Sweet, creamy, and low in carbs, this New York-style Keto Cheesecake will delight your senses. It has all the rich flavor of the classic, without the sugar. And only 3g carbs per serving!
Keto New York Cheesecake is possibly as close to heaven as you will get on this earth. Bold statement, I know, but it’s how I feel every time I take a bite of this luscious dessert.
When I embarked on a low carb diet, it was among the first dessert recipes I attempted to make over. And it was so good, I kept experimenting with all sorts of different flavors. Now I’ve got everything from rich keto chocolate cheesecake to individual keto cinnamon roll cheesecakes. But this simple New York style recipe remains among my favorites.
You may well be wondering how New York cheesecake that differs from other recipes, and I’ve got one word for you: texture. It is more dense and creamy than the regular kind. So smooth and rich, it’s like velvet on your tongue. And it has a very simple, clean flavor profile, without too many additions. Many people top it with a simple berry sauce.
★★★★★
Elizabeth says: “Carolyn thank you so much for this amazing recipe! It has become my husband’s absolute favorite dessert. He requests is every holiday! I’ve made it so many times I have it memorized now. Even the non-low-carb eaters in our family love it!“
Ingredient Notes
- Cream cheese: I recommend full-fat cream cheese for the best consistency.
- Powdered sweetener: You can use any sweetener you like best for this recipe, with some caveats. For more information, please read the Sweetener Options section.
- Sour cream: The addition of sour cream gives the cheesecake an ultra-rich, velvety texture.
- Lemon zest: The lemon zest adds flavor but it’s not required for texture. Feel free to leave it out, or add lime zest or orange zest instead.
- Vanilla extract: Feel free to play with the flavors and use other extracts, such as almond.
- Eggs: Always use large eggs, and make sure they are room temperature.
How to Make New York Keto Cheesecake
- Prepare the pan: Generously grease a 9-inch springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Wrap 2 pieces of aluminum foil around the outside of the pan to cover the bottom and most of the way up the sides.
- Beat the cream cheese: Beat the cream cheese on its own for 1 to 2 minutes until super smooth, then beat in the sweetener. Add the sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Be sure to scrape down the beaters and sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the eggs: Add each egg separately and beat in until just barely combined.
- Transfer to the pan: Pour the batter into the pan and set the whole pan inside a large roasting pan. Carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the springform pan
- Bake: Bake the cheesecake for 70 to 90 minutes, until mostly set but still jiggles just a little in the center when shaken.
- Chill: Loosen the pan sides and let cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.
Carolyn’s Tips for Success
Using a water bath, or a bain marie, creates a gentle heat the cooks the cheesecake slowly. This is a vital part of creating a rich, creamy texture. Make sure you wrap the pan tightly in foil so that water doesn’t leak in during cooking.
Add the eggs last! This goes for ANY cheesecake, keto or not. It helps you avoid over-beating the cheesecake mixture, which can cause cracking. Over-mixing whips air into cheesecake batter, causing it to rise and puff up, and then fall and crack as it cools. Beat each egg in until just combined and stop right there.
You know your cheesecake is done when it’s mostly set but the center still jiggles slightly when you shake the pan. Shake gently so that you don’t get any water into the pan.
Want to add a crust? If you really want a crust for your keto cheesecake, you can use the shortbread crust from Keto Lemon Cheesecake Bars. Press it into the pan, and pre-bake as directed in that recipe.
Sweetener Options
As previously noted, you can use your favorite sweetener in this recipe. However, I want you to be aware that it may affect the outcome to some degree. I have made this recipe with erythritol, with allulose, and with a mix of the two.
Allulose tends to make the cheesecake very soft, even after chilling. And the more allulose you use, the softer it is. It takes at least 24 hours to firm up properly and if it sits out too long, it can soften up again. As long as you are aware of these issues, feel free to use what you like.
Frequently Asked Questions
Serving Suggestions
This wonderful keto cheesecake is a blank slate. You can eat it simply as it is or you can add some delicious toppings. I’ve included a simple sugar-free berry sauce in the recipe notes. But you might also like these other delicious ideas:
Keto New York Cheesecake Recipe
Ingredients
- 24 ounces (680.39 g) cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup (142.5 g) powdered sweetener
- 3/4 cup (172.5 g) sour cream, room temperature
- 2 tsp grated lemon zest
- 1 1/2 tsp (1.5 tsp) vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300ºF and generously grease a 9-inch springform pan. Cut a circle of parchment to fit the bottom the pan and grease the paper. Wrap 2 pieces of aluminum foil around the outside of the pan to cover the bottom and most of the way up the sides.
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese for 1 to 2 minutes, until completely smooth. Then beat in the sweetener until well combined.
- Add the sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla extract and beat until smooth. Scrape down the beaters and the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the eggs, once at a time, beating each until just barely combined. Pour into the prepared springform pan and smooth the top.
- Set the pan inside a roasting pan large enough to prevent the sides from touching. Place the roasting pan in the oven and carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the springform pan.
- Bake 70 to 90 minutes, until the cheesecake is mostly set but still jiggles just a little in the center when shaken. Remove the roasting pan from the one, then carefully remove the springform pan from the water bath. Let cool to room temperature.
- Run a sharp knife around the edges of the cake to loosen, the release the sides of the pan. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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This truly is the best cheesecake recipe! Thank you !
Hello Carolyn,
Thank you so much for this recipe! This is probably the best cheesecake I have ever made (counting the regular high-carb ones). The recipe is absolutely perfect. The lemon zest gives such a nice flavour. I had to replace the sweetener with 1 1/3 cup powdered erythritol (as this is what I have). A piece of advice for the readers – if you need to replace the sweetener like I had to, make sure to use a converter, as sweetness varies.
