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The Best Chocolate Cheesecake Recipe + VIDEO

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This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It’s perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake! Includes step by step recipe video

This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It's perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!

I know it sounds a little cocky. Arrogant maybe. But this here is my blog, and I really believe this is the best chocolate cheesecake!

Ever since I stole some tips from Canadian Living to make The Best Vanilla Cheesecake, I knew there were going to be many, many more variations of this cheesecake!

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And you better believe this will not be the last one.

This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It's perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!

Because based on the popularity of The Best Vanilla Cheesecake, you guys love cheesecake just as much as I do! I can’t blame you though… that rich, creamy, tangy filling with a dollop of whipped cream? Pretty much the best combination!

This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It's perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!

For this cheesecake, I wanted to go all out chocolate: we’ve got an Oreo crust, topped with a silky smooth chocolate cheesecake, and homemade whipped cream!

One thing I love about this cheesecake is everything you can do with it! You can dress it up for the holidays with some crushed candy canes, or some mint extract and mint leaves, you could add some instant coffee, you could add some orange zest — you can do almost anything to take it up a notch, or just leave it chocolate on chocolate on chocolate (<– not a bad thing either!).

This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It's perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!

It took me two tries. The first cheesecake had way too much batter for the pan, and it was firmer and denser and less….. luscious. The first one was okay (I served it at a family gathering! I always feel a little guilty about serving those Round #1’s though, you know? Like, “here, would you like to eat my work in progress?”), but this one is perfect. And I really believe that. It is so soft and creamy and not dense, and it bakes perfectly smooth with no water bath.

With the second version, I went with vanilla whipped cream instead of chocolate because I  like the contrast. The whole chocolate on chocolate on chocolate on chocolate was a little much for me the first time, but if that’s your thing, then go all out with the chocolate whipped cream!

This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It's perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!

NOTES:

  • I always place a piece of parchment paper in between the outside ring and the bottom piece to ensure easy removal from the pan, and wrap the bottom with tin foil to prevent any leakage!
  • Use good quality milk or dark chocolate in this recipe — a plain, solid chocolate bar is good enough! Avoid using chocolate chips if possible.

Watch the recipe video and see how easy it is to make!

The Best Chocolate Cheesecake

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 431 kcal
Author: Ashley Fehr
This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It's perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!
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Ingredients

Crust:

  • 1/3 cup butter melted
  • 2 1/2 cups chocolate baking crumbs
  • 1 tablespoon sugar

Cheesecake:

  • 100 g chopped chocolate about 3/4 cup
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream 35%
  • 16 oz light cream cheese (or regular), room temperature (2 packages)
  • 1 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 1/2 cups 0% plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • a pinch of salt
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line a 9" Springform pan with parchment (place it in between the top and bottom sections and close around it -- this will make it easier to remove). Lightly grease the inside of the pan and wrap the bottom in tin foil.

  2. Combine butter, chocolate crumbs and sugar and press into the bottom of the pan and 1" up the sides.
  3. Bake for 12-15 minutes until dry. Set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 275 degrees F.

  4. In a small bowl, combine chocolate and cream and microwave on high in 20-30 second intervals, stirring each time, until smooth. Set aside.

  5. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and beat until smooth.
  6. Add yogurt, eggs, vanilla, salt and cocoa and beat until smooth and combined, scraping down sides of the bowl if necessary.
  7. Add melted chocolate and beat until combined.
  8. Pour onto crust and bake at 275 degrees F for 1.75-2 hours (I bake mine 2 hours exactly), until top appears dry but cheesecake still jiggles when moved. Turn the oven off and let sit in warm oven with the door closed for 20 minutes.

  9. Remove to a wire rack on the counter, gently run a knife around the inside of the pan and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until completely chilled (I like to chill overnight). Carefully remove the outside ring. Slice and serve.

