Fragrant Vanilla Cake

Tag: cheesecake

  • Vegan Dark Chocolate Lavender Cheesecake

    Vegan Dark Chocolate Lavender Cheesecake

     

    I realized recently that it’s been far too long since I’ve made cheesecake. There was a time when I was making one about every other week, because it is one of my all time favorite desserts. It’s been a few years now though so I decided that I needed to make one last weekend because I was craving it.

    One of the good things about the cheesecakes I make is they are no bake so if it’s hot out it’s the perfect thing to make! I decided to make a Vegan Dark Chocolate Lavender Cheesecake because I love that combination of flavors!

    This cheesecake has kind of an odd mix of ingredients that you would never guess, because it just tastes rich and delicious. It has chickpeas in the base which is what I have replaced cashews with in my cheesecake bases to make them easier to digest and a bit more wallet friendly. You can not even tell they are in there though, because I combined them with coconut cream and cacao butter for a rich creamy base. I flavored this one with chocolate, lavender and vanilla and it was so delicious! I gave it a chocolate crust as well and a chocolate ganache glaze!

    This cheesecake is so heavenly! Rich and creamy with plenty of decadent chocolate flavor and a hint of lavender and vanilla! If you are in the mood for something delicious that you don’t have to heat up the oven for, definitely give this Vegan Dark Chocolate Lavender Cheesecake a try!

    Vegan Dark Chocolate Lavender Cheesecake

    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup almonds (for nut free version use finely shredded unsweetened dried coconut instead)
    • 3/4 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup cooked chickpeas
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
    • 1/4 cup cacao powder
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbp cacao butter, warmed to liquid
    • 1 Tbsp dried lavender

    Topping:

    • 1/2 cup dark chocolate
    • 2 Tbsp plant based milk

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Pour the filling over the prepared crust.
    5. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    6. Remove from the freezer, un-mold.  Place on a plate in the refrigerator. 
    7. Meanwhile, melt the dark chocolate with the milk in the top of a double boiler or in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between.  When it is smooth and uniform, remove from the refrigerator and pour the chocolate over, spreading it to the sides so it drips down.  Place in the refrigerator until it sets. 
    8. Sprinkle the top of the cake with dried lavender flowers and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick cream or it will not work in this recipe.

  • 5 Ingredient Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

    5 Ingredient Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

    I love enjoying any type of berries in the summer!  Local are best, and picking them yourself is even better!  I went berry picking several times with Eric on our trip to Michigan a few years back, and they were honestly the best berries I have ever tasted. That was at a farm, but here in Minnesota we usually just pick wild black raspberries and mulberries.  We don’t quite have ripe berries here yet (almost), but thank goodness I can get them at the store, and I have some frozen from last year.  Last weekend I decided to make some 5 Ingredient Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream, because it has been so warm here lately I needed something cooling.

    I love making ice cream at home because you can create whatever flavors you want, any time you want.  You can dream up a flavor and just make that!  I really haven’t made anything I did not like, some flavors are definitely better than others though!  Some of the more weird ones I have made are roasted tomato vanilla, arnold palmer iced tea lemonade flavor, avocado, and habanero pineapple.  I think my favorites are the ones with berries and the ones involving caramel and gooey filling.  If I want a more simple one though a berry base like this vegan blueberry cheesecake is perfect!

    For the base, I used full fat coconut milk and raw cashew butter to make it nice and creamy like a gelato.  This is kind of my go to starting off most of my ice cream bases using a coconut milk mixed with a little nut butter of some sort because it produces the most rich and creamy ice cream. I used cashew this time because it has a more cheesecake like flavor in things. Is it low fat? No, but I like to indulge once in a while when I do have dessert.  This does happen to be fruit sweetened though, because I used dates to sweeten it since they do not add excess moisture unlike some sweeteners (I wanted to avoid more moisture since the berries have a high moisture content).  Lastly I added a dash of vanilla to this, and the base was perfect!

    I could not wait to try it but it needed to churn first which luckily does not take too long with my ice cream maker.  If you do not have an ice cream maker you can still make this, it will just take a little longer (I included that in the directions). This ice cream turned out sooo yummy!  Soft and the perfect balance of sweet blueberry flavor and vanilla cheesecake flavor!  If you are in the mood for some delicious ice cream, definitely give this 5 Ingredient Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream a try!
    See the video on Instagram!

