Mini chocolate cheesecakes are the perfect size dessert for any chocolate lover. Each individual serving has an OREO cookie crust topped with velvety smooth chocolate cheesecake filling.
My mini cheesecake recipe is one of the most popular recipes on my blog and recently a reader asked if I had a mini chocolate cheesecake recipe, which I did not, so I got right into the kitchen and began experimenting.
Years ago I had created chocolate cheesecake turkeys and a full-size chocolate Mickey Mouse Cheesecake but I had never made chocolate cheesecakes using a cupcake pan or muffin tin.
Over the past few days, I've made 6 dozen chocolate cheesecakes baked in a cupcake pan to find the very best recipe.
During my experimentation, I tried several mini chocolate cheesecake recipes and found that I got the very best flavor and texture by simply adding melted semi-sweet chocolate to my basic cheesecake recipe.
Other recipes used cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate which made the cheesecakes too dry, in my opinion.
For this recipe, I also swapped out the graham cracker crust with a chocolate cookie crust but both taste delicious.
How to make mini chocolate cheesecakes?
Ingredients:
- cream cheese
- sugar
- sour cream
- vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (my preference)
- melted semi-sweet chocolate
- OREO Cookies
- butter
Room Temperature Ingredients
- It is vitally important that your cream cheese, sour cream, and eggs be at room temperature before mixing your cheesecake filling, so set the cheesecake ingredients out on your counter at least 1 hour, but preferably 2 hours, before you plan to bake them.
- Why? If your cheesecake ingredients are too cold they will require longer mixing and longer mixing adds too much air into the filling which can cause air bubbles on the surface of your cheesecake or can cause your cheesecakes to sink in the middle.
- If you forget and do not have time to wait...
- Cut the cream cheese into slices and spread them out on the wrapper. The smaller pieces will soften more quickly.
- In a pinch, can also gently soften the cream cheese by heating it in the microwave on defrost for 10 seconds then flip over and heat for another 10 seconds. Then set it on your counter for 15 minutes to soften.
- Do not get the cream cheese hot as hot cream cheese can cause your cheesecake filling to curdle.
- You can quickly bring an egg to room temperature by placing it, still in its shell, in a bowl of hot water for 5-10 minutes.
- Spread the sour cream into a thin layer in a large shallow bowl to allow it to warm up more quickly.
Let's start by making the chocolate cookie crust. You can use any vanilla cream-filled chocolate cookies, like OREO Cookies. You want to use the entire cookie including the cream filling.
OREO Cookie Crust
- Preheat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Place a cookie sheet or baking pan on the bottom rack in the oven and fill it with ½ to 1-inch of water.
- Cupcake Wrappers
- Start by lining a cupcake pan (muffin tin) with paper liners.
- OREO Cookie Crust
- Crush 12 OREO Cookies into fine crumbs using a food processor.
- If you do not have a food processor, you can place your Oreo cookies in a large zip-top bag and smash them using a rolling pin, the back of a skillet, or a meat mallet.
- You want the cookies to be in very fine crumbs, so be sure to break up any larger pieces.
- Crush 12 OREO Cookies into fine crumbs using a food processor.
- Melted Butter
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter either in the microwave on high power for about 30 seconds or in a small saucepan set on your stove over medium heat.
- Pour the melted butter over the cookie crumbs and mix to combine.
- If you're using a food processor you can just pulse a few times until well blended.
- Fill Muffin Tin
- Scoop out about one packed tablespoon of the cookie crumbs and drop it into a paper-lined cupcake pan.
- Press the crumbs down into an even layer in the bottom of the cupcake wrapper.
- I used a wooden tart tamper but you can simply use your fingers to do this job.
Chocolate Cheesecake Filling
- Make Filling
- Place 8 ounces of softened cream cheese and ⅓ cup granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat using an electric mixer on low speed just until it is creamy and smooth.
- Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure you get all the lumps out of cream cheese. You don't want large bits of cream cheese in your cheesecake filling so be sure to smash them now before adding any other ingredients.
- Add the room temperature sour cream and vanilla and beat just to combine. I prefer the flavor of vanilla bean paste but pure vanilla extract will work fine too.
- Scrape the bowl again.
- Stir in 4 ounces of melted semi-sweet chocolate.
- Use a fork to break up 1 large egg, blending the yolk and white together, trying not to incorporate any air into it.
- Then pour the egg over the chocolate mixture.
- Stir just to combine.
- DO NOT overmix the cheesecake batter or you will whip too much air into the batter which will cause your cheesecakes to sink in the middle once baked.
