This Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake Recipe will produce the best, smoothest, creamiest dessert. It's truly heavenly decadence in your mouth. Easy to make with my simple directions, I'll guide you through the process to make this show stopper cheesecake!
This chocolate marble cheesecake is popular year round, and can also be a favorite at holiday parties and gatherings.
This was inspired by my Lilikoi (Passionfruit) Cheesecake on this site, and pairs well with my Cranberry Cheesecake and Paula Deen Pumpkin Cheesecake. For a classic cheesecake look to our Philadelphia Cheesecake. Or try this fun matcha cheesecake.
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Why I love this recipe:
It's smooth, rich and creamy. It's the perfect New York Cheesecake with vanilla and delicious chocolate cheesecake swirled into it. I love that I can make the chocolate dark or milk. When I'm in the mood for extra chocolate I enjoy it with swirls of dark chocolate cheesecake and an OREO crust. I love that it's fairly easy to make, yet beautiful and impressive.
Ingredients
Below is a list of ingredients needed for this recipe. Follow our tips on each ingredient for best results.
- graham crackers - graham crackers form the base of the crust. It's sweet enough without adding any sugar, so you won't find the extra sweetness in this crust.
- butter - to mix with the graham crackers for that perfect crust. I love using salted butter in a graham cracker crust for that salty sweetness, but you can also use unsalted.
- Philadelphia cream cheese -not sponsored, but no other cream cheese produces as smooth of results! Quality matters and can make a HUGE difference in the outcome of your cheesecake. If you're going to spend the time and money to make a cheesecake, do it the right way.
- corn starch - I've used ARGO and off-brand corn starch when testing this recipe and haven't noticed a difference.
- sugar - to sweeten up all that cream cheese. I use regular granulated white sugar in this recipe.
- vanilla - Pure vanilla will create the best results and the best flavor. I get mine from Costco. I recommend pure vanilla over imitation vanilla for this recipe.
- eggs - use eggs at room temperature for best results. I use regular large eggs.
- heavy whipping cream - It needs to be 'heavy' and not regular.
- semi-sweet chocolate baking bar - I like to use Baker's brand, which can be found at pretty much all grocery stores. Make sure to use a high quality bar for the smoothest texture and best results. While testing we tried some off brand baking bars and chocolate chips. Please don't use chocolate chips. They have a coating on them that prevents them from melting and spreading well (to help them keep their shape) and we found while testing this recipe that they just don't work as well.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake
Use these process shots to help get the results you are wanting. The pictures can help with texture and be a visual guide for best results.
1. Preheat oven to 350*F. Crush graham crackers using a rolling pin and large ziploc bag or a food processor. Mix with melted butter then press into the bottom and slightly up the sides of a standard cheesecake pan. Bake for 3 minutes to set the crust.
2. Place one brick of room temperature cream cheese in a large mixing bowl or bowl of stand mixer. Add corn starch and ½ cup sugar and beat on medium low for 3 minutes, scraping down the sides at least once while mixing.
3. Add the remaining cream cheese, one brick at a time, beating for one minute each, scraping down after each addition. Beat in the remainder of the sugar, then the eggs one at a time. Beat in the vanilla, then gently stir in the whipping cream to combine.
4. Take out about ⅓- ½ of cheesecake batter and place it in a separate bowl. Melt chocolate according to package directions, then stir into the smaller bowl of batter.
5. Pour about half of the regular batter onto the graham cracker crust. Plop about half of the chocolate batter on top of the regular batter by large spoonfuls. Using a damp finger, gently press the chocolate batter into the regular cheesecale batter.
6. Repeat step 5 with the remaining batter. Marble the batter: get a knife and make vertical figure 8 patterns once moving from left to right. Rotate the pan 90 degrees, or a quarter turn, then make another set of vertical figure patterns across the cake.
7. Bake in a water bath at 350* F for 70-85 minutes. The water bath is imperative to getting an even bake and no cracks. I recommend using this pan, this moat, or this method done twice. The top should be a light golden tan, and the cheesecake should still be wobbly when nudged. *Note: if baked without a water bath, the bake time will be around 60 minutes.
8.Chill for 2-4 hours at room temperature, then refrigerate another 4 hours or overnight before serving.
Hint: Don't over swirl the chocolate batter into the regular batter, or you'll lose the beautiful swirls!
Substitutions and Variations
We love switching things up when we're in the kitchen. Try any of these variations for something a little different.
- gluten free - make the easy switch of graham crackers to gluten free graham crackers for a gluten free version. We make it this way for my brother in law and it tastes great!
- OREO crust- use 24 crushed OREO cookies without the cream. Mix with 5 Tablespoons melted butter and press into the springform pan.
- cocoa powder- this is MUCH trickier to do and will definitely affect the texture of your cheesecake. Stir in an extra 1 Tablespoon of cream into the chocolate portion of batter, then add ⅓ cup cocoa powder and stir to combine.
