Recipe for Cheesecake Tartlets with Chocolate Ganache! A chocolate pastry crust is filled with a creamy cheesecake mixture, baked until set, then topped with a rich chocolate ganache.
Happy Halloween everyone! These Cheesecake Tartlets with Chocolate Ganache are such a fun addition to the holiday with Halloween-themed designs decorated over the top using chocolate.
The creamy cheesecake filling pairs beautifully with the contrasting dark chocolate crust and decadent chocolate ganache with just a few steps.
Best of all, no water bath is needed for the cheesecake while baking! Simply pipe or spoon the cheesecake filling into the partially baked crust and cook until just set.
I topped the Cheesecake Tartlets with various Jack-O-Lantern faces and a few spider webs. For other times of the year, you can simply just cover with a thin layer of the ganache or use another favorite pattern.
A Few Cheesecake Tartlet Tips
To help create the flaky texture for the pastry base, I used a dough blender to cut in the chilled, diced butter. You can also use two forks or the tips of your fingers. Just try to work as quickly as possible to keep the butter from melting.
I added just enough water (also chilled) to bring the dough together, but try to avoid adding too much. Overworking the dough will cause the crust to toughen a bit.
Make sure to refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes before rolling out and transferring to the greased tartlet cavities.
Roll the chilled dough between two pieces of parchment or on a lightly floured surface until about 1/8 inch (3 millimeters) thick. Use a circular cutter to create rounds slightly larger than the tartlet pan.
When pressing the circles into the greased pan, carefully move from the bottom to the sides to keep air bubbles from forming.
The crust is partially baked before adding the cheesecake filling. Add pie weights over pieces of parchment in each tartlet to keep it from puffing in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, then very carefully remove the parchment and weights before baking the crust for another 5 minutes.
The baking time may need to be adjusted if your tartlets differ in size. Mine were 2.5 inches (6 centimeters) across the top. I used a Non-stick Mini Tart Pan.
Store the baked cheesecake tartlets in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to three days.
Notable Ingredients
I used dark cocoa powder to create the deep dark chocolate color in the crust. It can be found in the specialty baking section of some grocery stores and can sometimes be labeled as Black Cocoa Powder. If unavailable, you can substitute with dark or plain unsweetened cocoa powder. The color just won’t be as dark.
If you don’t have vanilla beans available, substitute with about 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract.
Looking for more fun Halloween recipes?
Try my:
This recipe was originally posted in October 2013 and updated in September 2021 to add metric measurements and swap the graham cracker crust for a chocolate pastry crust.
Cheesecake Tartlets with Chocolate Ganache
Adapted from The Little Epicurean
Cheesecake Tartlets with Chocolate Ganache
Ingredients
Chocolate Pastry Crust:
- 1 1/4 cups (160 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (60 grams) powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons (20 grams) black or dark cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 8 tablespoons (113 grams) unsalted butter cold and diced, plus more for greasing the pan
- 3-4 tablespoons (44-60 milliliters) cold water
Cheesecake Filling:
- 8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese softened at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup (65 grams) sour cream
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 vanilla bean
Chocolate Ganache:
- 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) heavy cream
- 3 ounces (85 grams) dark chocolate chips or chopped
Instructions
To make the chocolate pastry crust:
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and salt.
- Add the diced butter and blend in using two forks, your fingers, or a dough blender until combined with a crumbly texture and no pieces are larger than the size of a pea.
- Slowly add the cold water just until the dough comes together.
- Form the dough into a flattened disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
- Preheat oven to 350˚F (180˚C). Grease 12 tartlet pans with butter.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the refrigerated dough into an even, thin circle about 1/8 inch (3 millimeters) thick.
- Cut out circles of dough using a cutter slightly larger than the width of the tartlet pans.
- Press each circle into the prepared pan. Bring together the scraps of dough and roll out again, then cut if needed to make more circles.
- Cover each circle of dough in the pan with parchment and add pie weights or uncooked rice. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.
- Carefully remove the pie weights and parchment from the pan and continue to cook the crust for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
To make the cheesecake filling:
- Decrease oven temperature to 325˚F (163˚C).
- In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth and fluffy.
- Beat in the egg, followed by the sour cream and salt. Scrape in the seeds from the vanilla bean and combine.
- Pipe or spoon the cheesecake filling into the partially baked pastry crusts.
- Bake in preheated oven just until set, 15-20 minute. Do not brown. Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes, then carefully remove to a wire rack.
- Once cooled to room temperature, transfer the tartlets to the refrigerator and chill thoroughly, 1 to 2 hours.
To make the Chocolate Ganache:
- Pour the cream into a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Right before coming to a boil, remove from heat and add chocolate pieces. Allow to sit for 30 seconds, then whisk until smooth.
- Transfer the ganache to a small bowl, cover, and refrigerate, whisking occasionally, until firm enough to pipe.
- Drizzle the ganache over chilled cheesecake tartlets or place in a piping back with a small tip and draw desired designs.
lk529
So pretty and yum…
Tara
Thanks!