Low Carb Instant Pot Cheesecake (Keto Recipe)
(Ratings: )INGREDIENTS
For the crust:
- 3/4 cup
blanched almond flour (3 oz wt.) - 3 tbsp salted butter, melted
- 1 heaping tbsp
powdered erythritol sweetener (0.5 oz wt.)
For the filling:
- 16 oz wt. cream cheese (2 standard 8 oz wt. bricks), softened to room temperature
- 2/3 cup
powdered erythritol sweetener (4 oz wt.) - 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp
vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
Preparation
- Remove cold ingredients (cream cheese, eggs, heavy cream) from the refrigerator and allow them to warm to room temperature. Start this 30 minutes before proceeding with the rest of the recipe.
- Prepare a steam rack or the trivet that came with your pressure cooker, ideally with lifting handles.
Prepare an aluminum 6-inch round cheesecake pan with removable bottom or springform pan. Line the bottom and sides of the pan with separate pieces of parchment paper.
Make the crust:
- Combine melted butter and erythritol in a mixing bowl, and stir together. Add almond flour, stirring until the butter is absorbed and forms a dough.
- Transfer the dough to the cheesecake pan. Use a spoon or measuring cup to firmly press down to form a flat and smooth crust covering the entire bottom of the pan.
- Transfer the pan to the freezer to chill the crust for 20 minutes while you work on the filling.
Make the filling:
Add cream cheese and erythritol to a large bowl. Use a hand mixer to beat on low speed until well-mixed, about 1 minute. - Add heavy cream, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed until smooth, about 30 seconds.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds each. Don’t overmix the eggs.
- Remove the pan with chilled crust from the freezer. Pour the batter over the crust, careful not to leave trapped air gaps. Flatten the surface using a spatula.
Cook and cool:
Add 1 cup of water to the bottom of the pressure cooker. Place the trivet over the water, with its handles resting on the sides of the pot. Place the cheesecake pan on top of the trivet. - Secure and seal the lid. Cook for 30 minutes at high pressure, followed by a 15 minute natural release. Manually release any remaining pressure by gradually turning the release knob to its venting position.
- Carefully lift the lid to avoid dripping condensation on the cheesecake. The top of the cheesecake should be jiggly but not liquid. If needed, use a paper towel to carefully dab at the cheesecake to absorb any condensation on its surface. Turn off the pressure cooker.
- Let the cheesecake cool uncovered in the pressure cooker. After about an hour, lift it from the pot using the trivet’s handles to continue to cool on the countertop.
- After it has cooled, loosely drape a paper towel over the cheesecake pan and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. Do not seal tightly because the cheesecake needs to dehydrate.
- Carefully remove the chilled cheesecake from the pan. Peel off the parchment paper. Slice and serve.
NUTRITION
| Makes 6 Servings |
| Amount Per Serving (1 slice): |
| Calories 460 (88% from fat) | |
| Total Fat 45g | 69% |
| Saturated Fat 23g | 114% |
| Cholesterol 168mg | 56% |
| Sodium 370mg | 15% |
| Net Carb 4.5g | |
| Total Carb 6g | 2% |
| Dietary Fiber 1.5g | 6% |
| Sugars 1g | |
| Protein 11g |
This low carb Instant Pot cheesecake is one of the best cheesecakes I’ve ever had. It reminds me of New York style cheesecakes that I had while growing up on Long Island — rich and creamy, with a dense and smooth consistency. Cheesecakes are dubbed “New York style” when they’re made with heavy cream (for that firm and silky texture), and often they’re baked in extra tall cheesecake pans.
The advantage of cooking cheesecake and other traditionally baked desserts in the Instant Pot is that pressure cooker recipes are less susceptible to the vagaries of ovens. Some ovens run too hot, some run too cold, and baking often involves some intuition on the part of the baker. With the Instant Pot, you get more reproducible results.
I enjoying making cheesecake in the Instant Pot. Some days are too hot, so I don’t want to hear up my house with the oven, and some days I just don’t feel like messing with the oven at all.
