baileys chocolate cheesecake with chocolate ganache

This Bailey’s Chocolate Cheesecake is made with a a crisp chocolate graham cracker crust, an ultra-creamy chocolate and bailey’s flavored cheesecake, and a luscious layer of chocolate ganache on top. This rich and decadent dessert is perfect for any holiday celebration, and is a fabulous make-ahead option.

This recipe was originally published in August of 2017, but I just updated it with new photos, helpful tips for making cheesecake, and a re-vamped recipe that’s even better than the original.

If you love chocolate, cheesecake, or both – this is the dessert for you! Homemade Bailey’s Chocolate Cheesecake is show-stopping dessert to serve for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other holiday – and it’s easier to make than you might think. I’ll walk you through the whole process, with all my tips and tricks for making cheesecake.

Chocolate Crust for Cheesecake:

This crust is super simple – mix together crushed chocolate graham crackers, melted butter, and a pinch of granulated sugar. Make sure your graham crackers are very finely crushed – I recommend pulsing them in a food processor.

Press the crust into a springform pan and up the sides a bit. Bake for 9-10 minutes, then set aside while you make the filling.

Recipe:

Crust

2 cups crushed chocolate graham crackers
1 stick melted butter
1/4 c. sugar

Cheesecake

14 oz cream cheese, room temp
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup cocoa
2 ounces melted chocolate (I used Cadbury)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup Baileys Irish Cream

Ganache

6 oz chocolate chips (I used a mix of Ghirardelli semi-sweet + Cadbury milk)
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Put graham crackers in a zip lock bag and use rolling pin to crush. Mix crust ingredients together, then press into the bottom of an ungreased springform pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Take out of oven + set aside.

Turn oven temp down to 350 degrees. Beat cream cheese in a mixing bowl with electric mixer until smooth. (Pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds if you took it directly out of the fridge.) Add sugar and mix. Add eggs and vanilla and mix. Add cocoa + melted chocolate and mix. Add whipping cream and mix. Add the Baileys and mix.

Pour into pan with the crust. Bake 35-40 minutes.

If it’s done the center will jiggle slightly when you move the pan. Let it cool to room temperature BEFORE you put it in the fridge to chill. If you put it immediately into the fridge it can ruin the cheesecake. While it’s cooling at room temp, the cheesecake will deflate some and the center will set. After an hour or two, cover and chill several hours or overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

Make the chocolate ganache close to when you are going to serve/eat the cheesecake. Have chocolate ready in a mixing bowl. Bring the cup of half & half just barely to boiling in a pot on the stove. Pour over the chocolate chips and whisk together until smooth. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

While the ganache is cooling, release the cheesecake from the springform pan. To get the cheesecake off the bottom round piece, hold it (with oven mits) over warm stove burner. The cheesecake should easily slide off onto a plate after 1-2 min over the burner.

Pour the liquid ganache in the center of the cheesecake to fill the top. Pop the remaining ganache in the fridge until it’s thick enough to hold a shape, but thin enough that it’s still pour-able. Drizzle over the top of the cheesecake for decoration + texture. Throw some extra chocolate chips on top, if you’re into that kinda thing. Serve with a cup of Irish coffee.

Notes:

*Cover leftovers and refrigerate

*If you don’t have a springform pan, you can bake this in a pie pan. You just won’t be able to get it out of the pan to serve it like you can with a springform.