Best Pistachio Cheesecake Recipe
This creamy, sweet, and slightly salty pistachio cheesecake recipe is made and flavored with nothing but pure pistachios. There is no pudding or artificial pistachio flavoring involved but rather instructions for making incredibly flavorful homemade pistachio butter to flavor your cheesecake.
Servings: 10 slices
Ingredients
PISTACHIO PASTE
- ½ cup (60g) raw shelled pistachios1
- 2 Tablespoons (30mL) water
PISTACHIO CRUST
- 1 cup (120g) raw shelled pistachios
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter melted and allowed to cool
- ¼ teaspoon salt
PISTACHIO CHEESECAKE
- 32 ounces (900g) full fat block cream cheese completely softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (60mL) heavy whipping cream at room temperature
- 5 ounces (153g) Greek yogurt or sour cream about ⅔ cup; at room temperature
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract2
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- 2 large egg yolks at room temperature
Need to keep track of your ingredients?Check out my Printable Ingredient List!
Instructions
PISTACHIO PASTE
- Bring a medium size saucepan of water to a boil. Turn off or remove from heat, then add the raw pistachios.
- Allow the pistachios to soak for 4-5 minutes, then drain.
- Place the blanched pistachios in a clean kitchen towel, then rub the pistachios together to remove the skins. You may have to use your hands to remove stubborn skins.
- Place the skinless pistachios into a food processor, then process until smooth. Add the water one Tablespoon at a time when pistachios seem to be clumping. Scrape down the sides of the food processor as needed.
- Remove pistachio paste from the food processor and set aside to use right away in the cheesecake, or store in the refrigerator1 until ready to use.
PISTACHIO CRUST
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF (162ºC). Spray a 9" springform pan or my very favorite Fat Daddio's cheesecake pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a food processor, pulse the pistachios until they become small pieces. Pour the crushed pistachios into a medium size bowl, add the sugar, melted butter, and salt, then stir to combine.
- Press the pistachio mixture into the bottom of the prepared springform pan, then bake the pistachio crust for 8-10 minutes, until crust is fragrant and set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool while you prepare the filling.
PISTACHIO CHEESECAKE
- In a large bowl with a handheld mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the granulated sugar, pistachio paste, and salt, then beat again until combined, about another 2 minutes.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low3, then add the heavy cream, yogurt or sour cream, and vanilla and almond extracts and mix until completely combined. Add the eggs one at a time and continue mixing on low until eggs are just combined. Your batter should be smooth and creamy without lumps.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Create a water bath4 by placing the 9" springform pan in a slightly larger round pan (I like to use a 10" cake pan) and then place that pan into an even larger round pan (I like to use a 12" cake pan) or roasting pan.
- Fill the outer pan with hot water halfway up the sides of the middle pan, then carefully transfer the whole thing to the oven.
- Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour 35 minutes to 1 hour 50 minutes. The middle of the cheesecake (a center approximately 2" wide) should jiggle just a little bit. I use my digital instant-read thermometer to check the internal temperature has reached 145ºF (63ºC). Turn the oven off5 and allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove the springform pan from all of the other pans and allow to cool on a cooling rack for another 2 hours. When the cheesecake is completely cool, cover or wrap tightly and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight.
- Remove the cheesecake from the fridge and use a spatula or butter knife to gently loosen the crust from the side of the pan, then release the outer ring of the springform pan.
- Top the cheesecake with fresh whipped cream (I use my homemade whipped cream recipe) and crushed pistachios, if desired. Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 5 days. Cheesecake freezes well, up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
Notes
- Pistachio paste: instead of making your own pistachio paste, you can also use store-bought. Use ⅓ cup of pre-made pistachio paste. Making your own takes about 20 minutes (if you're using shelled pistachios) and can be done ahead of time and kept in the fridge until needed (pistachio paste will last in the refrigerator about 2 weeks). Be sure to use raw unsalted pistachios.
- Almond extract: this is not imperative, but it enhances the pistachio flavor.
- Mixer speed: it’s important not to go above low (or low-medium) speed after you’ve beaten the cream cheese. Incorporating too much air will create bubbles and potential cracks in your finished cheesecake.
- Water bath pans: here is a bundle that includes all the pans I use. Using this method eliminates the need to wrap anything in foil.
- Cool the cheesecake: I like to prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon or spatula.
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
