Delicious Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake Recipe

This Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake starts with an Oreo cookie crust, followed by a rich peanut butter filling, then topped with chocolate ganache and chopped peanuts. It’s a decadent dessert that is well worth the effort of making a baked cheesecake.

Yields 20 servings

Ingredients

For the crust
2 and 1/2 cups fudge filled cookie crumbs about 30 sandwich cookies such as Oreos
4 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
For the filling
24 ounces cream cheese softened
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups creamy peanut butter*
4 large eggs lightly beaten

For the glaze
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 ounces semisweet chocolate coarsely chopped

Instructions

Make the crust

1. Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350ºF. Wrap the outer bottom of a 9-inch springform pan tightly with aluminum foil. Combine the cookie crumbs and melted butter. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom and about 2-inches up the sides of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool while you make the filling.

Make the filling

1. Reduce the oven temperature to 300ºF.
2. In a large mixing bowl beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add the sugar, salt, and vanilla, beat on low speed until well combined. Add the heavy cream and beat on low speed until smooth. Add the peanut butter and beat until well incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Using a silicone spatula, gently stir in the eggs just until combined.
3. Pour the batter over the crust in the prepared pan. Place the cheesecake inside a roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan. (Alternatively, you can place the roasting pan filled with water on the lower rack of the oven.)
4. Bake for 1 hour, OR until the edges are set and the center is slightly jiggly. Turn the oven off, leave the cheesecake in the water bath in the oven for another hour.
5. Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and run a small knife around the outer edge of the cheesecake to loosen it from the pan. Allow it to cool completely to room temperature. (The cheesecake should not feel the slightest bit warm.) Refrigerate the cheesecake for at least 4 hours or overnight.

MAKE THE GLAZE

1. Remove the sides of the pan and place the cheesecake on a serving platter.
2. Bring the cream to a low boil over medium-low heat. Pour the warm cream over the chocolate in a medium bowl and stir to combine. Pour the glaze over the top of the cheesecake and use an offset spatula to smooth it over. Refrigerate for 20 minutes or until the glaze has set.

*NOTES

• Make sure the peanut butter you use is not natural. Choose a brand such as Jif®.
• Stir the peanut butter well before using. Sometimes the oils will separate from the peanut butter and you need all that oily goodness to keep the cheesecake from drying out.
• Start checking on the cheesecake after 30 minutes into baking. Oven temperatures vary and you may not need the full hour of bake time. Turn the oven off as soon as the edges of the cheesecake firm up but the center remains jiggly.

Recipe by: bakedbyanintrovert.com

Share this post