Cheesecakes are one of the few desserts that are very easily translatable to a low carb version without any loss in taste and texture. The low carb version tastes exactly like the real deal. The first low carb cheesecake I made was in the form of pumpkin cheesecake bars for Thanksgiving last year, and this Instant Pot cheesecake uses the same almond flour crust and similar filling without pumpkin flavors.
For this recipe, you’ll need a round pan that’s six inches in diameter and 3 inches tall. It can either be a pan with removable bottom — I use Fat Daddio’s aluminum 6-inch round cheesecake pan — or a springform pan. I prefer the pan with a removable bottom, which fits well in my 6 quart Instant Pot. The sides and bottom of the pan should be lined with parchment paper, no greasing needed. You’ll also need the trivet that came with your Instant Pot or a steam rack with handles; if yours doesn’t have handles, you can make a foil sling to help you transfer the cheesecake out of the Instant Pot when it’s done.
Lining the cheesecake pan with parchment paper:
Make sure that you remove cold ingredients like cream cheese, heavy cream, and eggs from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before starting the recipe. You want to give them time to come to room temperature, helping to ensure a smooth and creamy batter. Otherwise you might end up with a lumpy batter.
It’s also important that you don’t overmix while beating the batter. At every step, the batter should be mixed until the ingredients are incorporated and smooth, and no more. I provide electric mixer time estimates in the recipe so that you’ll have an idea of what to do. If you overmix, you will end up with a lighter and fluffier batter, which means an airier and puffier cheesecake.
I prefer Philadelphia’s brand cream cheese, and I would watch out for other brands — sometimes they have other additives. Philadelphia cream cheese has only 1 g carbs per ounce, and other brands may have more. I’ve used several different brands for almond flour and I like the ones sold at Trader Joe’s and Costco, which have 2 g net carbs per 1/4 cup serving.
Making low carb cheesecake batter and almond crust:
I use a low carb sweetener called erythritol because it’s healthiest, and I use its powdered form. You can buy erythritol online on Amazon and use a Nutribullet or similar blender to powder it. You can also substitute with other types of dry sweeteners, but note that pure erythritol is 70% as sweet as sugar. If you use a sweetener that has a 1:1 substitution ratio for sugar (such as Swerve), you’ll need to make a conversion. I recommend using the provided weight measurements, not volume, when performing the conversion.
Note that the cheesecake should be chilled in the refrigerator at least 24 hours before serving. This is non-negotiable. Cheesecakes take time to develop flavor and a dense texture. Personally, I think this cheesecake tastes best after it has chilled for at least 48 hours.
You can also store cheesecake in the freezer for up to several months — lucky for you, cheesecakes freeze incredibly well. You can thaw by placing in the refrigerator overnight.
I’ve also made versions of this cheesecake with other flavors — my favorite is key lime where I add 2-3 tablespoons key lime juice and lime zest in place of the lemon juice.
First time ever making a cheesecake let alone an instant pot one and it came out perfect! I topped mine with a keto raspberry purée.
Hi Julia,
Wow, thank you so much for this recipe! It is delicious. My husband thought it was perfect: I would add a tiny bit more sweetener. It is wonderful with strawberries.
We took your advice and ordered quality flour and pure erythritol WHICH LITERALLY COSTS HALF THE PRICE OF SWERVE.
We can’t wait to try more of your recipes. We get to reap the rewards of all of your perfecting!
PEOPLE: This girl knows what she is talking about!!
This cheesecake was delicious! Amazing! The single change I made was to increase the amount of erythritol in the batter by 10% to ensure it was plenty sweet. No doubt the most expensive cake ever as I had to buy all the ingredients including the push pan! Totally worth it! Thanks for this recipe.
Easiest, best cheesecake ever! I’m low carb and this hits the spot for my sweet tooth!
If I wanted to do 1.5 times the recipe since I only have the 7 in pan and want to get a taller cheesecake, would I cook for longer than the 30 minutes? I made your recipe last week and it is amazing! My husband is already requesting it again.
