In honor of St. Patty’s Day next week, I’m stoked to introduce…..my favorite cheesecake!!!
Oh yes. This Bailey’s chocolate goodness has long been the go-to cheesecake recipe in my kitchen, partly because it’s (truly) so simple and foolproof to make, and partly because it’s…um…AMAZING! By now, I think nearly all of my friends and family have tried this recipe at one point, and it always receives stellar reviews.
In fact, I actually brought the cheesecake today to the seven guys in my band, who are some of my most willing (yet most honest) critics of my cooking. And, after poking brief fun of my chocolate curls (which they then immediately dug into), they unanimously agreed it was a winner. Yay.
So if you’re looking for a new cheesecake recipe, or even if this may be your first, I can’t recommend it enough! I’ve included instructions for a water bath below (to prevent cracking). And also included a 2-ingredient chocolate ganache recipe and a super-simple chocolate curls “tip”, that will make the top look gorgeous regardless of if the cake cracks.
Enjoy, enjoy!!!
Bailey's Chocolate Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups chocolate graham cracker (or chocolate cookie) crumbs
- 1/3 cup powdered (confectioner’s) sugar
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup (half a stick) butter, melted
Cheesecake Ingredients:
- 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened (I used 1/3 less fat)
- 1 1/4 cups white sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup Bailey’s (or other Irish cream liqueuor)
Chocolate Ganache Ingredients (Optional):
- 1/2 cup heavy cream (or half and half)
- 4 ounces dark chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix together the cookie crumbs, confectioners’ sugar and 1/3 cup cocoa. Add melted butter and stir until well mixed. Pat into the bottom of a 9-inch well-greased springform pan. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes; set aside. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees.
- In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, white sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa and flour. Beat at medium speed until blended and smooth. (Try not to over-mix!) Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in the sour cream and Irish cream liqueur; mixing on low speed until blended. Pour filling over baked crust.
- Optional: To prevent cracking in the cheesecake, I’m a big fan of water baths! Just fill a 9×13 (or whatever size) glass pan halfway with water, and place it on the bottom rack while the oven preheats, and then while the cheesecake cooks.
- Place the cheesecake in the oven on the shelf above the water bath, and bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees, and continue baking for 60 minutes.
- With a knife, loosen cake from rim of pan. Let cool, then remove the rim of pan. Chill for a few hours before serving.
- Optional: To prepare the ganache, place the chocolate chips in a bowl. Then heat the cream (or half and half) in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until it is almost boiling. Remove from heat, and pour over the chocolate chips and let sit for 30 seconds. Then stir until the chocolate chips have melted and are mixed in well. Pour over the top of the cheesecake, and sprinkle with chocolate chips or chocolate shavings if you’d like.
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Ali’s Tip:
There are much better ways to create little chocolate curls. But since I was in a hurry, I just popped a dark chocolate bar in the microwave for about 5-7 seconds (just so it is ever-so-slightly melty on the sides), and then ran a vegetable peeler along the sides. And voila!
(If the bar begins to actually bend on you as you run the peeler, it’s too soft! Let it wait a few minutes and try again!)
this is just soooo beautiful! i dont like cheesecake but chocolate and bailey’s? i am on board!!! :)
I think I might have to make this tonight to bring to work tomorrow! Yum! A little tip on the cracking issue, I just learned from Fine Cooking that what actually causes the cracking is when you beat the mixture for too long after you add each egg. That makes it puff up too much while baking and then when it settles it cracks.
Thanks for the great looking recipe!
Hey Andrea!
INTERESTING! I’d never known about the egg issue. Had heard about over-beating, and that if the pan’s not greased, sometimes the cake can cling to the edges instead of having the flexibility to expand/contract. But that makes sense!! :)
Hope it turned out well if you decided to give it a try!
~A
Thanks for the inspiration, Allison! After reading this cheesecake post, I immediately hopped in my kitchen and made my own! I’m going to serve it to friends later this week at a Golden Girls-themed fête. ;-)
Golden Girls?! I love it!!! Hope you all enjoyed the cake! :)
~A
Oh holy moley that looks good.
Wow I’m totally drooling. And I didn’t think chocolate shavings could be so curly and cute! Great job with this cheesecake.
I’ll take a slice or two or three, please!! I must make this soon. It looks fantastic.
a great take on the water bath! others say to wrap the springform pan in foil and then set the pan in water, which has worked to stop cracking, but gets messy fast if the foil gets a hole. love your take on it! thanks for the tip.
Hey Jen!
Ha…that’s funny you say that. I actually had that happen once!! (Having a small crack in the foil, and a springform pan that wasn’t 100% sealed.) Have since tried it with a FEW layers of aluminum. :) Either seem to work well!
~A
Your cheesecake is realy appetizing! I love the chocolate curls!!
Oh it sounds great!! And those curls, Love it!
beautiful! and sounds delicious, i love bailey’s