Thursday, June 18, 2009

Raw Cheesecake



Raw vegan cheesecake... That could either sound exciting to you, or incredibly boring. To me, its exciting. I love unique, "healthier" desserts, and this one did not disappoint.

This took a lot of trail and error. First I made something similar, but it was a raw, vegan, peach cream pie. It was horrible. The texture was disgusting, the flavor was bland. I ended up throwing some of it away and pawning off the rest to a friend who I know doesn't like food to go to waste. Then I tried a strawberry pie version, blending it a bit more to get a better texture, and it was pretty good. But it was too liquidity, it didn't hold shape, it kind of melted on the plate.

Since then I think I've found a key ingredient to make it hold shape (coconut oil), and something to better the taste (lemon). Its been a long time since I've had cheesecake, but I would say that it actually tastes cheesecake-ish. It's pretty healthy, since its mainly nut based. That means its probably pretty fattening, but good fats.

Raw Vegan Cheesecake
Crust
  • 2 Cups raw pecans
  • 4-6 Dates (pitted and soaked with cashews)
  • Coconut flakes
Cheese
  • 3 Cups Soaked Cashews (Soak a least an hour)
  • ¾ Cup Lemon Juice with pulp
  • ¾ Cup Raw Agave Nectar (Honey can be used as a substitute)
  • ¾ Cup Raw Coconut Oil (melted, emerge container in hot water)
  • ¼ ts pure vanilla extract
Topping
Your favorite fruit - frozen and fresh.

Directions
Sprinkle coconut on the bottom of an 8" dish.

In a food processor blend pecans and dates until crumbly and sticky, to form a crust. Gently press the crust into the pan.

Next, blend (in a high powered blender) all the "cheese" ingredients until smooth & creamy. Pour "cheese" evenly over crust and place in freezer for at least 2-3 hours.

Next, prepare topping by blending a bag of frozen fruit until spreadable or chopping fresh fruit. Add a little agave to sweeten if you want.

Defrost cheesecake in refrigerator an hour before serving. Garnish with topping and serve.
Adapted from couple different recipes.

16 comments:

Aud said...

i saw the pie dish in the sink today and realized that in my sick state i forgot to try some. damn! better luck next time.

Tracie and Ricky said...

this looks divine... and i'm no vegetarian, but love anything healthy and yummy good (and fattening)

nuf said...

hmmm... i think this would be a great father's day treat. (any excuse to make your delicious recipes!)

Cafe Pasadena said...

I need to give U raw recipes for U2 use. Then, when you're done, I'll bee a taste tester 4 U.

kiss my spatula said...

wow - that cheesecake looks just incredible. just incredible. love it!

Chelsea said...

This looks delicious. The photos on your blog are stunning! Thank you so much for your comment on Urban Weeds. I agree... an LA street style blog would be something!

Amanda Mae said...

• Cafe - I could always use taste testers!

• Thanks Kiss! I really appreciate it!

• Thank you Urban Weeds - maybe I will start taking photos of street fashion here :) But it seems to take a little bit bravery to ask people!

Sam said...

Yummy! I am not even vegan, and I cannot wait to try this! Your photos are gorgeous :)

A Bowl Of Mush said...

I love the look of this cheesecake, I'm not a vegan but I love vegan food!

koko said...

Sounds good!! I actually made a raw cheesecake on my blog, VERY similar to this!

mama said...

Look delicious, but I don't eat chesse.

Anonymous said...

me and my girlfriend made this. so easy and so good.

Jennifer and Jaclyn said...

I made this yesterday and it has such a dense good texture! And it's also tangy like real cheesecake is. You definitely have to freeze it to get the right texture.

becca said...

Ooh!
I am one of the people who finds "raw vegan cheesecake" to be exciting.

Anonymous said...

how many does it serve? looks DELICIOUS!!

Bruce said...

Thanks for a great blog
Christmas Cheese cake