Over the past few years I’ve been honing my baking skills, and subsequently it’s become tradition for me to bake a celebratory dessert when MC and I are travelling to see our families for [insert special occasion of choice here]. Seriously, I’ve pretty much got a dessert up my sleeve for all major holidays at this point. Most recently we visited for Father’s Day, which always falls within a week of my Dad’s birthday. When you’ve gotta combine two celebrations into one with multiple dads and families, something special is in order. Both of our dads have a thing for peanut butter and my specialty (as I’m sure you’ve noticed) is cheesecake. So naturally I came up with this Peanut Butter Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake Recipe, featuring silky peanut butter and rich chocolate cheesecake fillings swirled together over a peanutty Nutter Butter crust, topped with Reese’s decor.
It turned out so good that I ate a whole piece myself and *almost* brought some home with me. In the end I stowed the leftovers away safely with the fam since, after all, I made it for them… right? I later regretted that decision and was pretty sad that I didn’t bring any home with me. Let’s just say the combination of chocolate, peanut butter and cream cheese is divine, it’s not overly sweet, and I’m obviously turning into our dads with the whole peanut butter thing.
The Reese’s decor is optional of course and the cheesecake will still be delicious either way, but I wouldn’t leave it out since it’s easy and quick to work with and makes for such a nice presentation. To conclude, this one got rave reviews all around and prompted a new stipulation for future visits: this cheesecake must be presented before entry into MC’s parents’ house will be granted. Haha! Although, now that I’m thinking about it I’m not sure that they were actually kidding… 😉 Seriously though, I hope you like it as much as we all did!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake Recipe
(makes one 9” cheesecake, 16-20 servings)
Ingredients:
Crust
- 1 ½ c Nutter Butter cookie crumbs
- ½ c roughly chopped roasted salted peanuts
- ¼ c melted butter
Peanut Butter Filling
- 3 8oz packs cream cheese, room temp
- 1 ¼ c sugar
- ¾ c heavy cream
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 eggs, room temp
- ¾ c creamy peanut butter
Chocolate Filling
- 1 8oz pack cream cheese, room temp
- ¼ c sugar
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder
- 1 egg, room temp
- 3 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
Topping
- 2 oz bittersweet chocolate
- 1 ½ tbsp butter
- approximately 12 mini Reese’s Cups, dark chocolate variety if available
- small handful of Reese’s Pieces
Special Tools:
- 9” springform pan
- larger pan with 2” or higher sides which will be big enough to hold your springform pan (I use a roasting pan which fits up to a 10” springform pan inside)
- cake spatula (not necessary, but highly recommended for moving your cheesecake from pan to serving platter)
Method:
Preheat oven to 350°.
Grease and flour a 9” springform pan, then wrap the bottom and sides securely with several layers of tin foil so that it is leak-proof.
Crust
Combine all crust ingredients in a small mixing bowl until thoroughly mixed and evenly moistened, then press onto bottom and partially up sides of prepared springform pan with your hands or the bottom of a glass. Bake in preheated oven for 10 mins, then remove and set aside. Lower oven temp to 325°.
Peanut Butter Filling
Using an electric mixer on med-high, beat 3 packs cream cheese and 1 ¼ c sugar until light and fluffy. Turn speed to medium and mix in cream and vanilla, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add 3 eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition just until combined. Turn speed to med-low to mix in the peanut butter just until combined. Divide batter in half and set aside.
Chocolate Filling
Using an electric mixer on med-high, beat 1 pack cream cheese, ¼ c sugar and 1 tbsp cocoa powder until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl as needed. Turn speed to medium and add the egg, scrape bowl again if needed. Do not over mix as this can cause air bubbles; you want everything mixed just until combined at this stage. Fold in cooled melted chocolate gently by hand with rubber spatula.
Combine Fillings
Pour half of peanut butter filling into prepared crust. Add all of chocolate filling, dropping over peanut butter batter in big spoonfuls. Swirl together with chopstick or case knife, creating a marble effect. You can swirl as little or as much as you want, but be careful not to disturb the crust. Once you are satisfied with your handiwork, pour the remaining peanut butter filling on top.
To Bake
Place prepared cheesecake into the larger pan, then add enough hot water to come about 1” up sides of springform pan. Bake at 325° for 1-1 ½ hours until edges of cheesecake are set, top is lightly browned and center is mostly set but still jiggly. Turn off heat, leave oven closed and let cheesecake rest in oven until it’s completely cooled. The center will solidify as it sits in the cooling oven and it will turn out perfectly cooked and even on top with no cracks and no sinking when done. Once cheesecake has cooled to room temp and center has set, remove springform pan from water bath and refrigerate the cheesecake in the pan. It’s best to let it chill for at least 8 hours before removing from pan.
Topping
When you are ready to remove your cheesecake from the springform pan to your serving platter, go ahead and prepare the topping components. Half each Mini Reese’s Cup carefully with a sharp knife. I ended up using 23 halves to make a ring around the edge of the cheesecake, so start by cutting 12 but have extra on hand just in case. Crush a small handful of Reese’s Pieces either in a food processor or by placing in a plastic ziplock bag and crushing with a hammer or rolling pin. For the chocolate drizzle, melt 2 oz bittersweet chocolate and 1 ½ tbsp butter in a double boiler over med-low heat, stirring constantly until completely melted and smooth.
To Assemble
Remove the foil and the sides of the springform pan, then carefully remove the cheesecake from the bottom of the pan using either a round cake spatula or a couple of regular spatulas and place on your serving platter. Drizzle chocolate mixture from a spoon in swirl patterns all over top of cheesecake. Immediately place Mini Reese’s Cup halves, cut side down, along edge of cheesecake, pressing into the warm chocolate so that they stay in place. Sprinkle crushed Reese’s Pieces over chocolate drizzle, then chill another half hour or so before serving to let the chocolate set.