These Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes are smooth, creamy and made with an Oreo cookie crumb crust, chocolate ganache topping and chocolate whipped cream! A classic little treat with plenty of chocolate!
I’m sure you know by now that I’m a BIG cheesecake fan. I have been ever since I was a kid and it’s become one of my favorite things to make and create new variations of. But of course we also need to have those classics in our back pocket. Not only can you use them as a base for something else by adding fun mix ins or toppings, but sometimes simple and classic is really all you need.
And while I already have a full sized chocolate cheesecake readily available for you, I decided we also needed the mini version. Mini versions are super cute, easily transportable and great for sharing. They’re also easier to make, since there’s no need for the water bath and the baking and cooling time goes from more than an hour to under 30 minutes. That’s some serious time saving!
How to make Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes
So let’s talk a bit about how to make these. First up is the crust. I use a cupcake pan (or technically a muffin pan) to make these mini chocolate cheesecakes and line them with paper cupcake liners. The crust is made with Oreo cookie crumbs, but you could certainly use graham crackers instead. If you choose to do that, I’d just add a bit more butter to the mix. I leave the filling in the Oreo’s when I crush them and it helps to bind the crust together, meaning you don’t need as much butter. With the graham crackers, you’d want a little more binding power from the additional butter.
Bake the crusts quickly and while they bake, put together the cheesecake filling. To get a full, rich chocolate flavor in these, I used both cocoa powder and melted chocolate. I find the combination works wonders in giving both a great texture and amped up chocolate flavor. I used regular unsweetened cocoa and melted dark chocolate. A little bit of both again makes a great combination so that these mini chocolate cheesecakes have rich chocolate flavor, but aren’t too overpowering.
The other ingredients are your normal ones for cheesecake, including sour cream. The sour cream also adds a nice, smooth texture and a bit of tang!
The cheesecakes bake for roughly 15 minutes, then cool a bit in the oven with the door cracked. The idea here is to cook them most of the way, then allow them to finish cooking while also slowly cooling. Not only does it help prevent cracks, but is also contributes to a smooth texture that isn’t too cooked and remains creamy.
Cool the chocolate cheesecakes right in fridge and in the pan. Once they are cool, remove them and add your favorite toppings. In my case, I added some chocolate ganache (because more chocolate is always better – am I right?), whipped cream and a Hershey’s chocolate. It’s hard to go wrong – fresh fruit would even be delicious! Whatever you add, I know they’ll be great! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
More Mini Cheesecakes:
Mini Baileys Chocolate Cheesecakes
Mini Mint Chocolate Oreo Cheesecakes
Mini S’mores Cheesecakes
Mini Reeses Peanut Butter Cheesecakes
No Bake Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes
Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 mini cheesecakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes are smooth, creamy and made with an Oreo cookie crumb crust, chocolate ganache topping and chocolate whipped cream! A classic little treat with plenty of chocolate!
Ingredients
CRUST
- 1 cup (134g) oreo cookie crumbs
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
CHEESECAKE FILLING
- 12 ounces (339g) cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (104g) sugar
- 2 tbsp (14g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup (58g) sour cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 4 oz chocolate, melted (I used dark chocolate)
CHOCOLATE GANACHE
- 3 oz semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
WHIPPED CREAM
- 3/4 cup (180ml) heavy whipping cream, cold
- 3 tbsp (22g) powdered sugar
- 3 tbsp (14g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Mini chocolate bars, for topping
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325°F (162°C). Add cupcake liners to a cupcake pan.
2. Combine the oreo crumbs and melted butter. Divide the mixture between the cupcake liners and press into the bottoms.
3. Bake crusts for 5 minutes then remove from oven. Allow to cool while you make the filling.
4. Reduce oven to 300°F (148°C).
5. In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar and cocoa until combined (Use low speed to keep less air from getting into the batter, which can cause cracks). Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
6. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed until well combined.
7. Add eggs one at a time, beating slowly and scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.
8. Stir in the melted chocolate.
9. Add the filling to each cheesecake cup until cups are mostly full.
10. Bake cheesecakes for 15 minutes, then turn off oven and leave the door closed for another 10 minutes.
11. Crack the oven door and allow cheesecakes to cool for 15-20 minutes, then put in the fridge to finish cooling. When the cheesecakes are cool, remove from the pan.
