Triple Chocolate Cheesecake with Oreo Crust

   As you might know, when I get bored, I turn to Pinterest. I was in search for a dessert that would appease my wife's cravings, and buy me yet another week of happiness on this Earth. (She really isn't that bad, it just sounds funnier than the actual begging she does. ) one of the greatest fears I have is cheesecake. I've just simply never made one before from scratch, and as I'm always up for a challenge, I figured I'd give it a shot. Here is the recipe I found and tweaked just a small amount, giving credit to OMGChocolateDesserts.com for the original post. Of course, you can see me make it here.

Ingredients

For the Crust:

• 24 Oreo cookies-finely crushed
• ¼ cup unsalted butter-melted

For Cheesecake Filling:

• 2 lbs. cream cheese- room temperature
• 1⅓ cups powdered sugar
• 3 Tablespoon cocoa powder
• 4 eggs- room temperature
• 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate-chopped

For Chocolate Topping:

• ¾ cup heavy cream
• 6 oz. semisweet chocolate-chopped or broken into squares

Instructions

To make the crust: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease a 9-inch springform pan and set aside.
2. Finely crush the cookies in a food processor, add melted butter and blend until it’s all moistened.
3. Press crumb mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for 8 minutes. Remove from the oven and set on a wire rack to cool while making the filling.

To make the filling: 

1. Melt 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate and set aside to cool.
2. Mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth, mix in cocoa powder
3. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on low speed and do not overbeat it.
4. Add melted chocolate and mix on low speed to combine.
5. Pour the filling over the crust and smooth the top.
6. Bake the cheesecake until the center is set and the top looks dry (about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes).
7. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then run a thin knife around the sides of the pan and set the cake in the refrigerator (uncovered), for at least 8 hours, or better overnight.

To make the topping: 

1. In a medium saucepan stir together cream and chocolate at a simmer until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth.
2. Cool 5 minutes and pour over the cheesecake.
3. Remove the springform pan sides, and then the bottom.
4. Pour cooled chocolate on top and smooth down before putting back in the refrigerator for at least one hour. 
5. This cheesecake can be prepared up to 2-3 days in advance just store covered in the refrigerator.
6. Garnish with chocolate curls (optional).