Description
Instant Pot Berry Cheesecake. Pressure cooker cheesecake topped with a colorful mix of summer berries - with a few mashed up and mixed in the batter for good measure.
Ingredients
Scale
Crust
- ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
Cheesecake
- 1 pound regular cream cheese, softened (2 (8-ounce) packages)
- â…” cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- ½ cup mixed berries, mashed (Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries)Â
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ cup mixed berries for topping (Strawberries cut into quarters, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries)
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.
- 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 1 minute. Slowly add the sugar and corn starch, and beat on medium speed until the sugar is completely blended, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. Add the mashed mixed berries and vanilla, and beat on low speed until completely blended, about 30 seconds 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.) Pour the filling into the prepared cheesecake pan.
- Pressure cook the cheesecake for 20 minutes with a natural pressure 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.) Set the cheesecake pan on the rack in the pot. 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 refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
- Serve: Remove the springform from the cheesecake. Cut the cheesecake into slices, then spread the berries across the top of the cheesecake. (I cut the cheesecake into 8ths, then add the berries, because it makes less of a mess than trying to cut through the berries.) Serve and enjoy.
Notes
- I don’t cover my cheesecake with foil while cooking. I used to, but I stopped when I realized how much it slows down cooking. (The center would never set.) I use a paper towel to gently dab at any water on top of the cheesecake after cooking.
- If it’s not the height of summer, with ripe, fresh berries, toss the mixed berries used for the topping with a teaspoon of sugar to sweeten them up.
- The corn starch helps keep the cheesecake from cracking; it’s not perfect, but I get a lot less cracks on top with the extra starch in the mix.
Tools
- 6 quart or larger pressure cooker (I love my Instant Pot 6-Quart Pressure Cooker)
- 7-inch cheesecake pan (I like this springform pan from Nordic Ware)
- Rack (this silicone bakeware sling with handles is my favorite)
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American