- cream cheese- as said above, I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend using Philadelphia cream cheese. I've tried about 8 different kinds and none of them measure up. If you MUST use a different kind, Kirkland brand is sort of okay, and the brands more expensive than Philadelphia should work okay.
- Spicy -if you like spicy chocolate, mix in ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper into the chocolate batter for that chocolate cayenne flavor.
- Vanilla Dark Chocolate Marble Cheesecake- use bitter instead of semi sweet baking chocolate and an OREO crust.
- White Chocolate- reduce the sugar by 1.5 Tablespoons, then use white chocolate instead of semi-sweet chocolate.
How to Serve
We like to cut ours into 16 slices for the perfect smallish serving. Sometimes we top it with whipped cream and caramel sauce, sometimes we just eat it as is. For the chocolate lover in your life, top with chocolate sauce and a light sprinkling of cocoa powder.
Storing Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake
Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. At 3 days it will start to separate and the texture won't be as creamy and amazing.
This cheesecake can be frozen! Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving or at room temperature for about 45 minutes.
Top tips
Use a water bath for best results. I have made hundreds of cheesecakes and as soon as I started using a water bath, it took my cheesecakes from an A- to an A+. The texture when you use a water bath is unbelievable.
One of the biggest mistakes made with cheesecakes is rushing the cooling process. This can lead to a gooey or even chunky center. Cool a minimum of 3 hours at room temperature before moving to the refrigerator.
Recipe
Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake
Equipment
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 spatula
Ingredients
Crust:
- 10 sheets graham crackers
- 5 Tablespoons butter
Cheesecake:
- 32 ounce cream cheese 4 bricks, only full fat, PHILADELPHIA brand at room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated white sugar
- ¼ cup corn starch
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract pure
- 3 eggs large, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup heavy whipping cream
- 6 ounce semi sweet baking chocolate
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 350*F. Crush graham crackers by using a food processor or a rolling pin.
- Melt butter and mix with graham crackers. Press into a 9" springform pan. Bake for 3 minutes to set the crust.
Cheesecake:
- Using an electric mixer on medium low, beat one brick of room temperature cream cheese, the corn starch and ½ cup of sugar for 3 minutes, scraping down the sides at each minute. Add the rest of the cream cheese, 1 package at a time for one minute each, scraping down the sides after each addition.
- Beat in the remaining sugar on medium for one minute. Beat in the vanilla. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until well combined and scraping down the edges of the bowl after each one. The mixture should be smooth and beautiful and creamy. See picture above for a visual guide.
- Stir in the whipping cream on low speed, just until combined. Pour about ⅓ or a little more of the batter into another bowl. Melt chocolate according to package directions. It should be smooth and runny. Mix in the chocolate into the small bowl of cheesecake batter.
- Pour half of the regular batter into the springform pan. Drop half of the chocolate batter on top, using large spoonfuls. Gently press the chocolate into the regular with a damp finger. Repeat with the rest of the batter. See pictures above for guidance.
- Place in a water bath. Use a cheesecake moat or double wrap your pan in aluminum foil to prevent leaking. Bake at 350*F for 70-80 minutes, until it starts to turn a light golden tan color and is wobbly when nudged.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool at least 3 hours without bothering it. Refrigerate another 4 or more hours or overnight.
Notes
- The 2 most common cheesecake mistakes are 1- using low quality or neufchatel cream cheese and 2- cooling the cheesecake too quickly. It is imperative to let the cheesecake cool for at least 3 hours at room temperature without disturbing it before moving to the refrigerator.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving.
- Use the bottom of a small measuring cup to press the graham cracker crust into the pan. It makes it much easier and makes it more compact.
- Using a water bath will really level up your cheesecake. I like to get a huge aluminum roasting pan- the disposable one, but I use them about 15ish times before I have to get a new one. Either get a cheesecake moat or double wrap your cheesecake in foil following a youtube tutorial. If you get a water leak in your cheesecake while baking it, it will ruin it.
- Make sure not to over swirl the chocolate into the regular cheesecake or you will end up with a light chocolate cheesecake instead of chocolate swirl.
- Take your time with the mixing and scraping. A good cheesecake is not made in a few minutes, but takes time. Be patient and your cheesecake will be perfect.
Nutrition
FAQ
Melt baking chocolate and mix into ⅓ the cheesecake batter. Place ½ the plain batter in your pan, drop ½ of the chocolate on top in spoonfuls. Gently press in the chocolate, then repeat. Swirl the top using a figure 8 pattern, being careful not to do too many.
Put half the normal cheesecake batter in the pan, plop half of the mixture to be swirled in spoonfuls across the top. Press in then repeat. Using a figure 8 pattern, swirl the 2 together, being careful not to do too many.
Nicole says
This Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake is sooo yummy. It's perfectly smooth and a fun way to mix up a regular New York Cheesecake. The directions were easy to follow too!
Denyce says
Easy to make, was gorgeous and delicious. Everyone loved it. Will definitely make again.
Andrea says
We are so happy you loved the chocolate swirl cheesecake so much! Thanks for letting us know.