Raw Vegan "Cheese" Cake with cashew cream
I think I’m more excited to share this Raw Vegan “Cheese” Cake with you than I have been about any other recipe. I just love cashews, I tell ya. They are so versatile, creamy and lovely tasting. My husband was freaking out when I told him that the “cream cheese” in this “cheese” cake was basically just soaked cashews. In fact, he said, you have to post this VERY soon and tell everyone to make this ASAP. Don’t say to yourself I think I may make this Raw Vegan “Cheese” Cake….. really, just make it.
If you’ve never tried cashew cream, you really need to. Vegan or not, it is beyond delicious.
Raw Vegan "Cheese" Cake with cashew cream
Ingredients
Raw Vegan "Cheese" Cake Crust:
- 2 cups raw walnuts
- 6 Medjool dates, pitted
- 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1 pinch sea salt
Raw Vegan "Cheese" Cake Filling:
- 3 cups cashews, soaked and drained (Soak in water for at least 4 hours or overnight.)
- 1/2-3/4 cups lemon juice
- 3/4 cups pure maple syrup
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Fresh fruit for garnish
Instructions
Raw Vegan "Cheese" Cake Crust:
- Evenly sprinkle coconut on the bottom of an 8 or 9" pie dish.
- In a food processor, blend walnuts, dates and salt until crumbly. Press the crust into an 8-9 inch pie dish.
Raw Vegan "Cheese" Cake Filling:
- Blend (in a high-powered blender) all the "cheese" ingredients until smooth & creamy. Pour the cashew cream evenly over crust and place in freezer for at least 2-3 hours.
- Take cheesecake out of the freezer about 30 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh fruit and serve.
- Cheesecake can be left out on the counter for a couple of days or store in the fridge for up to a week.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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With this Raw Vegan “Cheese” Cake you can totally use the typical graham cracker crust with an all natural spread, like Earth Balance, to keep things vegan. But really, why would you want to give up the wonderful flavor, not to mention all of the nutritional benefits from using walnuts? I’ve been using nut-based crusts for awhile now. I even use one in this Paleo-friendly Spinach Bacon Quiche; which I really need to make again soon. I’ve been craving quiche like crazy!
Something to think about….
Are you a cheesecake fan? Oh boy, I am!
Have you ever used cashews to make a cream?
What topping do love on your cheesecake? I think I would have to go with cherries, but these blueberries sure hit the spot!
Hope your week is off to a great start!
How well does this keep it’s shape? If i wanted to put a cake layer on top will it hold?
plus i only have a 8” pan that’s 1 1/2 inches tall, is that okay?
p.s i like the look of this (yummy).
It’s definitely sturdy and should hold the cake layer just fine. I think your pan will also work great! Good luck. I hope you love it!
Question! Do you use 3 cups cashews THEN soak? Or 3 cups already soaked and expanded?
3 cups and then soak… that is a little confusing. I’ll reword it in the recipe. 🙂
Thank you! I did it that way, and yes–amazing!!!
I’m so glad you liked it!
I love to try this all. Looks so tasty! !!
I was thinking about making strawberry “cheesecake” banana nut pancakes. Do you think this would be a good filling for that if I don’t freeze it?
yes! I haven’t tried this specifically, but cashew cream is so great! If you check out my soft pumpkin cookies, you’ll see that I used a pumpkin spiced cashew cream for the icing. Let us know how it works out and I’d love to see a picture. Sounds fabulous!
My 7yo daughter and I just made this today with strawberries instead of blueberries – AMAZING!! I think this is the first vegan recipe we’ve made that she raved about. Thank you!!
Thanks so much for your comment and I’m so glad that you guys enjoyed the “cheese” cake as much as my family! 🙂 Have a great weekend!
Can you freeze this? How long will it stay “good”?
You need to freeze for about 2-3 hours. I think it would be fine to freeze overnight or even longer- maybe a couple of days. Take it out of the freezer about a 30 minutes to an hour or so before serving, though. Good luck!
I made this today only I put it in a spring form pan…the cashew cream is delicious.
So glad that you had great results! I need to remake it again soon, myself! 🙂
Trialed a few different vegan recipes. Tonight i made this for the first time tonight for my boyfriend and I as our cheeky little dessert and it was amazing. The lemon was just right and added that little extra zest. I topped it with some home made nut granola and it was perfect. I will definately make this one every week!!
I did wonder if it was possible to find out the calorie intake per serve?
Thankyou so much! I will be telling me other health nut friends about this one!!!
Thanks so much for your comment! I’m so glad that you guys loved this dessert as much as I do. To figure out calorie intake, you can enter the recipe here–> http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calculator.asp
Is there anything I can use instead of maple syrup?