- Scoop into cupcake wrappers.
- Scoop a little more than 2 tablespoons of the chocolate cheesecake filling over each cookie crust and spread it into an even layer. The batter will be quite thick.
- Tap the pan on the counter about 10 times to allow any air bubbles to rise to the surface. If needed, pop the air bubbles then smooth out the batter.
What type of chocolate to use to make chocolate cheesecake?
- You will definitely taste the chocolate in this recipe so be sure to use a chocolate that you like to eat. I chose to use Callebaut Chocolate.
- I recommend you use good quality semi-sweet chocolate bars or callets (small chips of couverture chocolate that melt easily).
- If you prefer a more robust flavor you can use bittersweet chocolate but I do not recommend using unsweetened chocolate.
- To melt the chocolate, chop it into small pieces and heat for 20-second bursts of high power in the microwave, stirring after each, until melted.
- Or melt using a double boiler set over low heat. Fill a pan with 1 inch of water and set a tight-fitting bowl over top and fill the bowl with your chocolate. Heat, stirring often until melted.
Bake your mini cheesecakes.
- I mentioned above that you should fill a pan of water and set it on the lower rack of the oven while it's preheating. The steam from the water will help to gently bake your cheesecakes.
- Set your filled cupcake pan on the middle rack in your oven.
- You can set the muffin tin directly into the water if you want but the steam will be enough to keep the cheesecakes moist and creamy.
- You can skip this step, but I highly recommend it.
- Bake your mini cheesecakes for 24-28 minutes. The tops should still look glossy but not wet. The cheesecakes will jiggle when the pan is jostled but not slosh around. If the centers of your cheesecakes have a darker ring, the centers have not set yet. Give it another minute or so.
- Turn off your oven and crack open the door, leaving the cheesecakes inside.
- If needed, you can prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the cheesecakes to slowly cool in the warm oven for 45 minutes.
- The mini cheesecakes will shrink slightly as they cool but should not sink too much in the middle if you used room temperature ingredients and avoided overmixing the cheesecake filling.
- Once you remove the cupcake pan of cheesecakes from the oven you can allow the oven and the pan of water to cool completely before removing the pan of water and dumping it out.
Cool the cheesecakes.
- Set the pan of cheesecakes on your counter to cool for an hour.
- Then refrigerate for at least 2 hours so that they cool completely.
- Before serving, remove from the refrigerator and remove the paper wrappers.
- Chocolate cheesecakes will taste best if served at room temperature but the wrappers are easier to remove when the cheesecakes are chilled, so set them out 30 minutes before you plan to serve them.
Cheesecake Toppings
These mini chocolate cheesecakes have an amazing flavor and are perfectly wonderful as they are, but you can make them even more incredible by adding a topping.
- Chocolate Mousse - If you love chocolate as much as I do, you will definitely want to make my delicious chocolate mousse to use as a topping for these small cheesecakes. It's my favorite topping!
- Whipped Cream - Pipe on a swirl of homemade or store-bought whipped cream. You can even do half chocolate mousse topped with whipped cream and a maraschino cherry.
- Peanut Butter Fudge or Mousse - My peanut butter fudge recipe is easy to make using white chocolate, peanut butter chips, and peanut butter. It is liquid when warm so you can spoon it over the top of your cheesecakes. It firms up but remains soft and creamy. You can even fold in some whipped cream while it's melted to make a delicious peanut butter mousse.
- Chocolate Ganache - Make a delicious semi-sweet or white chocolate ganache then spoon it over or drizzle it over the top of your mini chocolate cheesecakes.
- Caramel Sauce or Dulce de Leche Sauce - Add a spoonful of sauce then sprinkle on some toffee bits or chopped nuts.
- Peppermint Mousse - Pipe on a swirl of white chocolate peppermint mousse to add a refreshing addition to your cheesecakes. Top it with crushed candy canes or Andes Peppermint Bits.
- Cherry or Strawberry Pie Filling - Store-bought pie filling makes a simple cheesecake topping.
- Fresh Raspberries or Strawberries - Add a bit of tartness to offset the richness of the chocolate by adding fresh berries on top.
- Marshmallow Cream or Toasted Marshmallows (not pictured) - To make Mini S' Mores Cheesecakes use a graham cracker crust and top the chocolate cheesecakes with marshmallows. Use a small kitchen torch to toast them or freeze the cheesecakes for 30 minutes then top with marshmallows and place the cheesecakes under the broiler to toast the marshmallows.
