few days later, and there it was, a large box of finely ground Oreo cookie crumbs (about 50 lbs?).....with the brand name on the box and everything. All I had to do was scoop some crumbs into my bowl, add a bit 'o butter and I was good to go.

I have definitely found that it can be hard to get your supplier to do any legwork for you. Suppliers that want to keep your business will go to great lengths to find stuff for you.....like

order the stuff you want from another supplier to keep you from going to that supplier.

Every time I make the threat that I'm going to "call around", they sort of "wake up" and wow,

all of a sudden they can find what you're looking for.......hmmmmmm :hmmm:

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If you can find a supplier for the Oreo crumbs without the filling you will find not only the texture better but the flavour as well. Ground Oreos really taste quite awful once you've used just the wafers.

Don't wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great. Orison Swett Marden

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