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A classic chocolate and peanut butter cheesecake has been on my “to make” list for awhile now, and I finally did it in time for Easter! Since I don’t like to have entire cheesecakes sitting in my fridge due to the temptation to overindulge in some pretty high-calorie dessert, I tested this one twice at church functions. My dear church friends get experimented upon quite often. 😉 In this particular case, I labeled the first cheesecake as “Sugar-free Peanut Butter Chocolate Cheesecake.” The second one bore a sign reading, “New and (Hopefully) Improved Peanut Butter Chocolate Cheesecake.” The general consensus was one of enjoyment, although one or two people remarked that they would’ve liked more sweetener in the chocolate ganache topping. So if you like stuff pretty sweet, add some more sweetener to your liking. You know me…dark chocolate fan right here.
One of the things I’m most excited about in this cheesecake is the crust! Often chocolate crusts are bitter – and crusts that don’t use almond flour can be dry and gritty. I’m really happy with this one! Instead of using cocoa powder, I used unsweetened baker’s chocolate for the chocolate part, and it really made a great taste and texture. The crust itself can be easily adapted for most allergies, so check it out to use in other recipes even if the cheesecake itself won’t work for you.
This cheesecake would make a delightful Easter dessert! Some other suggestions:
- Amazing Turtle Cheesecake
- Briana’s Peanut Butter Cream Pie
- Lemon Squares
- Mother’s Day Cupcakes (lemon)
- New York Style Cheesecake
- Strawberry Delight
What do you usually do for Easter? Does your church have a special service? Does your family have any great traditions? My church always has an early morning service (around 8 am) up on the top of a hill with a great view of the mountains. We sing and have a meaningful sharing time, then my dad usually has a devotional/mini sermon. We go back to the church for brunch and fellowship, divide up for our regular Sunday school, then dismiss around 11 am. From there my family usually drives down to my mom’s parents’ house about an hour south of us where we meet up with the rest of my mom’s family and have a special Easter lunch together. Unfortunately I’m going to miss spending Easter with my church and family this year because some friends of mine are putting together a music program in Lancaster over Easter weekend and I’m going to help video it. We’re also going to have a South Africa reunion that I didn’t want to miss out on! I’m excited about the trip, but it does give me some mixed feelings to be away from home over such a special time. I love Christmas, but Easter is right up there with Christmas in my mind. They’re intricately linked: Christmas commemorates Christ’s coming to earth to be the sacrifice for our sins while Easter is the culmination of Jesus’ ministry and sacrifice. The sacrifice did not end in death, but in victory. Praise the Lord! He is risen!
If you’d like to attend the program or watch the livestream Easter weekend, click here for details and click here to get notified when the livestream starts!
As always, check out the Notes section of the recipe for extra info. Check out the links in and below the recipe to see the products I use and recommend. Some of the links included in the recipe and blog post are affiliate links, which means that if you make purchases through these links, I make a small commission to help defray the costs of running this blog (at no extra charge to you). Thanks for your help!
You may also enjoy:
- Starting THM
- my recipe index
- my recipes grouped by fuel type, allergy info, and theme
- all my peanut butter recipes
- Briana’s Baking Mix recipe
- all my cheesecake recipes
- 1 c. Briana's Baking Mix*
- 1 T. THM Super Sweet Blend
- ¼ tsp. xanthan gum
- ¼ tsp. salt
- -
- ¼ c. salted butter
- 1½ oz. unsweetened baker's chocolate
- 3 8-oz. pkgs. cream cheese (softened)**
- 1 pint sour cream
- 1½ c. natural peanut butter (well-stirred and creamy)***
- 5 egg yolks
- 2 T. THM Super Sweet Blend
- 2 T. THM Gentle Sweet (or more, to taste)
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- -
- 5 egg whites
- 1 tsp. cream of tartar
- 75g 85% dark chocolate (3 sections from the Moser Roth brand chocolate found at Aldi)
- ¼ c. heavy whipping cream
- ¼ c. unsweetened almond milk
- 2-3 tsp. THM Gentle Sweet (or more, to taste)
- IMPORTANT: Bring the cream cheese, sour cream, and eggs to room temperature before making the cheesecake.
- Crust || Whisk the dry ingredients. Melt the butter and chocolate together, stirring every 20-30 seconds so the chocolate doesn't burn. (I do this in the microwave, but a double boiler works too.) Add the chocolate mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Press into a greased 10" springform pan and bake at 350* for 5 minutes. Turn the oven down to 325*.
- Cheesecake || Beat the first section of ingredients together until smooth. Taste and add more sweetener if desired. Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar together until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the cheesecake mixture until the two are just mixed together. Pour the cheesecake mixture onto the crust and smooth the top. Place the springform pan in a large piece of wide tinfoil to protect the bottom from leaking, then put this contraption into a larger pan filled with ½-1 inch of water. Bake at 325* for one hour or until set, then turn the oven off, open the oven door, and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another ten minutes. Remove the cheesecake from the oven, let it cool completely, then refrigerate overnight.
- Ganache || The next day, make the ganache. Melt the chocolate in the microwave or double boiler, stirring often. Add the Gentle Sweet, then whisk in the cream and almond milk 2 tablespoons at a time. Whisk until emulsified and smooth. Spread or pipe the ganache onto the cheesecake, then refrigerate to firm up the ganache. Serve.
