Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

Chocolate Crust

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Butter parchment paper and exposed edges of pan, set aside.
• Combine cookie crumbs, melted butter, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Stir until well combined. Press mixture firmly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until set. Set aside to cool.

Dark Chocolate Cheesecake

• Reduce oven to 325°F.
• Melt chocolate and heavy cream in a double boiler, or gently in the microwave, and set aside to cool about 5 minutes.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese until completely smooth, scraping down bowl as needed. Add sugar, salt and cocoa powder and beat on medium-high speed until smooth. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and vanilla and beat until fully combined. Mix in eggs and yolk, one at a time, scraping down bowl, until just combined.
• Pour the batter on top of the cookie crust. Bake 35-40 minutes, or until the center is set but still slightly jiggly. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate 4 hours or until completely chilled. Carefully remove cheesecake from pan. Cut into 16 small squares, cleaning the knife in between each cut. Decorate each square with piped chocolate ganache (recipe below) as desired. Refrigerate until ready to enjoy.

Chocolate Ganache for Decorations

• Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat heavy cream in a small saucepan until just beginning to bubble at the edges. Pour over chocolate and let sit 2 minutes. Whisk until smooth; let cool. Ganache is ready to pipe when it’s thick, spoonable and holds its shape.