Recipe Notes

You know I'm not really one for rules, which is why I love this no water bath method. I've often baked this cheesecake in the evening, forgetting how long it takes to bake, being forced to move it to the fridge before it's cooled completely. It is just fine! Just place on a pot holder or wire rack inside the fridge and loosely cover with foil or plastic wrap.
Nutrition Facts
The Best Chocolate Cheesecake
Amount Per Serving
Calories 431 Calories from Fat 198
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 22g 34%
Saturated Fat 11g 55%
Cholesterol 104mg 35%
Sodium 326mg 14%
Potassium 231mg 7%
Total Carbohydrates 49g 16%
Dietary Fiber 1g 4%
Sugars 38g
Protein 11g 22%
Vitamin A 11.8%
Calcium 12.2%
Iron 4.6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
The Best Chocolate Cheesecake
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
This is the BEST Chocolate Cheesecake! It’s perfectly rich, creamy (with the help of Greek yogurt), and bakes up with no cracking and no water bath needed. This is the easy way to perfect baked cheesecake!
Ingredients
  • Crust:
  • 1/3 cup butter, melted
  • 2 1/2 cups chocolate baking crumbs
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • Cheesecake:
  • 100g (about 3/4 cup chopped) chocolate
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 2 (8oz) packages light cream cheese (or regular), room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 1/2 cups 0% plain Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • a pinch of salt
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Instructions
Crust
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line a 9″ Springform pan with parchment (place it in between the top and bottom sections and close around it — this will make it easier to remove). Lightly grease the inside of the pan and wrap the bottom in tin foil.
  2. Combine butter, chocolate crumbs and sugar and press into the bottom of the pan and 1″ up the sides.
  3. Bake for 12-15 minutes until dry. Set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 275 degrees F.
Cheesecake
  1. In a small bowl, combine chocolate and cream and microwave on high in 20-30 second intervals, stirring each time, until smooth. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and beat until smooth.
  3. Add yogurt, eggs, vanilla, salt and cocoa and beat until smooth and combined, scraping down sides of the bowl if necessary.
  4. Add melted chocolate and beat until combined.
  5. Pour onto crust and bake at 275 degrees F for 1.75-2 hours (I bake mine 2 hours exactly), until top appears dry but cheesecake still jiggles when moved. Turn the oven off and let sit in warm oven with the door closed for 20 minutes.
  6. Remove to a wire rack on the counter, gently run a knife around the inside of the pan and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until completely chilled (I like to chill overnight). Slice and serve.
Notes
You know I’m not really one for rules, which is why I love this no water bath method. I’ve often baked this cheesecake in the evening, forgetting how long it takes to bake, being forced to move it to the fridge before it’s cooled completely. It is just fine! Just place on a pot holder or wire rack inside the fridge and loosely cover with foil or plastic wrap.

 

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Comments

    • We don’t find that it does, but you are free to swap some out. Using additional cream cheese will result in a heavier cheesecake, so just be prepared. If you’d like to counteract the flavor of the yogurt more, you could use a touch more sugar or milk chocolate.

      Reply

  2. The cakes looks and sounds amazing *.*
    Would you be able to share the metric measurements as well?
    I know from other recipes that converting from US cups can always be a bit tricky.
    Muchly appreciated.
    Thanks,
    Steph

    Reply

  4. Ashley I followed the recipe but my cake collapsed. Any idea why? What can I do so this doesn’t happen again.

    Thank you.

    John

    Reply

  5. For years I’ve suffered from a serious chocolate addiction I inherited from my mom. (She would love that I use her as my excuse to eat chocolate)!!
    When using whipped cream to garnish your cheesecake add cocoa powder with a little powdered sugar to the cream and a teaspoon of chocolate extract for an even more decadent dessert.

    Reply

    • That’s a fun idea! I like the balance of a little vanilla with my chocolate, but you can definitely make this the cheesecake for chocolate lovers with chocolate whipped cream 🙂

      Reply

  7. Hi,

    I was wondering if adding a tablespoon or two of cornflour or plain flour would help in the binding of the cake, as a reviewer was mentioning about the cracking or wouldn’t it make much difference? Recipe looks really nice and I cant wait to try but since I don’t have much experience in baking cheese cakes just wanted to check with you on this.
    Thanks

    Reply

      • Thanks for your swift reply Ashley. i will follow the recipe for now . Just one more question- I can half the recipe if I want to (for a small cheese cake) and the results should be the same ?

        Reply

        • No problem! I have never halved the recipe. I imagine the results would be the same if the depth of the cheesecake is the same (too shallow and it will be dry), and the bake time will likely be less.

          Reply

      • Dear Ashley, I have a convexion oven, how much bake time and what temperature would I need to use. I am having this problem with all baking recepies, because I don´t know the conversion factor for convection oven. Thanks a lot.

        Reply

  8. Hi

    i was wondering if adding a table spoon or two of cornflour or plain flour would help in the binding of the recipe, since a reviewer was complaining about cracking of the cake. The recipe looks very nice and would love to try but since I am not into baking cheese cakes so just wanted check with you before trying it out.
    Thanks

    Reply

  9. Hello i am making chocolate cheescake and i want to know after its baked , i must wait until its almost cold and then place it in refrigerator ?

