Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake {Egg-Free}

Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake {Egg-Free}

by Rachel Alexandra
Blog (2)

Merry Christmas! Today I would like to share a brand new recipe for Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake that I must admit is not totally clean. However, it is completely from scratch which is the most important part. Plus this is a Christmas Special Edition post, so we can indulge a little. 🙂

Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake

For my family’s Thanksgiving this year, I tried my hand at my first ever cheesecake. It had a double chocolate chip cookie crust, pumpkin spice filling, chocolate ganache topping, and some buttercream piped around the border to clean up the edges. I know, it was probably the least healthy thing I’ve ever made, but in my defense it was 100% from scratch–even the cookies for the crust. (My favorite cookies to use are Andes Candies Cookies!)

Although traditional cream cheese would work in to make this Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake, if you’d like to knock off a few calories, go with Neufchatel cheese instead. It has a third of the fat as regular. It’s also important to make sure that aren’t too many added gums and stabilizers added to the cheese. That’s why I prefer using Organic Valley’s which only contains organic locust bean gum in addition to the milk and enzymes.

Chocolate peppermint cheesecake

Anyway, this whole endeavor inspired me to take a standard chocolate cheesecake recipe and make a Christmas edition by making a peppermint chocolate ganache and topping it off with some crushed candy canes.

Now this is a pretty involved recipes, so be sure to read through the whole thing before you start and make sure you have plenty of time to spend in the kitchen. Enjoy and merry Christmas!

Chocolate peppermint cheesecake

If you loved Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake, then check out these other recipes!

Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake

Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake is the ultimate Christmas dessert. It's so rich and decadent, no one will believe there are no eggs!
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: baking, cheesecake, chocolate, Christmas, dessert, ganache, holiday, peppermint
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Cooling and Setting Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 5 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 8 slices
Author: Rachel Alexandra

Ingredients 

Crust

  • 1 ½ cups Andes Candies Cookies (crumbled in food processor)
  • ¼ cup coconut oil or butter (melted)

Filling

  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 2 Tbsp coconut oil or butter (melted)
  • 16 oz Organic Valley Neufchatel cheese
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 Tbsp raw, local honey
  • 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (sifted)
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • ¼ tsp Celtic sea salt

Chocolate Peppermint Ganache

  • ½ cup dark chocolate chips
  • â…“ cup Organic Valley whipping cream
  • 1 tsp coconut oil or butter (melted)
  • ¼ tsp peppermint extract
  • Crushed candy canes

Instructions

Crust

  • Grease the bottom and sides of an 8 inch spring-form pan with melted coconut oil or butter.
  • In a small bowl, mix the cookie crumbs with the melted coconut oil or butter. Then press the mixture firmly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Set aside.

Filling

  • Add approximately an inch of water to the bottom of a double boiler and melt one cup of dark chocolate chips on medium heat. Stir every few minutes and be sure not to get any water in the chocolate.
  • When the chocolate chips are melted, remove from heat and stir in 2 Tbs. of melted butter or coconut oil. Allow the mixture to cool for 10 minutes.
  • Preheat the oven to 325°F. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the somewhat-cooled chocolate mixture, Neufchatel cheese, sugar, honey, cocoa, vanilla, and salt. Mix all the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl every so often. Do not over-mix.
  • Put the filling in the spring form pan and using a small offset spatula, smooth out the filling until it is even across the pan.
  • Bake for 30 minutes, making sure to not open the oven! Any rapid change in temperature or humidity can lead to cracking.
  • Turn the oven off and let the cheesecake rest in the oven for another 30minutes, still not opening the door. When the time is up, let the cheesecake cool for approximately 30 more minutes before letting it chill and set up in the refrigerator for at least three hours and up to overnight.

Chocolate Peppermint Ganache

  • Put ½ cup of dark chocolate chips in a heat safe bowl. In a small saucepan, bring the whipping cream and oil or butter to a boil on medium heat.
  • Pour the cream mixture onto the chocolate chips and let sit for five minutes. When the time is up, whisk the mixture until it all comes together.
  • Stir in the peppermint extract.
  • Pour the ganache on the cheesecake and smooth it out with a small offset spatula. Sprinkle crushed candy canes over the top for a finishing touch. Be sure to do this right away before the ganache cools and hardens. Serve with homemade whipped cream.

Notes

Make sure you put together the spring form pan correctly. Otherwise, oil from the crust will leak into the oven causing a huge mess.
Line a baking sheet with foil and put the spring form pan on it while baking. This will prevent any major mess in the event that some oil leakage occurs.
Whatever you do, do not open the oven until it is time to take it out! I know it’s tempting, but this is crucial to cheesecake success! 
Don’t cover the cheesecake in the fridge until it is totally cool to prevent condensation from collecting on top. If this does happen, dab it off with a paper towel.
Make the Andes Candies Cookies ahead of time and store in the freezer until you want to make the cheesecake.`
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