I’m sure honey, agave syrup or brown rice syrup would work great. 😉
Thanks! Sorry I made you repeat yourself. I have a question about soaked nuts. I soaked my cashews overnight, drained, and rinsed them. Then I put them in a tupperware container and stored them in the fridge until I’m ready and able to make the cheesecake (able = 1 year old cutting 4 teeth at once LOL moody). How long will the nuts keep in the fridge? It’s been a week. :/
Kristen- I’m not sure how long the cashews will last in the fridge, but I would go ahead and make the cheesecake as soon as you can. Good luck with your little one! 🙂
I did the cheesecake. I didn’t have the stuff to do your crust so I home made my own with grahams, almonds, a little coconut oil, a little almond milk, and a little vegan butter. Topped it with strawberries and blueberries… the whole family loved it. Thanks!
Thanks so much for coming back to comment! I’m glad that it turned out delicious… it sounds wonderful!
Hei! Thank you for recipe! My husband has a birthday after two days and since i am vegan, i have celiac disease, we are india for few month and our friends dont have oven in kitchen, i found your raw cheesecake!
I bought everything what i could get in local market, except maple syrup or honey and Walnuts! I have two questions – can i make a sugar syrup instead of maple syrup? And can i use peanuts instead of walnuts?
Thank you!
I think a sugar syrup would work fine, as long as it has the consistency of maple syrup or honey. I also think peanuts for walnuts would work… they’ll just grind up a little quicker. Good luck!
I made this last night for a party. They all loved it!! Everyone was amazed by how creamy the cashew filling. I changed a few things from the recipe though:
Using blood oranges and limes instead of lemons.
Almond crust because I am greedy with using two cups of walnuts. Way cheaper to use raw almonds.
And I put a banana in the pie mix which was perfect. It made the “cheesecake” have a new creamy element that I thought it was missing.
Thanks for the post. Looking forward to a new delicious recipes in the future!!
Thank you so much for commenting! I’m so glad that you loved the “cheesecake” as much as I do. I love your adaptations…. can’t wait to try that banana idea!
Do you think there’s any way to go about firming up the cheesecake without freezing it? By freezing it, it’s technically not raw anymore. I’d like to find a way to keep it 100%. Thanks much!
That’s good to know…. I had no idea that after freezing, it is no longer considered raw, but that makes sense. I haven’t tried it, but it might work just leaving it in the fridge overnight. If you have a chance to give it a try, let me know how that works. 😉
I don’t usually make desserts but it’s Gunter’s 81st bd Sunday and I have been scouring around for a good cheesecake without using soy. I was looking at Miyoko Schinner’s vegan cheesecake and her cashew cream cheese uses non dairy yogurt which is hard to find. So thank you for this recipe, will be making it tomorrow.
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Wow………This is so YUMMY. I love this. Great idea.
Hope you get a chance to give it a try!
Love cashew cream! Yours has turned out so creamy and perfect!
Oh I do too! There’s so much that you can do with it.
Can you believe that I have never made cashew cream? I know, I know…I am slacking as an almost vegan ;). I really want to give it a try, though, and make a “cheese” sauce with it AND desserts. This sounds seriously good. Though I might be lazy and by a store-bought graham cracker crust ;).
You would so love it and definitely need to give it a try!
Gahh this looks amazing! I was totally wrong yesterday when I asked if the “cheese” was tofu…Oh well. Cashew cream is better!
Good guess! I’ve been wanting to experiment with tofu, but haven’t yet.
I literally almost starting tearing up because this looks SO AMAZING – I cannot even control myself. I am chewing on my computer screen because this looks so good. I really just want to dip my finger in that cheesecake!!!
Reaching for food through the computer screen seriously needs to be invented! 😉
I love making raw cakes and pies! Ive never tried it with blueberries though but I make a raspberry version that I love so I’m sure I’d love this!
I bet raspberry blueberry would be yummy too!
Pinned! This looks amazing. So perfect and creamy! I only heard good things about cashew cream so time to go for it – especially since my Ninja Blender is on its way!!
Yay…. you’re going to love your Ninja!
Love this! Yum looks amazing! Pinning for sure!
I hope you get a chance to give it a try. I’m pretty certain that you would love it!
This looks so delicious! It sound like it would be awfully expensive to make though with all those nuts and maple syrup. Definitely a special occasion treat.
I took a raw cooking class once and we made several things out of nuts including a pie crust and an amazing “ricotta” for zucchini lasagna.
It does stink that it costs more to eat healthier! I buy my nuts and maple syrup in bulk at Costco, so it’s not too bad.
You’re torturing me over here, girl! I’ve heard some pretty amazing things about raw cheesecakes, but I could never make them because I have a pesky allergy to cashews 😕 And it’s too bad, too, because I’m not the biggest fan of regular cheesecake, so I’m curious to see how I’d like the raw kind.
I hate that you’re allergic to cashews. I wonder if there’s another nut that would make a similar cream that you could eat.
I’ve never used cashews to make a cream before, but i literally want to dive head first into this dessert. Call me crazy, but I’m not a huge fan of toppings on cheesecake. I find it to be sweet enough by itself.
My sister’s the same way. She likes just her cheesecake and that’s all.