    Reply

  10. Just baked this for 2 hours and cooled for 20 minutes, and its still raw in the middle and cracked. 🙁 followed recipe Exactly. But then I’m not used to making baked cheesecakes. Going to have another crack at it again. (The raw batter tasted extremely sweet, is it meant to that sugary??)

    Reply

    • It is sweet but also tangy, it’s not overly sweet for a cheesecake, no. The important thing when baking is to look at the bake time but also the visual signs of doneness — don’t just remove the cheesecake when the time is up. Look to see that it is set on top but with only a slight jiggle. I’m wondering if the oven temperature might be off?

      Reply

      • I had this problem too but I think it’s because I didn’t know when I should remove the sides of the springform pan and it must have been too soon. I removed it after taking it out of the oven. Perhaps I should have waited until it had chilled overnight in the fridge? It completely fell apart.

        Reply

  12. I’m baking this today for tomorrow’s Christmas lunch with the boyfriends family. Cheesecake is always a favourite!! I’m looking forward to presenting your chocolate cheesecake as the first thing I’ve baked/cooked for the in-law family!!

    Reply

  13. Ashley, as this is a creamier cheesecake filling, do you think it will support the weight of me flooding the top with cranberry sauce? I’d like to serve it for Christmas.

    Reply

  14. I was wondering if I cld use vanilla Greek yogurt instead of plain Greek yogurt. I want to try this recipe but I dnt have all of the ingredients and all I have on hand is Vanilla Greek yogurt

    Reply

  15. This was amazing. Made for the first time for my 15 year olds birthday. I knew I could trust your recipe to turn out without a practice run. Loved by the birthday girl and everyone else!

    Reply

  16. I have to admit that I was skeptical about mailing this without a water bath, but I went for it anyway and I’m so glad I did ! It is truly scrumptious. I used sour cream instead of the Greek yogurt because that’s what I had. I also only had 2 cups instead of the 2 & 1/2 cups it called for but it came out fine. Did not have any cracks at all. just make sure you cook it the whole 2 hours. I took it out a little early and started to cut around the edges and noticed it started to crumble so I put it back in. You can tell when it’s done because it pulls away from the sides of the pan. Just the right amount of tang and just the right amount of chocolate ! I highly recommend this recipe !

    Reply

  17. I just pulled this cheesecake out of the oven and it has H shaped crack in the center. I followed the recipe to a T. May have to cover it in a white chocolate ganache. I am so disappointed….hopefully it will taste good.

    Reply

  18. This looks amazing I’m going to try this tomorrow . Did u blend the whole Oreo for the crust or take out the filling ?

    Reply

  19. I can’t find the baking crumbs. When you say to use chocolate cookies in their place, do you mean like Oreo’s? If so, do I need to remove the white filling before crushing them?

    Reply

  20. When I make this I am going to put a little orange extract in the crust and garnish the whipped cream with candied orange rind. Maybe peppermint extract in the crust and crushed peppermint garnish. Oh my at the possibilities! Thanks for the odeas.

    Reply

  21. I want to make this Wednesday to bring to thanksgiving on Thursday. Should I refrigerate it over night? Is it just as good the next day?

    Reply

  23. I’m going to try this today but I’m wondering, you say the result is good without a water bath but will it be even better if I use the water bath method? I mean, I’ve never made cheesecake without a water bath and I’m anxious it won’t be as good, lol.

    Reply

  25. I have to say OMG 🙂 This recipe is amazing, I love chocolate cheesecake but who doesn’t 😀 Thank you for sharing this delicious dessert with us.

    Reply

    • They are just chocolate baking crumbs that you’d buy in the baking aisle, meant for making crusts and such. You can use chocolate cookies, you’ll just have to crush them first

      Reply

  28. So I have to say this Cheesecake was a hit!! I should start by saying I have never made cheesecake before but I was asked to make one for a family gathering. I did a test run with it and everyone at work LOVED it! I had people from different departments coming to get some as they heard how good it was! I used dark chocolate with Sea salt and then did not add the pinch of salt the recipe calls for. Will definitely be making this again!!!

    Reply

  29. What is your recipe for your homemade whipped cream you put on the top? It looks thicker than just whipping cream and powdered sugar.

    Reply

  32. Love to make this. Bit confused on sour cream cheese amount. Is it 2 packages of 8 oz cream cheese or total amount used is 8 oz?

    Reply

  33. I have a small doubt about cream cheese. Is it 2 packages of 8 oz or total used cream cheese amount is 8 oz? Pls assist.

    Reply

  38. It certainly looks like the best cheesecake to me! I don’t think I’ve ever had chocolate cheesecake and that needs to change — this looks irresistible!

    Reply

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