Decadent Chocolate Cheesecake
If you are looking for a cheesecake for the ultimate chocolate lover, you have to make this decadent chocolate cheesecake!
Warning: do not attempt to view, make or devour this recipe if you do not like chocolate. A lot of chocolate. Copious amounts of deep, dark chocolate.
Including a buttery chocolate crust topped with a luscious, creamy, rich cheesecake layer, topped again with a silky, dreamy dark chocolate ganache and topped finally with whimsical chocolate curls.
Death by chocolate.
And what a way to go.
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Two Years Ago: Pumpkin Apple Spice Muffins
Decadent Chocolate Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 (9-ounce) package (255 g) chocolate cookies, such as chocolate wafers, graham crackers or teddy grahams
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter, melted
Filling:
- 10 ounces (283 g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I use Ghirardelli)
- 4 packages (8-ounces each) (908 g) cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups + 2 tablespoons (290 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (21 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 large eggs
Topping:
- ¾ cup whipping cream
- 6 ounces (170 g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Chocolate curls for garnish
Instructions
- For crust: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan with 3-inch-high sides (or use a 10-inch springform pan with 2-inch sides). Process the chocolate cookies in a food processor (or the old-fashioned way with a bag and a rolling pin) until they are finely ground. Transfer them to a small bowl and mix in the sugar. Add the melted butter and mix until well combined. Press the crumbs evenly onto the bottom only of the prepared pan. Bake just until set, about 5 minutes. Cool while preparing filling. Keep the oven heated at 350 degrees.
- For filling: Melt the 10 ounces of chocolate in the microwave or in a double boiler until melted and smooth. Cool the chocolate until lukewarm but ensure that it is still warm enough to be pourable. In a large bowl (or with a stand mixer), blend cream cheese, sugar, and cocoa powder until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time. Mix in lukewarm chocolate. Pour the cheesecake filling over the crust; smooth the top. Bake until the center is just set and just appears dry, about 1 hour. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run knife around sides of cake to loosen. Let the cheesecake cool to room temperature. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and chill overnight.
- For topping: One hour before serving (or up to 3 days ahead of time), stir cream, 6 ounces chocolate, and sugar in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Cool slightly. Pour over the center of the cheesecake, spreading to within 1/2 inch of edge and filling any cracks. Chill until the topping is set, about 1 hour.
- When ready to serve, release the springform pan sides. Transfer the cheesecake to a platter. Top with chocolate curls. It is preferable to let the cheesecake stand at room temperature for 1-2 hours before serving.
Notes
Chocolate Curls: I use this method.
Plan Ahead: this cheesecake needs to be chilled overnight so plan ahead!
Make Ahead: the good news is this cheesecake can be made all the way through the topping, covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days before serving. It is preferable to let the cheesecake stand at room temperature 1-2 hours before serving.
Serving: 1 Slice, Calories: 787kcal, Carbohydrates: 63g, Protein: 11g, Fat: 56g, Saturated Fat: 32g, Cholesterol: 183mg, Sodium: 473mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 46g
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Recipe Source: adapted slightly from epicurious.com/referred to me by my excellent bro Nate
Disclaimer: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
I’ve made this several times. Everyone loves it!! It’s been a year since I’ve made it. Made it today. Wondering how bad would it be if we try to have it tonight?
This is the BEST chocolate cheesecake EVER! I have made it 5 times now! Comes out perfect everytime. And everyone absolutely loves it. It is freaking amazing!
Would a dark chocolate work instead of the semisweet/bittersweet chocolate? or is that kinda the same thing?
Semisweet and bittersweet chocolate are both on the dark chocolate spectrum so “dark chocolate” should work just fine. 🙂
Hello, recipe looks great. I’d like to make a 6inch cheese cake. Would please give me the same recipe for that please?
Thank you for your time
Hi Gina, I’m afraid I haven’t altered the recipe for six inches, so you’ll have to experiment. Good luck!
I’m curious if you used a water bath to bake this cheesecake or just bake it on the oven rack?
I usually don’t use a water bath.
I have made this recipe a few times and am planning again for this Christmas. It is wonderful! As you say, just a small slice is enough, since it is so rich. I wanted to add that I have successfully frozen individual slices and when I thawed them a month or so later, they are still delectable. That is one of the reasons I am choosing this dessert for the holidays again this year.
This was delicious even though I made a HUGE mistake; I only put 1/4 and 2 Tbsp. sugar in the filling. Oooops!!!! It tasted like a super dark chocolate cheesecake. With berries and sweetened whipped cream on top, my whole family still gobbled it up. I am excited to try this with more sugar next time.
Delicious!
Do you use baking chocolate or chocolate chips?
I use chopped baking chocolate.
I made this for my hubby’s birthday last year. I showed him other chocolate cheesecake recipes but he has requested this one again for his birthday this year. Enough said!
In the original picture there are fudge rosettes. Are they made from the same recipe as the topping?
