Chocolate Cheesecake Recipe

This Chocolate Cheesecake recipe is the right thing for chocoholics. It's creamy, extremely chocolatey, and decadent. 3 ingredient Oreo cookie crust, lots of high-quality chocolate, and cocoa. Prepared in 15 minutes with just 10 ingredients. Super easy to make and no fancy ingredients involved. Detailed step-by-step photos and video.

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• Photo instructions
• Freezing instructions
• Why did my Cheesecake crack?
• Related recipes
• Recipe and Video

Photo instructions

Start with lining the springform pan with parchment paper. If you cover the bottom and the sides of the springform pan entirely, you don’t need to worry about how to remove cheesecake from the springform pan. After baking and chilling, just open the pan and remove the paper from the cheesecake.

Take the bottom of a springform pan and line it with parchment paper. Then place the ring of the springform pan on top of the bottom and close it slowly. Adjust the paper while closing the ring that it doesn’t wrap in the center.

Then cut the paper around the edges of the pan. Cut about 3 inches (7-8cm) broad stripes for the sides of the pan. Take one of the stripes and line the sides of the pan. Spray a bit of non-stick spray underneath the paper that it sticks to the pan. Alternatively, you can use oil and a brush. Repeat until the sides of the pan are completely covered with parchment.

Let's move on to the crust. Oreo cookie crumbs, unsweetened cocoa, and melted butter is everything you need for the crust.

The fastest way to get Oreo cookie crumbs is to place the Oreo cookie sandwiches (including the filling) in a food processor and pulse a few seconds until finely ground into crumbs. Alternatively, you can place them in a zip-lock bag and smash them with the rolling pin into fine crumbs.

Then combine Oreo crumbs, cocoa, and melted butter. You can use either dutch-processed cocoa powder or natural cocoa powder. Stir until evenly moistened. This works best with a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon. It should look like in the picture below.

Transfer to the prepared springform pan and press the crumbs with the back of a flat bottomed cup into the bottom of the pan and halfway up the sides. Freeze until the filling is done.

The filling is also super easy to make.

Start with beating the cream cheese, sugar, and unsweetened cocoa powder. Mix just until combined, smooth, and no lumps remain.

I recommend using room temperature cream cheese because it combines faster and better with the other ingredients. If the cream cheese is too cold, you tend to overmix it to get rid of all lumps.

So room temperature cream cheese = less mixing = better incorporating with the other ingredients = no lumps = BETTER. Why it is important not to overmix the batter, you will know when you read on.

The recipe works with brick style cheesecake as it is available in the US as well as the spreadable cream cheese which is available in the EU.

Then add melted high-quality chocolate. This means that we have cocoa in the crust and the filling and additional melted chocolate in the filling. If this doesn't sound like chocolate heaven, I don't know what does.

Make sure to use high-quality chocolate from a chocolate brand you love. The quality and taste of the chocolate have a high impact on the taste of the Chocolate Cheesecake. I used semi-sweet chocolate from Lindt. I don't recommend using milk chocolate or very dark chocolate because the cheesecake filling would be too sweet or not sweet at all.

Then add one egg at the time and mix just until incorporated. Don't overmix at any step. As you can see in the pictures below, the cheesecake filling transfers from firm to liquid with every egg you add.

First egg: 

Second egg: 

Forth egg:

Fifth egg: 

After adding all eggs, the batter should look like this:

Add heavy whipping cream, salt, and vanilla and mix to combine.

Before you add the batter to the crust, it should look like this:

Fill into chilled crust and spread evenly. You don't need to wrap aluminum foil around the pan to catch the liquid that is leaking during the baking process. I always place a piece of parchment paper under the pan while baking. The paper prevents liquid from dropping on the bottom of your oven.

Then bake until the center is just set with puffed edges. To tell when your chocolate cheesecake is done, gently shake the pan. The edges should be very lightly browned and set with a slight jiggle in the center. The wobbly center should be about 3-4 inches in diameter and very bright and shiny.

Do not check with a toothpick because this is not significant. Don’t worry that your cheesecake is still wobbly. It is not underbaked and the cheesecake firms up when it cools.

Freezing instructions

• Freeze the whole cheesecake: Let the cheesecake cool as described and then chill for about 4 hours. Then remove the ring from the springform pan and wrap the cheesecake with the bottom of the pan in plastic foil twice. Then wrap in aluminum foil twice. Take care that it is completely sealed and no air is enclosed or can come in. Freeze up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge overnight. Therefore remove the foil and the plastic wrap and place the cheesecake in an airtight container. Decorate before serving and eat within 2 days.
• Freeze single slices: After chilling cut into slices (without toppings) and wrap each slice tightly in plastic wrap twice. Place in freezer bags and squeeze out all the air. Freeze up to 1 month. For thawing, unwrap the cheesecake and place in an airtight container in the fridge overnight. Decorate before serving and eat within 2 days.

Why did my Cheesecake crack?

• Overmixing. Don’t overmix the filling. There shouldn't be any air in the filling. Mix at every step just until combined.
• Overbaking. Please don't bake the cheesecake until it is completely firm in the center. Just the top of the center should be set with a jiggly underneath. It should wobble like a pudding when shaking the pan.
• Opening the oven door too early. Let the oven closed during the baking time. Just at the very end, you can open the door to check if the cheesecake is done. Check the first time after 50 minutes.
• Fast temperature changes. Cheesecake hates fast changes in temperature. After baking, crack open the door and let the cheesecake in the oven for one hour. Then remove from the oven and cool to room temperature before chilling in the refrigerator.

If your cheesecake cracks, please don't panic. The cheesecake is not ruined, you don’t need to throw it away, it is not bad, it is the same in taste and texture, and you can still eat it. And if the crack bugs you because of the look? Cover it with ganache, whipped cream, or lots of berries (or all of that?). Nobody will know that there is a crack. So don’t panic because of a crack, the world is still good. And delicious.

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Recipe and Video