Glad to hear you guys enjoyed this, Elizabeth! I would cook longer than 30 minutes, more like 35 to 40 minutes.
Can I substitute half and half for the heavy cream? I don’t have any and going to the store isn’t really an option.
I haven’t tested this recipe with half-and-half, but I think that sounds like a reasonable substitution and I don’t see why it wouldn’t work for this cheesecake. If you try it, please let me know how it turns out for you.
Hi Julia! My pot built pressure very quickly and at 18 minutes the pressure button went down. I kept the lid on for the full 30, but there was no pressure when finished and absolutely out of water. Is this ok? I checked temp and it was over 155 degrees in the middle of the cheesecake.
Hi Melissa! After pressurizing, the Instant Pot should not lose pressure because it’s well-sealed. Since yours did, I’m wondering if you forgot to turn the pressure knob from “venting” to “sealing” before pressurizing the pot. Either way, you did the right thing by keeping the lid on and 155 F means your cheesecake was properly cooked. I hope you continued to follow the recipe’s instructions by cooling and chilling in the refrigerator overnight. I hope you get to test a bite of it today, and please let me know how it turns out for you.
Perfect flavor! I made a crust from pecans and melted butter in the food processor because I don’t like the flavor of crust. But it turned out perfect. I will make this again for sure!!
I just got my Instant Pot. I don’t like the base of cheesecakes. Is it possible to make the cheese cream in ramekins and place them on top of each other? I have a monk fruit sweetener with erythritol in it. Do I need to use less of that sweetener? I am totally new to sugar replacement sweeteners. Can I use the cake function on my Instant Pot if I make it in ramekins? How many minutes should I set it for?
Hi Julia,
If I were to use 1/4th the ingredients and place in a 4″ diameter pan, would I need to decrease the pressure cooking time from 30 minutes to, say, 20 minutes or lower?
Yes, I would decrease the pressure cooking time. It’s hard to say what the new cooking time should be, without testing it, but 15 to 20 minutes sounds reasonable.
After the natural pressure release, use an instant-read thermometer to see if the cheesecake’s internal temperature is about 150 to 155 F. That will help you determine if your cheesecake is properly cooked through.
If the reason you’re making 1/4th of the recipe is due to leftovers, note that you can easily freeze cheesecake slices. It would be easier than trying to figure out the proper cooking time and using only half of an egg.
Hope that helps. If you give this a try, please let me know how turns out for you.
This recipe is fabulous. Every weekend I try a new cheesecake recipe looking for that low carb but delicious one. THIS IS IT.
Hi Julia. This looks delicious. I have one question. Do you remove the bottom of your pan when serving or not. If so, what’s the best way to remove the bottom of the pan before serving?
That’s a great question, Donna. After cooling and chilling, I remove the sides of the pan but keep the bottom on. Then I carefully cut into 6 equal slices directly on the lined bottom, and transfer each slice to an individual serving plate.
I hope that makes sense. Please let me know if I can clarify anything.
I’m about to make it again, lol! Was a complete hit for my family and visiting little brother; he didn’t even know it was sugar-free! Pro Tip: Do let it chill as mentioned; it was soft and too tender to eat, but we didn’t feel like waiting. It was perfect the next day. I feel like that is ’nuff said 😉
Do you think it would cause a problem to cover the cheesecake with foil while cooking in the Instant Pot? It seems like that would help keep some of the moisture out of the cheesecake and also protect it from drips when the lid is removed. Thanks!
Tammy, I haven’t tested this recipe by covering the cheesecake with foil, but it should be fine. I don’t see how it would cause any problems. If you give it a try, please let me know how it turns out for you.
Tammy, the only problem is the cheesecake rises substantially during cooking. I found this out the hard way (using my instant pot wrong and vented the whole time. So I had to take the lid off and add more water. The cheesecake was about 2 inches above the pan before it gradually collapsed.) It rises like a souffle so securing it with foil may make it worse and push out through other crevices or something.