They are chocolate curls I make out of melted chocolate.
Hi! Thank you for this amazing recipe. It looks delicious! Would it be possible to bake this recipe in a premade Oreo crust instead of a springform pan? If so, are there any alterations I should make?
I haven’t tried that so I don’t know for sure – I think the amount of batter might be too much for a 9-inch pie crust, but you could definitely experiment!
You failed to give a temp for baking
It’s in step #1 of the recipe instructions.
I live in India and we don’t have Crisco here. Can you suggest an alternative? Would coconut oil work for the chocolate curls? Thanks!
You could definitely try that or maybe a few teaspoons of cooking oil.
Hi, how many graham crackers would you guess is 9 oz.? I was trying to figure it out from your other cheesecake recipes but couldn’t find anything conclusive. Thanks!
Probably about 7-8 rectangle graham crackers.
I was wondering which type of cocoa powder you use – dutched or nathural?
Natural
I use natural, unsweetened cocoa powder.
Great! Thanks! I can’t wait to bake this cheesecake! It does look truly decadent!
I always find that cheesecake filling recipes make more than I need. I made 2 6 inch cheesecakes and 2 3 inch cheesecakes from this recipe and was able to gift them to more people! Great, easy cake.
Great cake!
This is the only gift my mom wants for all the holidays.. A fresh made cheese cake.
I’m making this cheesecake now – it’s in the oven as I write my comment. I chose this recipe amongst many others because of its simplicity and the availability of ingredients. I hope it turns out!
Me too! Making this right now! Can’t wait to dive into it!
I made this for my friend’s birthday and it was the first time I’ve ever made a cheesecake that didn’t crack. It’s so rich and delicious and definitely decadent! Thank you so much for the recipe!
This chocolate cheesecake recipe is great. I make it all the time and put fresh raspberries on top. Everyone loves it.
Hi .. I planning on making this for Christmas dessert. Question: the whipping cream, is that heavy cream that you’d find near the milk??
Yes, that’s what I use!
Thanks!
Ok I just made it, it cracked a little on the edges. The center seems to be dry. I baked it for about 40 min. Is there a way to test it to see if it’s done all the way?
Not really – it sounds like it was baked just fine. As long as the center doesn’t jiggle a lot, it should be ok!
Did you bake in a water bath? Water bath will stop it from cracking or drying out
I have made this cheesecake many times. It’s our family’s go to recipe and I think when I die it’ll be my legacy. It’s that good! Very rich and delicious. Just make sure you have an army to help eat it, since a sliver will be just enough.
Glad you love this one, Sarah! That would be a good legacy to leave! 🙂
I made this for my husband’s family reunion. It was amazing! We had a friendly bake-off, and I won, which is no small feat — everyone in his family are accomplished cooks! They called it the “Death By Chocolate Cheesecake,” and it was the only dessert to be completely devoured (despite everyone being miserably full). I didn’t even get a slice, it was gone within the first hour and I had to eat my daughter’s leftovers that she couldn’t finish (she’s 8 and got a bigger slice than was warranted). It’s incredibly rich and filling, I agree with one of the other comments, plan on cutting smaller slices than you normally would… but WOW! FANTASTIC recipe! And very easy. I used Ghirardelli semi-sweet and bittersweet chocolate, and baked it in a water bath (I cook with gas). Thank you!
Yay! Congrats!
This is an amazing recipe! I absolutely love this cheesecake! I used to not like cheesecake but I totally fell in love with this! One thing though make sure you plan ahead because this cake has to chill overnight.
Thanks so much – my specifics as I found others’ comments helpful: (1) Deconstructed a mix of Newman’s and actual oreos for the crust, putting the cookie fillings aside – didn’t add more butter so bottom may be crumbly (oh well); (2) Used 275g Scharffen Berger semi-sweet (62%) for the filling; (3) Used 165g Scharffen Berger bittersweet plus most of the cookie centres for the ganache (no added sugar); (4) Used the remaining 110g bittersweet Scharffen Berger and a few of the cookie centres and tried linked technique but coconut oil instead of Crisco for the curls…not much curl action happened likely due to operator error (oh well again). The cake looks amazing! – Thank you!!!
Just made this! Will have to wait until Sunday to try it but it looks and smells heavenly!
Good, best to serve at room temp as mine was a bit hard but then it made the ganache to runny, next time i will use less cream. Thanks for the recipe
DELICIOUS. This was easy to make, and everyone enjoyed it! Thank you for this fool-proof recipe.
BONUS Note: This makes approx. 14-16 generous portions, not 8-10.
I had in the past a ghiadelilli chocolate cheesecake receipe that was amazing and now lost the receipe. I had made it from scratch and the crust I made it with Nabisco famous chocolate wafers and added dark coffee which it asked for, I recall using cream cheese, semi ghiadelilli chocolate melted and nutmeg and several other stuff, please help me I want to make it like today I’m dying for it. It also gave and showed instructions step by step, please help