Description
This Gluten-Free Vegan Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake tastes like your favorite candy turned into a delightfully creamy vegan cheesecake. With a chocolate crust, creamy peanut butter filling, and chocolate ganache topping, you won’t be able to have just one bite!
Ingredients
Scale
For the crust
- ½ cup roasted peanuts
- 1 cup (96g) almond flour
- 3 tablespoons cacao powder
- 3 tablespoons (63g) pure maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons (25g) refined coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
For the cheesecake
- 1½ cups raw cashews (soaked for at least four hours or preferably overnight, drained and rinsed in cool water before using)
- ½ cup canned full-fat coconut milk
- ⅓ cup (111g) pure maple syrup
- ½ cup (128g) creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons refined coconut oil, melted and cooled
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon sea salt, salt to taste if your peanut butter is salted
For the dark chocolate drizzle & garnish
- 3 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
- ¼ cup canned full-fat coconut cream (just the thick, creamy part from the top of the can)
- Mini peanut butter cups
Instructions
- Grease a 6” springform pan with coconut oil, or line a 6” cake pan or an 8×8” square baking pan with parchment paper for easy removal and grease well with coconut oil. Set aside.
- Add the peanuts, almond flour, cacao powder, and salt to a food processor or high-powered blender and pulverize to break up the peanuts until just small bits remain. Add the maple syrup and coconut oil and pulse until it comes together into a dough, with small peanut bits remaining. Press the dough evenly along the bottom of the prepared pan.
- In a high-powered blender (I used my Vitamix, but most powerful blenders should do the job), combine all of the filling ingredients and blend for about 2 to 4 minutes, or until the mixture is silky smooth and super creamy. Use your tamper and scrape down the sides as necessary to get it to blend smoothly.
- Pour the smooth filling into the prepared pan over the chocolate crust. Smooth out the top and tap the pan hard against the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. Place in the freezer to set for at least 3 hours, or in the refrigerator to set for at least 6 hours.
- For the chocolate ganache, place your chopped chocolate in a small bowl. Heat the coconut cream in a saucepan or microwave until steaming and just barely simmering and pour over the chocolate. Let stand for 3 minutes and then whisk until smooth. Spread over the top of the cheesecake, letting it drip down the sides as desired.
- Store in the refrigerator or freezer. I recommend running your knife under hot water to warm it up before cutting the cheesecake with the still-hot (dried) knife.
- If serving from frozen, let thaw at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before serving. Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
For a Paleo-friendly version: swap out the peanuts & peanut butter with almonds/almond butter or cashews/cashew butter (or any other nut/seed you prefer).
Keywords: cheesecake, peanut butter, chocolate, dessert, cake, vegan, gluten free