Trust my word – as a compassionate cheesecake lover! 😛 If you’re looking for the real deal, but vegan and healthier, without refined sugars and all that dairy-crap, look no more and immediately try this creamy vegan cheesecake! You can thank me later… 😉

The secret ingredient for its amazing texture and creaminess is a combination of chickpeas (YES!) and cashews – an idea I got from the wonderful Mel over at A Virtual Vegan. If you don’t know her blog yet, make sure to check it out, like her on Facebook & Instagram and show some love!

CHICKPEAS?! – you might think… YES! If you follow me for a while you’ll know that it’s my favorite ingredient to secretly incorporate into healthy desserts. Ranging from cookies, cookie dough, cakes and pancakes, I’ve tried it all! Chickpeas are not only super nutritious but you won’t taste them at all in desserts as the sweet flavor completely takes over!

For more chickpea inspiration and in case you haven’t tried them yet, check out my Chocolate Chip Cookie Bites – and prepare to fall in LOVE!

For this creamy vegan cheesecake, I’ve created an incredibly healthy raw crust, replacing the usual expensive Medjool Dates (getting too many complaints there) with dried figs and topped it off with a delicious, naturally-sweetened cherry sauce. Since it is still the last week of cherry season here in Cyprus, it seemed liked the perfect fit!

I’ve made this cake about 4-5 times by now and it just keeps on getting better. I tweak the recipe every time, make it more lemony or less, but it always turns out delicious! It easily has become my boyfriend’s favorite and has been approved by his whole non-vegan office + his mum! 🙂

If there is one cake I’d recommend to win over non-vegan folks, or people who don’t believe in healthy plant-based baking (for some weird reason) it would be this one! 100%!

If you decide to give this beauty a try, let me know! Leave a comment and rate it – it’s so helpful to me and other readers. And don’t forget to take a picture and tag me (@thetastyk) and #thetastyk on Instagram! I love seeing what you come up with. Love and enjoy! ♥

Creamy Vegan Cheesecake

Prep Time 10 mins

Total Time 1 hour

Serves 10 1x

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 13 reviews

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• Crust:
• 3/4 cup oats
• 1/4 cup almonds
• 1 cup dried figs/Medjool dates/raisins
• dash of water
• dash of sea salt
• Filling:
• 2 cups soaked cashews
• 1 (14oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 tsp vanilla powder
• 1–2 Tbsp almond/cashew butter (I also used tahini before and you can’t taste it)
• zest of 2 lemons
• juice of 1.5 lemon
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 can (400ml) full-fat coconut milk (to keep it lower in fat you can use 1/2 can coconut milk + 1/2 block/100g silken tofu – it adds nutrients and the result is even more creamy)
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• Cherry sauce:
• 1.5 cups frozen unsweetened cherries
• 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

Instructions

1. For the crust, place the oats and almonds in your high-speed blender or food processor and pulse until you have a fine flour.
2. Add the remaining crust ingredients and blend until you have a sticky dough.
3. Line a round cake tin with parchment paper and press the dough into the bottom of the tin.
4. Use your fingers and eventually a bit of water to evenly press it down and put in the fridge to chill.
5. Preheat the oven to 160°C/320°F.
6. Prepare the filling by simply adding all ingredients to the blender and mixing on medium speed until smooth (use your tamper tool to mash it down).
7. Once smooth, pour the filling over the crust and place in the oven for 45-50 minutes. If your oven is very strong like mine and browns the surface too fast, make sure to turn the cake once in a while so it browns evenly.
8. Once it’s done, take it out, let cool down and store in the fridge overnight (it will firm up).
9. The next day, prepare the cherry sauce. Add all the ingredients into a small sauce pan, bring to a simmer over medium heat and let cook for 5 minutes.
10. Stir once in a while and serve on top of the cake.

Description

I used a 7-inch springform

Notes

As in all of my recipes, 1 cup equals 250 ml.

To save this recipe on Pinterest, simply move your mouse over the picture below and pin it!

Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links and if you purchase through those links I’ll receive a small commission with no additional cost to you. I’m only affiliated with companies and products that I recommend and trust.