Deep-Dark Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake with Ganache Glaze

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A dense, fudgy chocolate cheesecake built on a crushed chocolate cookie crust: real bittersweet chocolate and Dutch-process cocoa melted into the batter, a hit of espresso powder to push the chocolate darker, and a thin mirror of ganache poured over the chilled top. It bakes low and slow with a steam pan on the rack below instead of a fussy water bath, so the texture lands somewhere between cheesecake and truffle — sliceable, silky, and not a crack in sight.

Ingredients

• 9 oz chocolate sandwich cookies, filling and all (about 24 cookies)
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt

• 10 oz bittersweet chocolate (60–70%), chopped
• 32 oz full-fat block cream cheese, room temperature (four 8-oz blocks)
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 2 tsp instant espresso powder
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 3/4 cup full-fat sour cream, room temperature
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 4 large eggs, room temperature

• 5 oz bittersweet chocolate (60–70%), finely chopped
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp light corn syrup (for shine)
• 1 pinch flaky sea salt, for finishing

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 325°F. Wrap the outside bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with foil to catch any butter drips, then lightly butter the inside. Place a metal roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet on the lowest oven rack — this will hold water later and do the work of a water bath without any wrapping or leaking.
2. Break the cookies into a food processor and pulse to fine crumbs (about 2 1/4 cups). Add the melted butter and 1/4 teaspoon salt and pulse until the crumbs clump when pressed. Press firmly into the bottom of the pan and about 1 inch up the sides, using a flat-bottomed glass to compact it. Bake 10 minutes, then cool on a rack while you make the filling. Reduce the oven to 300°F.
3. Melt the 10 oz chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl in 20-second bursts, stirring between each, until smooth. Set aside to cool to just barely warm (about 5 minutes) — hot chocolate will scramble the cream cheese and firm into flecks.
4. In a large bowl with a hand mixer (or a stand mixer with the paddle), beat the cream cheese on medium-low for 2 minutes until completely smooth, scraping the bowl and beaters twice. Add the sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and beat on low 1 minute more, just until no dry cocoa remains. Keep the speed low from here on: air is the enemy of a dense, crack-free cheesecake.
5. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla, then the melted chocolate, mixing only until the batter is uniform and glossy. Add the eggs one at a time on the lowest speed, mixing each just until it disappears — roughly 15 seconds per egg. Scrape the bowl and fold a few times by hand to catch any unmixed streaks.
6. Pour 4 cups of boiling water into the pan on the lowest oven rack. Pour the batter over the cooled crust, smooth the top with an offset spatula, and rap the pan gently on the counter 5 or 6 times to release bubbles. Set the springform on the middle rack, directly above the steam pan.
7. Bake at 300°F for 65 to 80 minutes. It's done when the outer 2 inches look set and matte, the center 3 inches still wobble as one soft mass when you nudge the pan, and an instant-read thermometer inserted 1 inch from the edge reads 150°F. Chocolate cheesecake hides its jiggle, so trust the thermometer over your eyes.
8. Turn the oven off, prop the door open a few inches, and let the cheesecake cool in the dying oven for 1 hour. Move it to a rack for another hour, until the pan is no longer warm, then cover loosely and refrigerate at least 8 hours, preferably overnight.
9. For the glaze, put the chopped chocolate, cream, and corn syrup in a heatproof bowl. Microwave 45 seconds, let it sit 1 minute, then stir slowly from the center out until smooth and shiny. Let it cool to body temperature, about 10 minutes — it should flow like warm honey.
10. Run a thin knife dipped in hot water around the edge of the cold cheesecake, then release and remove the springform ring. Pour the ganache onto the center of the cake and tilt or spread gently with an offset spatula so it flows to the edges. Chill 30 minutes to set, then finish with a few flakes of sea salt.
11. Slice with a long thin knife run under hot water and wiped dry between every cut. Serve cold or let slices sit out 15 minutes for a softer, truffle-like bite.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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