Guinness and Chocolate Cheesecake

Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 45 min
Servings: 12
Yield: 12 servings

Description

This rich Guinness chocolate cheesecake is flavored with everyone's favorite Irish stout beer and decorated with chocolate for a delicious dessert.

Ingredients

1 cup crushed chocolate cookies
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons white sugar
1/4 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1/2 pound semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
1 pinch salt
3/4 cup Irish stout beer (e.g. Guinness®)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (1 ounce) square semisweet chocolate

Directions

1 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9-inch springform pan with butter.
2 Combine crushed cookies, butter, 2 tablespoons sugar, and cocoa in a small bowl; mix; press into the bottom of the prepared springform pan.
3 Place cream cheese in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer set to low speed until smooth. While beating, slowly add 1 cup sugar and then eggs, one at a time. Continue beating until smooth.
4 Combine chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave until chocolate is completely melted, stirring every 30 seconds. Beat chocolate into cream cheese mixture. Add sour cream, salt, beer, and vanilla; blend until smooth. Pour mixture over crust and place the pan into a large, deep baking dish. Fill the dish with water to cover the bottom half of the springform pan.
5 Bake cheesecake in the water bath in the preheated oven for 45 minutes; turn oven off; leave cheesecake in the oven with oven door slightly ajar another 45 minutes; remove from oven. Run a knife along the edge of the cheesecake to loosen from pan. Chill in refrigerator at least 4 hours.
6 Melt semisweet chocolate in a small bowl using the microwave. Make chocolate clovers by dropping 3 small drops of melted chocolate close to one another on waxed paper. Drag a toothpick from between two dots outward to make the stem; chill until hardened. Arrange the chocolate clovers on top of the chilled cheesecake for decoration.