Instant Pot Mint Chocolate Chip Cheesecake. Chocolate and mint are a great combination in this pressure cooker cheesecake.
Ever since Fozzy ordered a Dragonfly Ripple cone from Bob Hope, mint chocolate chip ice cream has been one of my favorites. So, I thought “why don’t I use those flavors in a cheesecake?
[feast_advanced_jump_to]This recipe is similar to my Instant Pot Chocolate Chip Cheesecake, with peppermint extract to give it the right flavor, and green food coloring to give it the right color. (You don’t need to use the green food coloring if you don’t want to, but I think the mint cheesecake needs a little green to look right.)
🥫Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray
- Graham cracker crumbs
- Butter
- Mini chocolate chips
- Cream cheese
- Sugar
- Corn starch
- Peppermint extract
- Green food coloring
- Sour Cream
- Eggs
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Instant Pot Cheesecake
- Mix ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs with 2 tablespoons melted butter, then press the crumbs into the bottom of a 7-inch cheesecake pan. Sprinkle with ⅓ cup of chocolate chips.
- In a blender, whip 16 ounces of room-temperature cream cheese, then blend in ⅔ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons corn starch. Mix in 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract, 4 drops of green food coloring, and ¼ cup sour cream. Gently mix in 2 eggs, then stir ⅓ cup chocolate chips into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cheesecake pan, then sprinkle ⅓ cup mini chocolate chips over the top. Pour 1 cup of water into an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Using a rack with handles or silicone baking sling, lower the cheesecake into the Instant Pot.
- Lock the lid, and pressure cook on high pressure for 20 minutes, with a 15 minute Natural Release
- Lift the cheesecake out of the cooker, let it rest at room temperature for 1 hour to cool, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours to set.
See the recipe card for details.
Sort and rinse the dry pinto beans. Get rid of any stuff in the bag that's not a bean, and toss any broken beans.
Put the dry pinto beans, 6 cups of water, ½ teaspoon of baking soda, a peeled onion, and a couple of bay leaves in an Instant Pot (or other pressure cooker).
Lock the lid, and pressure cook at high pressure for 40 minutes. Then, quick release the pressure.
Serve, or freeze for later in their broth in 2-cup containers.
🥘 Substitutions
- ¾ cup of graham cracker crumbs is about 4 whole graham crackers, crushed.
- You can substitute Neufchatel cheese (aka “light cream cheese”) for the regular cream cheese. I don’t bother, because this is not a diet recipe, even with light cream cheese. That said, I don’t notice much of a difference, so if it’s what you have on hand, use it.
- The corn starch helps the cheesecake firm up, not curdle, and and lessens cracking after cooking. You can skip it, but I use it in all my cheesecakes.
- I prefer mini chocolate chips because they spread out more in the recipe. If all you have are regular sized chocolate chips, you can use them; the recipe doesn’t change.
- I don’t have a good substitute for the peppermint extract.
- The food coloring is optional, but I think a mint cheesecake needs to look green.
- You can skip the sour cream if you don’t want it, or don’t have it. I like the little bit of tangy flavor it adds to the cheesecake - I think it pairs well with the mint.
Should I cover my cheesecake with foil in the Instant Pot?
I don’t cover my Instant Pot cheesecakes with foil. I used to, but I stopped when I realized how much it slows down cooking - the center would never set. Sure, a little steam condenses on the top of the cheesecake, but not much. I use a paper towel to dab at any water on top of the cheesecake after cooking.
🛠 Equipment
You do need some special equipment to pressure cook a cheesecake:
- A 6-quart pressure cooker (Again, my favorite is the Instant Pot)
- A 7-inch springform pan or cheesecake pan - to fit in the cooker
- A rack to hold the cheesecake above the water, and a sling to lift it. I get both in one with this Pressure Cooker Bakeware Sling.
Tips and Tricks
- Cooling the cheesecake before refrigerating helps keep the cheesecake from cracking. Don’t skip that step!
- For parties, I make a couple of cheesecakes a day before, and leave them in their springform pans to protect them during transport.
🔪Recipe
Instant Pot Mint Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
- Author: Mike Vrobel
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices of cheesecake
Description
Instant Pot Mint Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Chocolate and mint are a great combination in this pressure cooker cheesecake.
Ingredients
Crust
- ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- ⅓ cup mini chocolate chips
Cheesecake
- 16 ounces regular cream cheese, softened (2 (8-ounce) packages)
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 4 drops green food coloring
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup mini chocolate chips (mixed into the cheesecake batter)
- ⅓ cup mini chocolate chips (for topping the cheesecake)
Instructions
- Prepare the pan: Spray a 7-inch cheesecake pan with nonstick cooking spray. Mix the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter, then spread evenly across the bottom of the pan and pack down, pushing the crumbs up the sides a little. Spread ⅓ cup of mini chocolate chips in an even layer on top of the crust.
- Make the cheesecake filling: Soften the cream cheese by leaving it out at room temperature for at least 1 hour. (Or soften the cream cheese in the microwave, 30 seconds to 1 minute). Beat the cream cheese in an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Slowly add the sugar and corn starch, and beat on medium speed until the sugar is completely blended, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. Add the peppermint extract, green food coloring, and sour cream, and beat on low speed until completely blended, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer again and scrape down the sides. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each on low speed until just blended. (Don’t over-beat the eggs.) Fold ⅓ cup of chocolate chips into the batter by hand. Pour the filling into the prepared cheesecake pan. Sprinkle the remaining ⅓ cup of chocolate chips over the top of the cheesecake.
- Pressure cook for 20 minutes with a Natural Release: Put the cooking rack in the pressure cooker pot, then pour in 2 cups of water. If your rack does not have handles, make an aluminum foil sling to lift the cheesecake: fold a 2-foot long piece of aluminum foil over a few times, until it is a long strip about 4 inches wide. Center the cheesecake pan on the sling and carefully lower it into the pot, setting it on the rack. Lock the lid on the cooker and pressure cook on high for 20 minutes in an electric PC or 16 minutes in a stovetop PC, then let the pressure come down naturally, about 20 more minutes. (If you’re in a hurry, you can quick release any pressure left in the pot after 20 minutes.)
- Cool the cheesecake: Lift the cheesecake out of the pressure cooker. Loosen the cheesecake by running a paring knife around the edge of the pan. Cool the pan at room temperature for an hour, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
- Serve: Remove the springform from the cheesecake. Cut the cheesecake into slices - I cut it into eight pieces. Serve and enjoy!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Instant Pot Mini Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
☃️ Storage
Wrap the cheesecake with plastic wrap, and it will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. (I cut my cheesecake into 8 pieces, then store each piece in a 1-cup container, so I can pull them out of the freezer whenever I want a piece.)
🤝 Related Posts
Instant Pot Cheesecake with Sour Cream Topping
Instant Pot Lemon Cheesecake
Pressure Cooker New York Cheesecake
My other Instant Pot and Pressure Cooker Recipes
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