Peanut Butter Cheesecake - Chocolate Covered Katie

Smooth, rich, thick, and creamy, this Homemade Peanut Butter Cheesecake Recipe is an absolute dessert dream come true!

The best peanut butter dessert

Just one bite and you’ll never buy store-bought cheesecake again.

Mix the ingredients together, pour into a pie crust if desired, and sit back while the oven does the rest of the work for you.

Bring this melt-in-the-mouth peanut butter cheesecake to share with friends and prepare to be the number one guest at your next party.

Everyone will ask you for the recipe!

Readers also love these Sopapilla cheesecake bars

Watch the Peanut Butter Cheesecake recipe video above

The best fancy dessert cheesecake recipe

Ingredients for Peanut Butter Cheesecake

What you need for the recipe: peanut butter, cream cheese, yogurt, pure vanilla extract, sweetener of your choice, and cornstarch. A keto option is also included below.

You can use creamy or crunchy peanut butter. And either conventional brands like Skippy or Jif or natural peanut butter go well in this New York-style cheesecake.

If you prefer almond butter, cashew butter, macadamia nut butter, or a flavored peanut butter spread, those are good choices too.

For a vegan peanut butter cheesecake, simply use non-dairy yogurt and plant-based packaged cream cheese, which is often sold in the same department as Philadelphia cream cheese. Or you make homemade vegan cream cheese.

Cheesecake Topping Ideas

Turn the kitchen into your very own Cheesecake Factory by trying different toppings to decorate your cheesecake. Here are just a few simple ideas:

Homemade Nutella

Peanut Butter Cups – Reese’s Peanut Butter Cheesecake? Yes, please!

coconut ice cream

Shredded Oreos, mini marshmallows, or white chocolate chips

Dark chocolate ganache

chocolate truffle

Sliced bananas and chopped peanuts

Caramel sauce

Birthday candles and chocolate sprinkles

How to make the cheesecake

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper. Prepare the optional crust.

Fill a baking pan about half full with water and place on the bottom rack of the oven.

Bring the cream cheese and peanut butter to room temperature for easier blending. Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend just until smooth.

Spread the filling on your prepared base. Or spread it straight into the pan for a crustless peanut butter cheesecake.

Place the springform pan on the middle shelf of the oven, above the shelf with the water pan. Bake 30 minutes for a 9-inch pan or 38 minutes for an 8-inch pie.

Without opening the oven door even a crack, turn off the heat and let the baked cake rest in the closed oven for another five minutes. Now remove the soft and wobbly cake from the oven and chill on the counter for about twenty minutes.

Refrigerate for at least five hours or overnight, either uncovered or very loosely covered with cloth or paper towels to allow moisture to escape. The peanut butter cheese pie will firm up significantly as it cools.

Garnish as desired and serve. Store leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator for up to four days. Or slice and freeze in an airtight container for up to three months. Thaw frozen cheesecake before serving.

**For a no-bake peanut butter cheesecake, use this no-bake cheesecake.

Baking tips and tricks

With any classic cheesecake recipe, it’s important not to over-beat the batter or this will create air bubbles that can burst and cause cracks during baking.

Allow the peanut butter cake to cool gradually to avoid sudden temperature changes, which could also cause the recipe to crack.

Although the double boiler isn’t necessary, I recommend adding it to add moisture to the oven so your cheesecake doesn’t dry out.

If your cake cracks for any reason, simply cover the imperfections with a layer of fresh strawberries, chocolate fudge sauce, or coconut whipped cream.

Mini cheesecakes or bars

To turn the recipe into mini peanut butter cheesecakes or cheesecake bars, divide the filling into two muffin pans or a 9″ x 5″ rectangular baking dish lined with parchment paper or graham cracker crust.

Bake 20 minutes for cheesecake cupcakes or 25 minutes for peanut butter bars. The simple recipe makes about twenty-four mini peanut butter cakes or bars.

Allow to cool gradually, first in a turned-off oven and then on the countertop so the peanut butter cheesecakes don’t crack as they cool.

Leftover cheesecake bars or bites can be refrigerated for three or four days or frozen for up to three months.

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Crust

Feel free to use your store-bought or homemade cheesecake crust, graham cracker crust, or chocolate brownie crust. You can also omit the crust altogether if you prefer a peanut cheesecake without the crust.

I like to make a chocolate chip cookie crust by finely chopping twenty-four chocolate sandwich cookies (like Oreos with the filling) in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, you can, with a lot of patience, crush the biscuits in a Ziploc bag.

Place the crushed cookie crumbs in a large bowl along with 4 tablespoons of melted butter or coconut oil. Stir everything together.

Press the crust into an 8- or 9-inch springform pan or lined pie plate, then place in the refrigerator for at least half an hour before pouring the cheesecake filling on top.

The recipe was adapted from my Vegan Cheesecake and Peanut Butter Dip.

24 oz cream cheese or vegan cream cheese
1 Cup peanut butter
1 Cup yogurt
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon cornstarch (or here is a keto cheesecake recipe)
2/3 Cup sugar or pure maple syrup, or xylitol for sugar-free
optional crust of choice (the one I used is written out above)

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Fill any baking pan half full with water and place on the bottom rack of the oven. Bring cream cheese and peanut butter to room temperature. Beat all cheesecake ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth. (Don’t beat too much or you may create air bubbles that will pop in the oven and cause cracks.) Spread in a springform pan, optionally with a crust. Place on the middle rack above the rack with the water pan. Bake 30 minutes. Do not During this time, open the oven door. When the time is up, still don’t open the oven, turn off the heat. Leave in the closed oven for another 5 minutes. Then remove the cake (it still looks half done). Let it cool for at least 20 minutes before putting it in the fridge. It’s important to let the cake cool before refrigerating, as you want it to cool gradually to avoid cracking. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours or overnight, during which time it will firm up considerably.View nutritional information