If you have other cheesecake topping ideas, I'd love to hear them in the comments below.
How long will mini cheesecakes stay fresh?
- If you store your mini cheesecakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator they will stay fresh for 5 days.
- You can freeze your cheesecakes for up to 3 months.
- TIP - To keep tiny water drops from forming on the tops of your cheesecake, I suggest you lay a paper towel over them before placing them in the refrigerator. the paper towel will wick up the condensation that will form in the refrigerator or freezer. The cupcake wrappers will help to keep the paper towel from sticking to the surface of the cheesecakes.
Can I add my toppings and refrigerate them?
- Yes, most toppings will refrigerate well, so you can make these cheesecakes ahead of time.
- Homemade whipped cream can weep (lose its shape and start to puddle) if left in the refrigerator. If you can, add some whipped cream stabilizer. I did this and my whipped cream stayed in a nice swirl on top of the refrigerated cheesecakes for days.
Video
Be sure to watch the video tutorial to see how to make these mini chocolate cheesecakes.
Printable Recipe
Bake chocolate cheesecakes in cupcake pans then top them with delicious toppings like chocolate mousse, whipped cream, or pie filling.
- 12 OREO Cookies
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 4 ounces melted semi-sweet chocolate
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
-
Set your cream cheese, sour cream, and egg out on the counter to come to room temperature at least one hour, but preferably 2 hours, before you plan to bake your cheesecakes. You need to use room temperature ingredients!
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Place a rimmed cookie sheet or baking pan filled with ½-inch to 1-inch of water on the lowest rack in your oven.
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Arrange another rack in the middle of the oven.
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Preheat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Crush 12 OREO Cookies into fine crumbs.
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Stir 2 tablespoons of melted butter into the cookie crumbs.
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Scoop out about one tablespoon of the cookie crumbs and drop into a paper-lined cupcake pan. Repeat, filling 12 cupcake liners.
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Press the crumbs down into an even layer in the bottom of the cupcake wrapper.
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Place 8 ounces of softened cream cheese and ⅓ cup granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat using an electric mixer on low speed just until it is creamy and smooth.
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Add the room temperature sour cream and vanilla and beat just to combine.
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Stir in 4 ounces of melted semi-sweet chocolate.
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Then pour a lightly beaten, room temperature, egg over the chocolate mixture.
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Stir just to combine.
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Scoop a little more than 2 tablespoons of the chocolate cheesecake filling over each cookie crust and spread it into an even layer.
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Tap the pan on the counter about 10 times to allow any air bubbles to rise to the surface.
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Place on the middle rack in the oven and bake for 24-28 minutes until the tops look set.
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The cheesecakes should still jiggle when the pan is jostled and will be glossy but should not look wet.
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Turn the oven off, leave the cheesecakes inside, but crack the door open.
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Allow the cheesecakes to rest in the warm oven for 45 minutes.
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Remove and allow the cheesecakes to cool on the counter for an hour.
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Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
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Remove from the pan and peel off the paper before serving.
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Add toppings, if desired.
- DO NOT overmix the cheesecake batter or you will whip too much air into the batter which will cause your cheesecakes to sink in the middle once baked.
- Store your cheesecakes in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- You can freeze the cheesecakes for up to 3 months. Wrap them in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container or zip-top bag before freezing.
More Mini Cheesecake Recipe Ideas
If you enjoy this mini chocolate cheesecake recipe you might also like these other cheesecake recipes.
Conversation Heart Cheesecakes - Bake pastel-colored cheesecakes in a heart-shaped pan then add sweet messages on top to celebrate Valentine's Day.
Plain Mini Cheesecakes - Serve these delicious cheesecakes plain or topped with lemon curd, strawberry pie filling, caramel sauce, and more, or decorate them with edible flowers.
Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Minis - Top a graham cracker crust with a delicious caramel-flavored cheesecake filling then top it with whipped cream, caramel sauce, and toffee bits.
Mini No-Bake Cheesecakes - Bake these red, white, and blue cheesecakes for any patriotic holiday. The cookie crust is topped with no-bake cheesecake filling, raspberry geleé, whipped cream, and a raspberry.
- Gingerbread Cookie Cups - December 2, 2023
- Cheeseburger Skulls - October 15, 2023
- Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes - June 20, 2023
The Partiologist
The chocolate cheesecakes you have created not only look beautiful, they sound decadent! I bet it was a delicious process to find the perfect recipe!
Beth
Thanks, we have certainly enjoyed all the experiments!