**Using full-fat cream cheese and sour cream will help prevent your cheesecake from cracking, but they are higher calorie than the reduced-fat versions. Either will work.
***I usually use Smucker's brand from Walmart, but make sure it's stirred well and isn't really thick or the cheesecake will be dry.
Suggested products:
I bought a 1 lb. tub of sour cream. Is that the same thing as a pint? 16oz is how it’s sold.
Yes 🙂
Briana,
I’m starting to look for good holiday desserts and just found this AMAZING looking cheesecake of yours. Chocolate and PB together is the fastest way to my heart. However, I only have a 9″ springform. Do you think it would work? Or would I need to tweak it? Thanks for all the amazing recipes you’ve shared that have brought my family such happiness and healthiness.
I would just try it as-is, but you may need to bake just a little longer. 🙂 Bake it until it is just set in the middle.
Hey Briana! I desperately want to make this. And more desperately want to eat it!! Lol! I don’t ever have sour cream in my fridge as it gives my hubby an upset tummy. Do you think greek yogurt could work instead? Thanks!
Greek yogurt generally does fine in cheesecakes (but I do prefer the texture of sour cream just a teensy bit more). I’ve done it before!
Briana,
I have used so many of your recipes over the last 3 years. I was intrigued with this one – because of the crust!! (I am not a PB fan like you are 🙁 ) I used the crust for a basic fruit tart – it was wonderful, and I have made it for guests several times who were shocked to find out there was no sugar, no carb, etc. Happy times for me!!!
I have meant to reply to your site so many times – but there is never enough time. I started the THM journey about 3 years ago for my husband who had blood issues. A friend in TX (I am in MN) told me about this plan. I figured, why not try it out? Happy to report that hubbie lost 50 pounds, but more significantly, his blood numbers are the best they have ever been. Doctor wanted to know if he was doing the low fat, high exercise thing – he smiled and replied, “No, I eat more fat than ever.” Love it, love it, love it!!!
I found your blog as I was treading the waters of being a THM newbie – and I have never looked back. I love that you post new recipes every week. Your site is so simple to follow. Great inspiration!! I love your life blogs as well as your food blogs. The South Africa trip was amazing!! We went to Kenya in 2014 to visit missionary friends, and it was the trip of a lifetime.
I am a food scientist and have worked in the food industry for 30+ years (a lot of them part-time). I love experimenting with recipes which is why I have been so drawn to your blog. I love your enthusiasm for food and your passion to do it healthily. I never met a recipe that I didn’t change in some way, shape, or form :). But yours are such wonderful starting points. I tried a lot of THM type recipes at the start that were failures – but yours have always worked. LOVED your soup e-book!!! Thanks for what you do!! It is a blessing to all of us who long for variety in cooking. I purchased your cookbook by pre-order and was so excited when it arrived. You have made me a believer that I can have ice cream that works on this sugar free lifestyle.
I love all of your posts. The music, the photography, the family stories. I homeschooled my three kids – loved it all. My two girls are both musicians and photographers. They love Jesus passionately and lead worship regularly. My son didn’t get the music gene – but he got a wife that did. So we have the three Stahel “sisters” singing at our church when asked – and it is a blessing to me.
And on the SC beach thing – my family is from NC. We LOVE the beach. I go every year with family – the rest of the family comes when they can. Your most recent beach post was so reminiscent of all the good times we have had there over the years. We go again in June.
Thanks again! I will attempt to post occasionally and hope that you will connect to who I am – someone who is so happy that you do what you do. You don’t know me, but I feel like you are a part of my life.
Thank you for the sweet note, Nancy! It was so nice to “meet” you! Sounds like we have a lot in common, and I’m so glad the recipes have been good inspiration (and I’m also glad that you use them as springboards for your own experimenting!). Blessings to you and your family!
This is a TOTALLY AMAZING DESSERT! Even my family members that don’t care about gluten free/sugar free foods like it! Thank you for creating this!! Your Turtle Cheesecake is also awesome!
I made this for Easter… Fantastic! But I was wondering about the step of separating the eggs and adding cream of tartar with the whites. I skipped that and added the whole eggs as my last step, because don’t care for the taste of cream of tartar.
It had a wonderful taste and texture, so just wanted to know the purpose of that added step. Thoroughly enjoy all your recipes and your cookbook. You are my THM hero!
The cream of tartar is a small amount spread over the entire recipe, so you shouldn’t be able to taste it. 🙂 It helps stabilize the egg whites. Whipping the egg whites makes a fluffier, less dense, cheesecake. I’m glad it worked out for you!
Does the Gentle Sweet need to be ground to powder or left granular?
Gentle Sweet is already in powdered form. 🙂
This looks SO good! Definitely going to be trying this one out!
Thanks!
I know what I’m taking for Easter. ?
Heaven in edible form. I mean really, pb, cheesecake AND chocolate. There’s almost no beating it!
My husband’s work is doing a healthy cake challenge this month and I think I’ll be making this one next! Thanks for the great recipe, it looks amazing.
This looks so delicious! I can hardly wait to make this because I absolutely love the chocolate and peanut butter combination. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your recipe with us, and I hope you have a blessed week!