12. Add the chocolate chips for the ganache to a small bowl. Heat the heavy whipping cream just until it begins to boil.
13. Pour the cream over the chocolate chips and then whisk until melted and smooth.
14. Add a little chocolate ganache to the top of each cheesecake.
15. To make the whipped cream, add the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, cocoa powder and vanilla to a large mixer bowl and whip on high speed until stiff peaks form.
16. Pipe whipped cream onto each mini chocolate cheesecake, then top with a mini chocolate bar.
17. Refrigerate cheesecakes until ready to serve. Cheesecakes are best when stored well covered and consumed with 3-4 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Mini Cheesecake
- Calories: 281
- Sugar: 21.1 g
- Sodium: 145.5 mg
- Fat: 18 g
- Carbohydrates: 26.6 g
- Protein: 5.2 g
- Cholesterol: 60.8 mg
Keywords: oreo recipe, chocolate cheesecake recipe, oreo dessert recipe, how to make chocolate whipped cream, how to make cheesecake
Filed Under:
Enjoy!
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This is THE best chocolate cheesecake recipe! I made the cheesecake themselves word for word, (except I used a mini cheesecake pan) and these came out unbelievably delicious. The tops did not sink in either and did not crack… Everyone I served those to raved over them & someone even said, “I’ve died & gone to Heaven!” My only recommendation is I did not think the ganache was necessary but that is just my personal preference.
★★★★★
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Can you freeze these?
Sure. Just wrap them well before you freeze them and thaw them in the fridge before using.
These were fabulous. The perfect size. I didn’t end up making the whipped cream so just added some Maldon salt on top.
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed them!
Recipe says mini, directions don’t specify size of cupcake pan. Are these regular or mini ?
Mini refers to the fact that they aren’t full sized cheesecakes. If I called them chocolate cheesecakes, it might confuse people that they aren’t full-sized. Number one in the instructions mentions lining a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. You do not not use a mini cupcake pan, just a regular one.
Hello! Have you also made these in a mini cupcake pan? Im wondering if there would be any changes in your recipe if you were to go even smaller so they would be bite sized.
I haven’t made cheesecakes in that size pan. You would need to adjust things to a smaller amount for each cheesecake.
I just tried them the second they were cool enough (I started making them pretty late and expected to have to wait until morning, but just had one as an 11 pm snack because they smelled so good) and they are fantastic! Super rich but not overly sweet, perfect with whipped cream. The cocoa powder is a really nice touch. They are the perfect portion size too (I’m glad I didn’t cut the recipe in half because I’m definitely going to be eating lots of these in the next few days). 10/10, I will definitely make these again!
★★★★★
So glad you’re happy with them!
This was an amazing recipe totally delicious. I am looking for clarification on the whip cream section of the recipe. you listed 3 Tbsp of cocoa powder. Did you mean 3 tsp or 1 tbsp or something other than 3 TBSP? It was extremely bitter/sour with the 3 – I had to keep adding powder sugar and cream to get the flavor to balance but would love to know the correct ratio. Thank you so much. I look forward to trying more of your recipes!!
★★★★★
No, 3 tablespoons is correct. I’ve used this same whipped cream in dozens of recipes and never gotten that feedback before. Perhaps you had a really bitter cocoa? Was it dutch process cocoa?
Is the chocolate for the filling 4oz after it’s melted?
It should weigh the same either way. But I measure it prior to melting.
Super easy to make and totally delicious!
★★★★★
I wanted to say that this recipe is absolutely delicious. It’s one that my family requests that I make for any special occasion. It’s really light and airy.
I do want to note that it’s incredibly important for the cream cheese AND the eggs to be room temperature. I usually follow that rule but I forgot to take the eggs out and then added them straight from the fridge. The reason this is important is because once you melt your added chocolate, it’ll turn solid rather than mixing smoothly in. Other than that, thank you for a wonderful recipe.
★★★★★
So glad you enjoy them!