Today I'm sharing a cheesecake recipe — and not just any cheesecake, but a chocolate cheesecake! For the cheesecake I used 50 g each of 50% dark chocolate and milk chocolate, which gives a nice middle-ground flavor. But feel free to use 100 g of dark chocolate only for a more pronounced truffle flavor, or all milk chocolate for a milder, softer chocolate taste. Either way, you'll want to adjust the amount of sugar accordingly — either up or down. To make the cheesecake extra delicate, soft, and creamy, I combined cream cheese with mascarpone in a 2-to-1 ratio. For the topping I went with a classic ganache — dark chocolate with equal parts heavy cream. You could do a glaze instead, though in my opinion ganache is the better choice here flavor-wise. As for the taste — it's intensely chocolatey. The chocolate confidently takes center stage, completely winning out over the classic cream cheese flavor. The texture is incredibly tender, creamy, and luscious, with a slightly truffle-like taste and a barely-there buttery finish. So delicious! If you've never tried a chocolate cheesecake, now is absolutely the time — I highly recommend it!
Ingredients:
- Crust:
- 100 g shortbread cookies
- 30 g butter
- 1 tsp cocoa
- Cheesecake:
- 300 g cream cheese
- 150 g mascarpone
- 100 g sugar
- 80 g heavy cream 33%
- 50 g dark chocolate
- 50 g milk chocolate
- 15 g starch
- 3 eggs
- Add-ins:
- 130 g prunes (can substitute other dried fruit)
- 50 g cognac (can substitute orange juice)
- Topping:
- 50 g dark chocolate
- 50 g heavy cream 33%
How to cook chocolate cheesecake with prunes
Prepare the dried fruit ahead of time. Chop the prunes into pieces and soak them in cognac. Let them sit for 2–3 hours to absorb the liquid. If you're short on time, you can warm the prunes and cognac in the microwave until just warm — this speeds up the absorption process. I used sweet Chilean prunes, which are delicious, juicy, sweet, and not at all tart. If you're not a fan of prunes, feel free to use other dried fruit — dark raisins would also work wonderfully here. The cognac can be swapped for another aromatic spirit of your choice, or replaced with the same amount of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Process the cookies and cocoa powder in a food processor until finely ground. If you start with chocolate cookies, you can skip the cocoa powder. Melt the butter (I do this in the microwave), pour it over the cookie crumbs, and process everything together once more.
Pour the crumb mixture into a springform pan and press it firmly into an even layer on the bottom. I use a 20 cm springform ring. Bake in an oven preheated to 160°C for 10–15 minutes. Let cool.
Make the cream filling. Melt the chocolate and heavy cream together into a smooth, glossy mixture. I do this in the microwave — heat for 20–30 seconds, stir, heat again if needed, and repeat. Let it cool slightly.
Place the cream cheese and mascarpone in a bowl, add the eggs, and blend together with an immersion blender, taking care to incorporate as little air as possible. If you don't have a blender, mix the cheeses and eggs by hand with a whisk — using an electric mixer is not recommended, as it will introduce too many air bubbles. All ingredients should ideally be at room temperature so they blend together more easily.
Pour the batter into the pan. To bake a cheesecake properly, you need to create a water bath in the oven. Since I was using a ring mold, I did it a bit differently — I poured boiling water into a pan and placed it directly beneath the cheesecake. This is a middle-ground approach: the cheesecake bakes with steam, but the pan isn't submerged in water.
Bake in an oven preheated to 160°C (bottom heat only, if available) for approximately 50–70 minutes. The cheesecake is done when the center still has a slight jiggle. The cheesecake should not rise during baking, or only very minimally. Once done, leave the cheesecake to cool in the oven with the door slightly ajar. Then refrigerate the cheesecake overnight (or for at least 3–4 hours). The flavor of any cheesecake always improves after this rest.
Run a knife along the edge of the pan and transfer the cheesecake to a serving plate. Make the ganache by melting the chocolate and heavy cream together the same way as before, into a smooth, glossy mixture. Pour the ganache over the cheesecake. If you like, garnish the outside with whatever you put inside the cheesecake!))
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