Guinness Chocolate Birthday Cheesecake

My birthday was extra special this year because our kids and grandkids traveled from Texas to spend a few days with us. My daughter arrived bearing a Guinness Chocolate Cheesecake by Closet Cooking, and it was the best cheesecake EVER! It is hard to describe what Guinness does for chocolate, but it is a bit like the enhancement coffee provides for chocolate - it is marked by a depth of flavor not achieved by mere chocolate. The creaminess factor, combined with the richness of the chocolate, made me smack my lips.


I asked my daughter if she changed anything about the recipe, and she said that she ran out of dark chocolate and had to supplement with milk chocolate, and she used butter and chocolate graham crackers instead of grahams with cocoa. These changes are reflected in the recipe below.


Guinness Chocolate Cheesecake
adapted from the blog of Closet Cooking
8 servings

1 cup chocolate graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons heavy cream
8 oz dark chocolate, chopped
4 oz milk chocolate, chopped
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup Guinness

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix graham cracker crumbs and butter and press into bottom of 9-inch spring-form pan. Melt chocolates in cream in a double boiler; set aside. Beat cream cheese until smooth, then mix in sugar, chocolate, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and Guinness. Pour mixture into spring-form pans. Bake for 60 minutes. Turn off heat; leave cheesecake in oven with door slightly ajar for 60 minutes. Let cool completely, and chill in refrigerator overnight.

My hubby also provided a beautiful and delicious chocolate cake with chocolate and frosting, complete with a hot pink Happy Birthday. And yes, I had generous portions of both birthday cake and cheesecake. In my world there is no such thing as too much chocolate.