You guys. I made a cheesecake.
Lemme repeat this. I. Made a cheesecake. A super creamy, chocolate crust, tastes like it came from a bakery cheesecake. The best part? I am by no means a baker, so if I can do it, I'm betting you can too!
I think you might be aware by now that I have a smidge of a sweet tooth, and by smidge I mean a serious sweet tooth. So now that I have this legit Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake under my belt, I felt it was necessary to share with my fellow dessert lovers.
Ok so, not gunna lie, there have definitely been a few trials and travails. Which means THIS recipe is the easiest, simplest, most delicious one I've made. It also means you don't have to go through numerous errors to find that perfect cheesecake because I've done it for you! So you can skip the hard stuff and enjoy a slice of Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake.
Tip 1: Be careful when adding the eggs. Do not over mix! If you do, this can add too much air to the batter and cause instability during baking, leading to unsightly cracks. And make sure to add the eggs one at a time.
Tip 2: Leave the oven door popped open with the heat off after cooking for an hour to let the cheesecake cool down. If you take it out of the oven, the temperature decline can be too much for the filling and again cause cracking on the surface of your cheesecake.
Truth? This BEAUTEOUS cheesecake totally had a crack in it. Right down the center. Not even lying. Cheesecake can be rough guys.
Solution? Yummy raspberry sauce with fresh raspberries placed just so, with dark chocolate shavings and sifted powdered sugar on top. I was actually planning on that garnish anyway, but it is a very tasty, AND aesthetically pleasing way to cover up a crack the filling of an otherwise perfect Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake. No one even noticed! And you won't tell right? 😉

Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 mins
- Yield: 1 cheesecake 1x
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1 cup finely crushed graham crackers
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ½ cup cocoa powder
For the Filling
- 24 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 eggs
- 1 bar dark chocolate, thinly sliced into shavings,fresh raspberries, and sifted powdered sugar to garnish
For the Raspberry Sauce
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest (about 1 small lemon)
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice (about ½ a small lemon)
- 1 teaspoon corn starch + 1 teaspoon water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan. Cover the sides with foil to protect against the water bath used to cook the cheesecake.
- In a medium bowl, combine crushed graham crackers, sugar, butter, and cocoa powder together until thoroughly mixed.
- Using a flat-bottomed surface, press the graham cracker mixture onto the bottom of the pan.
- Place the pan on a middle rack in the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool. Lower the heat to 325˚F.
- Using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer or a hand mixer and a large mixing bowl, add the cream cheese and mix on a medium speed until smooth.
- Add the sugar slowly and mix until smooth.
- Add the sour cream, vanilla extract, and salt and mix until smooth.
- On a slow speed, add the eggs one at a time, mixing until just combined.
- Slowly pour the filling mixture on top of the cooled crust.
- Place the foil covered spring form pan in a roasting pan and put on the middle rack in the oven. Fill with water half way up the pan.
- Bake for 60 to 75 minutes, until edges are set and the center of the cheesecake is still slightly jiggly.
- Leaving the cheesecake in the oven, turn off the heat and pop the oven door open an inch for another 60 minutes, to let the cheesecake cool down slowly and reduce the chance of cracking.
- Take the cheesecake out of the roasting pan and chill in the fridge overnight.
- To remove the cheesecake from the pan, run a paring knife around the sides. Open the pan and remove the ring.*
- Make the Raspberry Sauce: Combine the sugar, water, lemon zest and lemon juice in a small pot. Bring to a boil and add fresh raspberries. Combine corn starch and water and add to the pot. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and let steep for about 5 minutes. Strain the syrup to remove all the solids and pour into a bowl. Chill until completely cooled. Makes about ¾ cup syrup. Chill until ready to use. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
- Top with raspberry sauce, fresh raspberries, and dark chocolate shavings.
Notes
If you want to remove the bottom of the pan, briefly heat up the underside above a stove burner or using a creme brûlée torch. Gently slide a knife or spatula underneath to release the bottom and slide off onto the serving plate.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours
Dan says
Great dish to serve expecting fathers. Homemade cheesecake was a big hit for Dman and his new daughter Amalia.
Scott Andrews says
This cake is awesome. Mine did have two cracks as well but were hidden by the raspberries and chocolate. I couldn't get fresh raspberries because they are out of season, but used frozen and it turned out great.
One quick question...when I poured the raspberry sauce on top it immediately ran all over the place....how did you keep yours from running off the top?
Aberdeen says
Hi Scott! Did you simmer the sauce for a little bit and then let it cool completely? That can help the sauce set up quite a bit.
Laurence says
Hi, I would like to bake this for my husband’s birthday, and was wondering if I can make it the day before and just leave the decorating part for the D day.
Aberdeen says
That should be fine!
Gina says
I made this for my mom's birthday. It came out amazing! Great recipe. Delicious, creamy cheesecake!
David says
No words can describe how delicious.
Aberdeen says
😀 Thank you so much!
Jerica says
So easy and came out amazing!!
Anna says
I made the cake this morning, and I’m hoping to let it chill throughout the day and decorate it tonight. How many hours (minimum) does it need to chill in the fridge?
FTGirl says
Best cheesecake I’ve ever had!
Brenda Campbell says
I would recommend the raspberry ingredient be increased to 2 cups. I used one cup to make the sauce, had nothing left to decorate the top of the cheesecake. I had to send my husband on an emergency trip to get enough raspberries to make the cake look like your photo.
Noelle says
This cheesecake was delicious. Highly recommend this recipe. It took a lot of preplanning to make with all the steps but it was a huge hit with family and friends. The raspberry sauce was so runny, next time I will add more cornstarch - when I put it on the cake, it dripped all over down the sides. still tasted amazing though. My family has already asked me to make this again.
Charlsie Parks says
What dark chocolate do you recommend using?