I’m not much for baking, but this came out fantastic. I only had a 7” pan so I added 1 cup of almond flour and 4 T butter for crust and I also used confectioners swerve and used 78 grams of it in the cheesecake mixture. Same cooking time as stated in the recipe. Thank you for a great recipe and for including the measurements, it helped out a lot.
This was a hit at our Christmas dinner! Topped with unsweetened berries and whipped cream. Thanks for the easy and delicious recipe.
We love your cheesecake recipe. Have you ever come up with a chocolate cheesecake?
Thank you, Roberta. I don’t have a chocolate cheesecake recipe, but it’s on my list of things to try. I’m considering either an Instant Pot version, similar to this one, or a layered chocolate cheesecake bar using the oven. Please let me know if you have any thoughts on this. I love getting feedback from readers.
Can this recipe be used in a coventional oven?
Yes, and I would first separately bake the crust. Check out this recipe to get an idea of how I make low carb cheesecake in the oven: https://www.savorytooth.com/keto-cheesecake/
I baked mine in the oven. Had a tray with water on the bottom of oven….Perfect and delicious!
Your recipes never fail thank you.
What temp and for how long?
I’m about to make this delicious looking cheesecake, but while preparing things beforehand I realize my springform pan is only 2 inches tall. Do I have to make 2 cheesecakes by dividing the filling? I don’t want the cheesecake to overflow the pan. 🙁
I think it would probably still fit. I wouldn’t make 2 cheesecakes unless you also plan to make another crust. Hope this came out okay for you!
Thank you for the recipe. Can I use 8oz cream cheese and 8oz mascarpone?
You’re welcome. I haven’t tried that substitution before so I can’t speak to how it’ll turn out. Cream cheese has an acid tang that helps cheesecakes be rich but not cloyingly so. Mascarpone has a higher fat content, and I expect that it’ll result in cheesecake that is richer and slightly heavier.
I’ve made this. Followed instructions exactly and it was phenomenal. I’d love to do a pumpkin cheesecake with this recipe. Any suggestions?
Here’s my pumpkin cheesecake version, also made in the IP: https://www.savorytooth.com/instant-pot-pumpkin-cheesecake/
Hi Julia
I just made this and it’s cooling overnight in the fridge can’t wait to try it. I’m wondering about why you are not using sour cream, as I’ve noticed it in other recipes. Had you tried it with that? Oh I also added cinnamon and a tiny bit of cardamon to the crust.
Your crust additions sound delicious! I use heavy cream in my cheesecakes because I like how it contributes a creamy, dense texture and lends more richness. Since I add lemon juice to the batter, I don’t need any tartness from the sour cream. This is just my personal preference, though 🙂
I’m very interested in this recipe. I just have 2 questions: 1. Instead of using erythritol, how much monk fruit sweetener which happens to have erythritol in it, could I use instead? 2. Also I would prefer it’s to be crustless as well. by placing the parchment paper at the bottom of the springform pan, wouldn’t that allow me the opportunity to easily transfer to a plate and serve it as a crustless cheesecake?
(1) Different sweetener brands and types will vary in their sweetness. You should check your sweetener’s packaging to see how it measures compared to sugar. If you’re using Lakanto, I believe some of their products are 2x as sweet as sugar, but I don’t know about your particular one. Given that erythritol is about 70% as sweet as sugar, you can calculate the appropriate amount to use.
(2) Yes, I think that will work. Make sure to let it fully chill in the refrigerator. Might be a bit delicate removing the cheesecake from the pan since it doesn’t have a crust, but it should be doable.
Hi Julia. I just wondered if you have ever used a nut crust? I’m not a recipe developer, but it sounds good to me.
By nut crust, do you mean using finely ground nuts to make the crust? That should work well, and is similar to how I’m using almond flour for the crust. I think a mixture of almond flour with finely ground pecans would make a lovely crust with more crunch to it.