Keto Instant Pot Lemon Cheesecake

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Keto Instant Pot Cheesecake is extra creamy and delicious! And this low carb lemon cheesecake is so smooth and rich. It’s the perfect sugar-free dessert for lemon lovers. Oven instructions included.

A slice of Keto Instant Pot Cheesecake on a white plate over a yellow flowery napkin.

I often forget how much I like lemon desserts. Being the chocoholic that I am, I will reach past the sweet lemon treats for the gooey dark stuff. Keto chocolate cake or rich keto chocolate mousse almost always wins out.

But one bite of something like this keto instant pot cheesecake and it all comes rushing back to me. That bright lemony flavor just dances on your tongue.

And once you try making keto cheesecake in a pressure cooker, you may never make it any other way again! But just in case, I’ve included oven-baking instructions too.

Keto Instant Pot Lemon Cheesecake on a white cake platter with a lemon and half a lemon in the foreground.

Keto Instant Pot Cheesecake

There is some sort of magic that occurs when cooking cheesecake in a pressure cooker. It’s not really any easier than oven-baked cheesecake, but the consistency is simply amazing. It’s so creamy and dense, and less prone to cracking or sinking.

I have a few other flavors as well, including keto pecan pie cheesecake and cookies and cream cheesecake. Every time I bake cheesecake in an Instant Pot, it turns out perfectly.

This keto lemon cheesecake came out so beautifully, I found I didn’t want to dress it up with anything but a little whipped cream and some long strands of lemon zest

Keto Lemon Cheesecake on a white cake plater with lemons beside it.

Ingredients

Keto instant pot cheesecake requires the same basic ingredients as regular cheesecake. You will need:

Almond flour (see Frequently Asked Questions for alternatives)
Powdered sweetener
Butter
Lemons (juice and zest)
Cream cheese
Lemon extract
Eggs
Heavy whipping cream
Salt

How to make keto lemon instant pot cheesecake

Putting together the crust and the filling is similar to an oven-baked cheesecake. However, you do have to take some extra precautions to make sure no water leaks into the cake during cooking. Here are my best tips for getting it right:

Prepping the cake

Use the right size pan: Cooking cakes in an Instant Pot requires a 7-inch pan to fit inside properly. They aren’t too expensive and that smaller size is useful for other recipes too.
Prep the crust: This is an almond flour crust but you can use any nut or seed meal instead. Press firmly and evenly into the bottom.
Use powdered sweetener: I use Swerve Confectioners the crust, the filling, and the topping, as it helps eliminate any grittiness. You can add up to 1 cup in the filling, depending on how sweet you like it.
Lemon zest, lemon juice, AND lemon extract: Too much lemon juice will result in thin filling that won’t set. The addition of the zest and the extract provide the best flavor.
Add some egg yolks: You could just use two whole eggs, but the yolks give the cheesecake a natural yellow color.
Don’t over-beat: As with any cheesecake, it’s important to mix in the eggs and cream until just combined. Over-beating whips too much air into a cheesecake filling, causing it to rise more rapidly, and then fall and crack.

Six photos showing the steps for making keto instant pot cheesecake.

Cooking the cheesecake

Wrap the pan in foil: This step is absolutely critical so don’t even think about skipping it. You need to wrap the bottom of the pan tightly so water doesn’t get forced into the seam between the bottom and the sides of the pan.
Top with some paper towel and more foil: The paper towel layer helps absorb any moisture that sneaks in there, but you don’t want it to touch the top of the cake. Then you wrap more foil around the top to provide another layer of protection.
Prepare the pot: Add a cup of water to the bottom of the Instant Pot and set the trivet in there. Carefully lower the foil-wrapped pan onto the trivet (or use a trivet with handles).
Cook on manual high: Every Instant Pot is a bit different so cooking on manual allows us all to use the same function.
Allow the pressure to release naturally: Don’t vent the lid when cooking is complete, simply allow the pressure to release naturally. The cake will continue to cook in this state.
Chill the cake: Once the Keto Instant Pot Cheesecake is done, remove the foil and paper towel, allow to cool completely, and the refrigerate 3 hours until set.

A cake lifter removing a slice of keto lemon cheesecake from the whole cake.

Frequently Asked Questions

I don’t have a pressure cooker. Can I make this in the oven?

I have included oven-baking instructions in the Notes section of the recipe. If you use a larger pan (8 or 9 inches), you will need to double the crust and the cheesecake will bake through faster.

Can I use a different sweetener?

You can but if you use allulose in the filling, you may find that it takes much longer to set properly in the fridge.

Do I really need to wrap it in all that foil?

Yes, you absolutely do. Pressure cookers create a high pressure environment that can force moisture into the pan. If you don’t wrap it thoroughly, moisture will get into the seams at the bottom or in through the top and make it very soggy.

Can I make this as plain cheesecake, without the lemon?

You bet! Just add a bit more cream to the fill-in (2 to 3 tablespoons) and some vanilla extract.

A slice of lemon cheesecake on a white plate with a fork.

Storage Information

Store the cheesecake in the fridge, tightly wrapped, for up to a week. You can also freeze it for up to a month. I recommend leaving the whipped cream topping off until the cake is thawed.

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