Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success

Ingredients:

• Room temperature ingredients are crucial when it comes to making any cheesecake – including these easy chocolate cheesecake bars! So be sure you bring your cream cheese, eggs, egg yolks, and heavy cream to room temperature before you begin assembling the batter.
• You can use any full-fat brand of cream cheese, but I love Philadelphia Cream Cheese blocks (it’s the Philly girl in me lol).
• To make the chocolate cookie crust you will need two ingredients: melted butter and Oreo cookies. You do not need to remove the cream from the center of the cookies. And be sure you use classic Oreo cookies, not double stuff or any of the new flavors.

• I suggest using high-quality chocolate, such as Lindt. Chocolate chips should not be used for this recipe!

Assembly:

• To make the Oreo cookie crumbs you’ll use for the crust, simply place the cookies in a blender or food processor and pulse until finely crushed.
• You can make the cheesecake batter in a food processor, high-power blender, or stand mixer. You can also make it in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer. So many options! But I always use my blender because that’s the most convenient for me. Just be sure you really blend the cream cheese on its own before adding the other ingredients.

• To prevent the crust from sticking, you will need to line your 9×13-inch baking dish with heavy-duty aluminum foil. And be sure there’s an overhang of at least 2 inches on each side, as this will help you remove the chocolate cheesecake bars from the pan later. And finally, you’ll need to spray the pan lightly with nonstick baking spray.
• When pressing the crust down into the bottom of the pan, you’re going to want to press it down very firmly. A firmly packed crust will bake up nice and thick, and most importantly, won’t crumble much when sliced. I recommend starting to press the crumbs down in the center of the pan and then working the crust out and just a little bit up the edges.
• As for the chocolate, it will need to be melted and slightly cooled, 10 minutes or so should do the job. In the recipe I give instructions for the double-broiler method, but if you really want to save time you can melt the chocolate in the microwave.

Baking:

• The crust is pre-baked for 10 minutes. Be sure to allow the crust to cool a bit before you pour the cheesecake filling on top of it.
• And most importantly, don’t over bake the bars! They should be a little jiggly in the middle when you remove the pan from the oven. The will continue to cook as they cool.

Cooling:

• These chocolate cheesecake bars require 4 hours of chill time, so be sure to plan ahead time wise! But the good news? These cheesecake bars will keep, stored in the refrigerator, for up to 3 days. And if you’d like, you can also freeze them and save them for a rainy day.

How to Make Chocolate Ganache

• The final part of this recipe is chocolate ganache, which is insanely easy to make! You’ll simply combine chopped chocolate with warm cream and stir. Does it get any easier than that?!

• I want to point out that while the ganache is delicious, it’s totally optional. These chocolate cheesecake bars are so delicious and decadent on their own they don’t even need the ganache. However die hard chocolate fans (like me) will probably opt to use it! It also makes the bars extra pretty, which is great for special occasions.
• Chocolate ganache can be a little messy… so if you’re serving these to a bunch of kiddos, maybe skip it! Or be sure to have extra wet naps on hand.

How to Freeze Chocolate Cheesecake Bars:

• There are two easy ways to freeze these chocolate cheesecake bars! The first, it to allow the bars to cool completely, then wrap the whole slab in a few layers of saran wrap (or aluminum foil) and freeze. The second is to cool completely, slice into bars, and wrap each bar in a few layers of saran or aluminum foil and freeze.
• I suggest freezing the chocolate cheesecake bars without the chocolate ganache, and then adding that before serving.

Next time you have a chocolate craving, whip up a batch of these easy chocolate cheesecake bars! You won’t regret it.

If you try this recipe for Easy Chocolate Cheesecake Bars, please let me know what you think! Leave a comment below, and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it #bakerbynature on instagram! Seeing your creations seriously makes my day ♥

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Easy Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

Prep 30 mins

Cook 30 mins

Inactive 4 hours

Total 4 hours, 60 mins

Author Ashley Manila

Yield 12 bars

Easy chocolate cheesecake bars are rich, creamy, and so decadent! You can make these up to two months in advance and store them in your freezer! 

Ingredients

For the Chocolate Cookie Crust:

• (1) regular full-size package Oreo cookies, crushed into fine crumbs (36 sandwich cookies in total)
• 8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

For the Chocolate Cheesecake Filling:

• 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 and 1/2 pounds (24 ounces) full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (1 and 7/8 ounces) light brown sugar, packed
• 2 Tablespoons unsweetened natural cocoa powder
• 4 large eggs plus 2 egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1 cup (8 ounces) heavy cream, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Ganache (optional):

• 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 cup (8 ounces) heavy cream

Instructions

For the Chocolate Cookie Crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil, allowing two of the sides to overlap (you want an overhang of at least 2-inches on two sides) and spray lightly with nonstick baking spray. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl combine the crushed cookie crumbs and melted butter, mix well to combine.
3. Press the mixture into the bottom - and slightly up the sides - of the prepared pan.
4. Bake the crust in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove the crust from the oven and set aside on a cooling rack until needed.
5. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees (F).

For the Chocolate Cheesecake Filling:

1. Fill a medium pot one-third full with water and bring it to a low simmer over medium heat. Place a heatproof bowl that will fit on top of the pan snugly, but will not touch the simmering water, on top of the pan. Reduce the heat to low and add the chopped chocolate into the bowl over the pot. Heat until the chocolate is completely melted, stirring occasionally with a silicon spatula. Remove the pot from the heat, leaving the bowl of chocolate over the hot water. Set aside until needed.
2. In the bowl of a food processor (or high-powered blender), pulse the cream cheese until completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, about 2 minutes. Add in both sugars and cocoa powder and beat smooth. Add in the eggs, egg yolks, and heavy cream and mix until just combined, about 20 seconds. Fold in the chocolate. Finally add in the vanilla and pulse for another 20 seconds.
3. Remove the bowl from the food processor and, using a rubber spatula, stir the filling several times to ensure it’s evenly blended. 
4. Scrape the filling over the partially baked crust in the prepared pan.
5. Bake the cheesecake for 30 minutes, or until the center of the cake is set but still slightly jiggly. The cake will set completely as it cools.
6. Remove the cake from the oven and  place the pan on a wire rack. Carefully loosen the foil, then immediately run the tip of a knife around the sides of the pan, to prevent the top from cracking. Cool completely (in the pan), then transfer cheesecake to the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours before removing from the pan and slicing. 

For the Chocolate Ganache (optional):

1. Add chopped chocolate to a medium bowl; set aside.
2. In a small saucepan over medium-heat, bring the cream to a rolling simmer. Pour the cream on top of the chocolate pieces and set aside for 1 minute. With a whisk, begin to incorporate the melted chocolate into the cream, whisking until smooth and glossy.
3. Set aside, at room temperature, until needed.
4. Pour ganache over cooled cheesecake. Set aside until ganache is set, about 1 hour.
5. To serve, slice the cheesecake with a thin-bladed sharp knife, wiping the knife clean between each cut.
6. Store, loosely covered, in the refrigerator, for up to 5 days. 

Courses Dessert

Cuisine Cheesecake