As I mentioned in a post last week, since February was World Nutella Day, this weekend I decided to try baking a Nutella cheesecake. I wasn’t sure exactly how it was going to happen, but it was worth a try.

Nutella Cheesecake
Nutella Cheesecake

A few ideas went through my mind…mix the Nutella directly into the batter so that the cake is a chocolate colour, spoon dollops of it into the white batter and have chunks of Nutella whenever you take a bite, or just drizzle it over a plain cheesecake. In the end I decided to try and swirl the Nutella into the cake. Aside from the fact that at one point I forgot that I was baking and left the cake in the oven too long, it came out really well. A little over done, but still good. The Nutella isn’t overpowering in it but you can definitely taste it.

I used a chocolate cookie crumb for the base, which was a bit much for me. The next time, I might try a combination of ground hazelnuts and graham crackers.

For the cheesecake, just use your favourite recipe, set aside some batter to add Nutella to.

Nutella Cheesecake

1 cup graham cracker crumbs or chocolate cookie crumbs
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp sugar

2 package cream cheese (room temperature)
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
Nutella

Mix the graham cracker crumbs (or cookie crumbs, whichever you decided to use) together with the sugar. Add the butter and mix together. Press the mix into the bottom of a non-stick round pan, probably about 9 inches. Place it in a 325F oven for about 10 minutes. Once done, remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Mix together the cream cheese and sugar until well blended and smooth. Add one egg at a time, mixing well as you add each egg. Take a small bowl and pour about 1/2 cup of the batter into it. Pour the rest of the batter into the pan with the cookie crust. Now take the reserve batter you set aside and add a dollop of Nutella. I added Nutella until I got the colour I wanted, which was a dark rich brown, as well as making sure the batter had the taste of Nutella.

Take the reserve batter and add a spoonful to the batter. Use a toothpick to swirl the Nutella batter into the white batter. Add the Nutella batter by the spoonful until you get the look of a swirly cheesecake.

Place in the oven at 350F and bake for about 50 minutes or until the centre doesn’t jiggle anymore. I suggest adding a water bath in the oven to prevent the cake from cracking. What I mean by this is just add a pan of water next to the cake.

Once the cake is baked, set it aside and let it cool. Then place it in the refrigerator and let it chill for about 4 hours. Before you remove the cake from the pan, just run a knife along the edge to loosen it.