Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake

Confession: I’m obsessed with chocolate and peanut butter. I’ve been known to add peanut butter to any and all types of chocolate. Chocolate bars? Dip ’em in peanut butter. Brownies? Slather that baby with peanut butter. Hot chocolate? Stir in a scoop of peanut butter! Cheesecake? Why make a normal one, when you could have a CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER cheesecake? Y’know whad I’m sayin?

It’s that perfect blend of sweet, salty, and umami and I can’t get enough of it.

So when Justin’s sent me some goodies to play around with, I knew exactly what I wanted to make: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake. Because cheesecake on its own is amazing. And adding chocolate and peanut butter makes it out of this world amazing.

Let’s break it down: the chocolate cookie crust is perfectly crunchy and delicious. I made the cheesecake less sweet to offset the sweetness of the crust, and man is the crust good. My crust broke from the pan, so I was eating handful after handful of crust that afternoon.

Then there’s the cheesecake. Velvety, soft, and peanut buttery. It’s like eating peanut butter out of the jar, but with slightly less guilt. Sliiiiightlyyy…

And the chocolate ganache. I mean, chocolate on the bottom and chocolate on top! ← Can we make that a life motto? Chocolate on the bottom and chocolate on top. Like bookending everything with chocolate will make it all OK.

Top it off with a dozen peanut butter cups and you’ve got yourself one hell of a cheesecake. Who cares that it’s springtime and not made with fruit or topped with flowers? Cheesecake time can happen any day of the year, as far as I’m concerned.

Tips on how to make cheesecake

Use room temperature cream cheese—Room temp cream cheese is crucial for this chocolate peanut butter cheesecake. If the cream cheese is still cold when you go to cream it with the sugar, it won’t whip up properly and your cheesecake will be the wrong texture. To make the cheesecake airy, the cream cheese needs lots of air whipped into it!

Bake in a water bath—Baking cheesecake in a water bath is a must, as it helps the cheesecake bake evenly throughout. To make a water bath, first wrap the cheesecake pan in LOTS of tinfoil (like, 3 or 4 layers of foil). Then, place the foil-wrapped pan in a larger baking dish and fill the dish with water until the cheesecake pan is half submerged.

Cool completely before refrigerating—You need to let the cheesecake cool completely on your countertop before putting it into the fridge. This will prevent condensation from forming on the cheesecake and will also prevent cracking.

Pour ganache onto chilled cheesecake—Top the cheesecake with ganache only after it’s been chilled completely. This will help the ganache stick to the cheesecake and will prevent the cheesecake from turning to mush!

If you have any questions about making this chocolate peanut butter cup cheesecake, leave me a comment below! I’ll do my best to answer all of them 🙂

• Author: Sarah Fennel

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake

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• Author: Sarah Fennel

Units: USM

Ingredients

For the crust

• 30 oreo cookies
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted

For the cheesecake

• 16 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup Justin’s Honey Peanut Butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the ganache

• 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 12 Justin’s Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, cut into wedges

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 300°F.
2. In a food processor, mix oreos until completely pulverized. To prevent any large crumbs from making their way into the crust, sift the powdered crumbs through a sieve. Pour the crumbs into a bowl and stir in melted butter.
3. Firmly press the crust mixture into a large springform pan, creating an even and compacted surface. Set aside.
4. In a standing mixer, cream cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Turn the mixer to low and add in the eggs one at a time. Add in the peanut butter and vanilla extract, mixing until light and fluffy.
5. Pour cheesecake mixture into prepared pan, smoothing to even the surface. Wrap the pan in tin foil and place in a water bath, then place the entire thing into the oven.
6. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes, then remove from oven and allow to cool completely in fridge before glazing.
7. To make the ganache, heat the milk in a small saucepan over low heat until scalding. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips. Pour almost all of the glaze over chilled cheesecake, then top with peanut butter cups, and drizzle with remaining glaze!

More cheesecake recipes from Broma Bakery:

How to Make the Perfect Cheesecake (a step-by-step guide) 

Classic Vanilla Bean Cheesecake

Gingersnap Pumpkin Cheesecake

Mini Pumpkin Spice Cheesecakes

Cranberry Walnut Cheesecake Bars