Triple Chocolate No-Bake Cheesecake

This is a sponsored post by Challenge Butter, but the text and opinions are all mine. Thank you for supporting brands that make Kylee's Kitchen possible! 

Cheesecake isn't a complicated dessert, but sometimes it's just a little more effort than I care to make.

No-bake cheesecake has entered the chat.

So what's the difference between standard cheesecake and no-bake cheesecake? 

Regular cheesecake is firm and can be quite dense. It's a custard that uses eggs to help set it when it's baked in the oven. No-bake cheesecake is more of a mousse with a lighter, almost whipped texture. There are no eggs, so it uses other means to help set it, like gelatin or whipped cream.

Another bonus: Because we're not baking the cheesecake, it's pretty much foolproof. We don't have to worry about a water bath or over-baking it or under-baking it or it cracking in the middle.

This particular cheesecake recipe is for ultimate chocolate fans. It starts with a chocolate Oreo crust; the filling includes both black cocoa powder and melted dark chocolate; and I top it all off with a dark chocolate ganache.

Let's talk about the crust...

There are two ingredients: regular Oreos and butter. The Oreo filling plus the butter allow for the crust to stick together without baking. If you use cookies without cream filling, you will have to increase the amount of butter in the recipe. The texture should be comparable to wet sand and stick together in your hands. I use Challenge Unsalted Butter in my crust recipe. Using high-quality butter, like Challenge, has a big impact on the crust flavor. 

Now for the filling...

The first thing we want to do is make the cream cheese ultra smooth. The best way to do this is to beat it with granulated sugar. The granules in the sugar break down the cream cheese. 

Then we add the next three ingredients: sour cream, back cocoa powder, and vanilla bean paste. Sour cream contributes to tanginess; black cocoa powder adds extra depth to the chocolate flavor, but you can omit or substitute with Dutch-processed cocoa powder; and vanilla extract balances the flavors.

The dark chocolate is next. You want to heat it in short increments to prevent it from burning. If it's really hot, let it cool off for a few minutes before adding it to the filling. Don't let it cool to room temperature though because then it may harden once it's mixed with the other ingredients.

The last ingredient is heavy cream. Some recipes will advise you to whip the heavy cream first and then fold it into the filling, but in my experience, that isn't necessary. Save yourself from cleaning an extra bowl and add it straight to the mixer.

Last is the topping...

I went all in on chocolate and topped the cheesecake with a chocolate ganache. The recipe is as simple as chopping chocolate, pouring heated cream over the chocolate, letting the mixture sit for 5 minutes, and stirring it.

The hardest part of the recipe...

Waiting for the cheesecake to set up is without a doubt the hardest part of the recipe! It would probably be ready to slice into after four hours, but I prefer to wait six hours to be extra sure.

When you cut into it, I recommend running your knife under hot water and wiping the knife clean after every cut to ensure clean slices.

Triple Chocolate No-Bake Cheesecake

Yield: About 12 servings (9-inch cheesecake)

Prep time: About 30 minutes

Chill time: At least 4 hours

Ingredients

For the crust

• 14 ounces Oreo original chocolate sandwich cookies
• 8 Tablespoons Challenge Unsalted Butter 

For the cheesecake filling

• 24 ounces (681 grams) cream cheese, full fat
• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (120 grams) sour cream, full fat
• 2 Tablespoons (10 grams) black cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 10 ounces (300 grams) dark chocolate, chopped (preferably around 60% cacao)
• 1/2 cup (120 milliliters) heavy cream

For the ganache topping

• 4 ounces (114 grams) dark chocolate, chopped (preferably around 60% cacao)
• 4 ounces (120 milliliters) heavy cream

Directions

For the crust

1. Line bottom of 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Add Oreos to food processor and pulse until cookies are fine crumbs.
3. Melt butter in microwave and add to food processor. Pulse until mixture resembles wet sand.
4. Press crust mixture evenly into bottom and 1 inch up sides of springform pan.
5. Use bottom of cup to smooth and pack down crust into even layer.
6. Place crust in freezer while preparing filling.

For the cheesecake filling

1. In large bowl with mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes.
2. Add sour cream, black cocoa powder, and vanilla extract. Beat another 2-3 minutes on medium-high speed until smooth. Set aside.
3. Add chocolate to heatproof bowl and microwave 1 minute. Stir chocolate and return to microwave for 30 seconds. Stir again. If chocolate is mostly melted, set aside for several minutes to cool. If not, repeat process until chocolate is smooth.
4. Pour chocolate into mixing bowl and beat on medium-high speed until filling is light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
5. Add heavy cream to bowl and beat on low speed until filling is well mixed, about 1 minute.
6. Pour filling into crust and smooth into even layer.
7. Cover cheesecake with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and refrigerate at least 4 hours but preferably overnight.

For tha ganache

1. Place chocolate in heatproof bowl.
2. Heat cream in microwave in 30-second intervals until it starts to steam and you see a few bubbles around the edge.
3. Pour cream over chocolate and let sit 5-10 minutes. 
4. Stir cream and chocolate together until smooth.
5. Starting in center, pour ganache over cheesecake and use spatula to carefully spread ganache over cheesecake.
6. Place cheesecake back in refrigerator for at least 10 minutes to allow ganache to set.
7. When ready to serve, run knife under really hot water and dry before slicing. Repeat the process with every slice.
8. Cover and store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator for up to 4 days.