• Heat an oven to 350°F (177°C).

Prepare and Bake the Cheesecake Crust

• Pulse the animal crackers for 30 seconds to one minute using your food processor fitted with the blade attachment.

  Stir the melted unsalted butter into the cookie crumbs to create a mixture that binds.
• Grab a handful of the crust mixture and squeeze it in your fist. If the crumbs hold together tightly, the crust is ready to use.

  Crust mixtures that ooze butter need to be dried out, so add more cookie crumbs. On the other hand, if the mixture falls apart after you finish squeezing, you will need to mix in a little more melted butter.
• Dump the contents of the bowl into a 9-inch springform pan.

  Use your knuckles or the bottom of a measuring cup to press the crumb into the bottom and a little up the sides of the pan to form the cheesecake crust.

  Bake the chocolate cheesecake crust mixture in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 10 minutes.
• After 10 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool completely.

  Leave the oven on since you'll need it to bake the cheesecake in a little while.

  When the pan is cool enough to handle, wrap the bottom and sides of the cheesecake pan in two layers of heavy-duty foil. This foil will protect the pan from taking on water that we'll use when baking the cheesecake.

Begin Boiling Water for the Water Bath

• Set the pan cheesecake pan aside and heat 6 cups of water in a large saucepan over medium heat.

  It's okay if the water comes to a boil while you're preparing the Nutella cheesecake batter.

Mix the Nutella Cheesecake Batter

• Use a whisk to stir together the cocoa powder, granulated sugar, and kosher salt in a small mixing bowl.

  Add the cream cheese to a larger mixing bowl, followed by the cocoa-sugar mixture. 
• Use an electric hand or stand mixer on low speed to blend the dry ingredients with the cream cheese.

  Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl and beaters once the majority of the dry ingredients are blended with the cheese.

  Begin beating the batter again, this time with the mixer at medium speed, for 2 minutes. Stop the mixer after about a minute to scrape down the bowl and beaters.
• Add the eggs to the batter, one at a time, blending well after each egg.

  Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl and beaters after you add the final egg.

  Blend the batter for another minute a medium speed. 
• Next, add the Nutella and the vanilla extract to the batter. If your Nutella is a bit thick, you can microwave it for 30 seconds, heating it just enough to make it the consistency of yogurt.

  Blend in the Nutella for 1 minute, then add the sour cream. Blend the sour cream into the batter for 1 minute at medium-low speed. 

Pan, Then Bake the Nutella Cheesecake

• Place the foil-wrapped cheesecake pan into a 12-inch (30cm) or larger pan.

  Scrape the cheesecake batter into the baked crust and shift the cheesecake pan over slightly.

  Carefully pour the water you set to boiling earlier into the outer pan. I use a wide pancake spatula to shield the cheesecake pan from splashes.
• Slide the pan setup into the hot oven and bake the cheesecake for 1 hour.

  After the 1 hour baking time, turn the oven off and prop the door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the Nutella cheesecake to cool like this in the oven for 1 hour.
• Remove the pans from the oven after an hour.

  Lift the cheesecake pan from the outer pan and remove the foil wrapping.

  Allow the Nutella cheesecake to cool to room temperature for another hour.

Make the Chocolate Ganache

• Heat the cream for 1 minute on high in the microwave. Make sure it doesn't boil over!

  Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips in a bowl and let it sit for 2 minutes.
• Gently stir the cream into the chocolate until the mixture runs smooth.

  Pour 1/2-3/4 cup (120-170ml) of the chocolate ganache over it.

  Swirl the ganache over the surface of the cheesecake to make it smooth and even.

Chill the Cheesecake

• Refrigerate the Nutella cheesecake for at least 6 hours or until chilled throughout.

Whip the Chocolate Ganache

• Cover the bowl with the ganache with plastic film and let it sit at room temperature until about an hour before you plan to serve it.

  Use the whisk attachment of your mixer to whip the chocolate ganache to a fluffy consistency.
• Scrape down the bowl and whip for about 30 seconds after whipping on medium-high speed.

  Continue whipping for 30 seconds to 1 minute after scraping down the bowl. Use this to pipe rosettes or a fluffy border on the finished Nutella cheesecake.

Decorate the Nutella Cheesecake

• Fill a tall glass or pitcher with very hot tap water and set a sharp knife in it to heat the metal. Before using the knife, wipe off the blade with a paper towel.

  Run the knife between the cheesecake and the pan to separate the two. Heating the knife ensures the separation is sharp and clean. 

  Once the ganache and pan are separated, release the collar clip to remove it from the cheesecake. 
• Heat 1/4 cup of Nutella in a microwave-safe bowl for 15 seconds to make it easy to stir and pipe.

  Fill a small piping bag with the Nutella and pipe a drizzle of the spread over the surface of the cheesecake.
• Put a 1M piping tip in a piping bag, then fill the bag with the whipped ganache.

  Use your dominant hand to squeeze the piping bag while guiding the piping bag in a clockwise direction with your non-dominant hand.
• Top each rosette of ganache with hazelnut chocolate candy.
• Serve Nutella cheesecake with a drink that will cut through the richness of it: milk, coffee, or water. To make this recipe even more indulgent, serve it with a scoop of my Frozen Custard.