My oven is fan-forced, so cheesecakes are always difficult to bake right in it (some just wouldn’t set very well). I did bake for the full 90 minutes. It does have creamier parts inside but the pieces come out whole without breaking apart.
I have just started the Atkins diet, so this recipe is god sent. I didn’t have any suitable syrup available and I cannot have any fruit just yet, so I just used some red food colouring to make swirls on top before putting it in the oven.
Absolutely wonderful!
Glad to hear it!
Hi Carolyn,
We give this cheesecake a “10!” I made the full size cheesecake with a crust, and both toppings. I have make 1/3 of it without a crust awhile back, and enjoy it so much more with one of your crusts.
We have a Jewish holiday called Shavuot (Feast of Weekss). Some calendars call it Pentacost, because it’s the 50th day from the second day of Passover. There are always food for a Jewish holiday, and this is dairy foods. I was looking at your crepes so I can make blintz soufle, but this is faster.
It’s only the two of us, but we enjoyed it over the 2 days of holiday! And we will share with the person who buys our groceries.
Now a question about your Keto Baking Book:
I downloaded your kindle comments. You really nailed what it’s like to find that a baker can’t bake because of diabetes! I used to bake challah and other breads for a farmers maket. Suddenly, I can’t make people happy with my baked goods. It’s not the eating that interests me, it’s the baking.
I want to buy a hardback edition. The paperback probably won’t stay open. Amazon doesn’t carry a hardback. They only carry a spiral bound, which is so much more expensive than I can spend–about $40 with tax.
Does any place sell a hardback? Something around $40?
Thank you ever so much,
Judy Mayer
Simi Valley, CA
oops. A hardback for about $30. I am a senior, watching budget. This is more than I would spend, but I am sure it will be worth it.
Hi Judy… there is no hardback edition. But what a lot of people are doing is taking the paperback to Kinko’s and having them spiral bind it for about $8 to $10. Thanks so much for your kind words. <3
Dont be fooled by this recipe. It HAS CARBS. Swerve contains 5 CARBS (written on Swerve package) per tsp or 48 X 5 = 240 carbs. Divide it by 12 and you get 20 per serving PLUS the carbs from the other ingredients. Quick calc on my part and you get 21.8g of carbs per serving. If you assume that Swerve has essentially no carbs, then the number shown is close to what I calculated.
Please read the nutritional disclaimer at the bottom of every recipe. Also please do your research. Yes, Swerve and all erythritol based sweeteners have carbs. They have no impact on blood sugar.
Do you know how carbs are calculated in all foods? ALL other nutrients are subtracted and the end result is thought to be the carb count of a food. But erythritol does not behave like other carbs and shouldn’t be treated as such… they simply have no other category to put them in.
I made this yesterday for our Shavuot family meal (cheese foods eaten for this holiday). And it was SUPER yummy. I adore cheesecake and have missed eating cheesecake (3+ years of no sugar, fruits and grains).
Thank you so much for the easy recipe. Have never made a cheesecake before so I followed your instructions exactly. It’s just beautiful out of the oven. Can’t wait to taste it. Also made the berry sauce. I’m sure my family will love it!
So glad to hear it!
Hola, what is the perfect pan size to use on this recipe?
The pan size is in the first step of the instructions! 🙂
Made this the other day with a simple strawberry sauce and it was delicious. I had never baked a cheesecake before trying this and it turned out to be super easy. I like the fact that it has no crust so I am either to try cooking it soups vide in small mason jars. The idea of having cheesecake whenever I want is a definite keto win.
This is absolutely the best and most delicious recipe I have tried so far. It is creamy and so smooth. I will be making it regularly. It is also quick and easy to make. I would not hesitate to serve this to guests. It holds up perfectly without a crust.
Hi Carolyn, Thank you very much for a really creamy cheesecake recipe!
We are in self isolation, during COVID19. , We asked our friend to pick up 1 cream cheese for us when she got our groceries. The store had none, so she went to Costco. She brought back a package of EIGHT bars!!!
Passover is here, and this recipe is perfect for Passover. No grains! I had to use a special Passover sucrose sweetener, but it was still good, Made the berry sauce. Looking forward to our holiday where we eat dairy products next month. We feel this cheesecake will be much better with a keto crust and your recommended sweetener.
I did forget the vanilla extract, which would have helped the flavor. It was at the end of a very long day of cooking.
I tasted it when most of it was in the pan. Wish i had done that sooner!
I was very temped to add lemon extract and more lemon zest to make it lemon cheesecake. should I swap the 1 tsp vanilla for the lemon extract? Should i increase the lemon zest? By how much? 2Tsp was almost a full lemon.
So glad to hear it!
Correction: I am going to try to cook it sous vide – I tried doing it soup vide and it was a disaster:)
Carolyn- my cheesecake came out about 1″ thick. Would it rise a little if I beat the batter a little longer? Otherwise came out perfect, no cracking!
What size pan did you use?
I never review recipes, but this one was spot on. Best Keto dessert I’ve ever had—tasted just like the real thing! I made it in an almond flour-pecan crust and it was just perfect.
Thanks so much!
My new go to cheesecake recipe! It is amazing. It turned out perfect, no cracking either. Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
Hello! At how many degrees should I set the oven ? Thank you in advance! Can’t wait to cook it !
The temperature is specified in the first line of the instructions.
I love this recipe!!
My hubby loves it too!!
It was really delicious! Thank you for posting this recipe.