    5 Ingredient Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
    Makes 3 cups

    Ingredients:

    • 1 15 oz can full fat coconut milk
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
    • 1 1/2 cups fresh organic blueberries
    • 3/4 cup soft, pitted medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them in filtered water for 30 minutes before using)
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

     

    Instructions:

    1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
    2. Pour into an ice cream maker and process according to directions.  Alternatively, if you do not have an ice cream maker, pour it into a bowl, and whisk every half hour until it is to the consistency of a thick malt.
    3. Pour into a freezer safe container with a lid, and continue to freeze until firm enough to scoop (at least 4 hours or overnight). If it becomes too firm, simply let it sit out for 15 minutes before serving.
  • Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    This is a sponsored post, but all opinions are my own

    I have been craving pumpkin cheesecake lately since we are in the middle of pumpkin season, but I also thought brownies sounded good.  So I thought, why not combine them for a fall treat?!  I had some Dastony raw cashew butter and coconut butter that Raw Guru recently sent me, two key cheesecake components. So it was the perfect time to make them! It has been a little more chilly here, which comes as a shock even though it will be snow and cold here in a few months…but that makes it the perfect time of the year for baking experiments!

    I am always on a quest for the perfect brownies.  They are all good of course, but they have to be fudgy in order for me to really be in love with them.  I am not a cakey brownie person, they should be just the right amount of fudgy as well.  Not super heavy, just the right amount.  My Mom used to make pretty good brownies when I was a kid, but they were boxed…so that disqualifies them.  These turned out perfect though!  I used flax eggs in place of the eggs, and avocado oil in place of the butter in regular brownies and the texture was just what I was looking for.

    For the cheesecake part, I used the Dastony raw cashew butter and coconut butter from Raw Guru and they did the trick!  They tasted like non-vegan cheesecake brownies with the pumpkin pie spices and pumpkin added of course!  These are crave worthy.

    They were rich with chocolate flavor and fudgy yet creamy thanks to the cheesecake swirl, which tasted like a mixture of pumpkin pie and cheesecake!  Trust me, you need to make some on a chilly fall day just so you can experience the joy that they bring to your kitchen and your taste buds!  If you would like some Dastony raw cashew butter or Dastony coconut butter for yourself, check them out on the Raw Guru website!

    Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    Makes 16

    Cheesecake swirl:

     

    Brownies:

    • 1/2 cup avocado oil or olive oil
    • 3 Tbsp pumpkin puree
    • 1 cup maple sugar
    • 2 Tbsp ground flax seeds mixed with 6 Tbsp filtered water
    • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 cup organic whole wheat pastry flour
    • 1/2 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
    • 1/2 tsp baking powder

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the swirl, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into a bowl and set aside.
    2. To make the brownies, pre-heat the oven to 350F degrees. Whisk together the sugar, oil and pumpkin until well combined and the sugar is starting to break down.  Add the flax mixture vanilla and beat until smooth.
    3. Add the flour, cacao powder and sea salt and beat until smooth.  Scrape the batter into a greased 8×8 inch pan, then drop the swirl over it, and swirl it with a knife.
    4. Place in the oven, and Bake for about 30 minutes or until set (but do not over bake).  Let cool before cutting into bars.

     



  • Vegan Cappucchino Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    Vegan Cappucchino Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    I am a coffee fan. It always smelled amazing to me even if for the first part of my life I thought it actually tasted gross.  But that may have been because the only time I would try it would be some event at church or something and I tried it plain with nothing in it.  Now as an adult I guess I am somewhat picky about the type I drink.  I like medium or light roasts, dark sometimes tastes too burnt to me.  Also, my favorite coffee beans are from local roasters here in Minnesota.  My favorite is Dogwood Coffee.  I make my coffee at home during the week or have some at work, usually with a bit of oatmilk.  But on weekends Eric and I like to go out for coffee dates and order something a little more fancy. I was enjoying some coffee last weekend and was thinking about how good it would be with brownies to enjoy it with.  So I decided to make some!

    I thought why not make the brownies have a little bit of coffee flavor as well, so I made cappucchino cheesecake swirl brownies!  I know brownies are so good on their own, but I usually can’t resist swirling something delicious with them or flavoring them with different things.  It is so much more fun that way! My favorite is a cheesecake type filling.  Vegan of course!  Cheesecake is also one of my favorite desserts so I love incorporating it into other things.

    For these I made my classic brownie base, which is rich and fudgy just how I like my brownies!  But this time I added a bit of coffee to it as well, because why not have a coffee element in both the brownie and the cheesecake part!  The batter was so good even before I baked it (I know because I enjoyed the last bit as I scraped out the bowl). For the cheesecake part I used a combination of coconut cream and cashew butter to make it creamy and give it a cheesecake like texture. I scented it with vanilla and coffee and it was perfect!

    These baked up beautifully!  They filled my kitchen with the most heavenly aroma!  I love the smell of brownies baking, one can’t possibly be in a bad mood while smelling that, or if you were it lifts your spirits!  Such a happy aroma!  I could not wait to try them.  Once they were cooled down and I was able to cut them I dove in. They were so heavenly!  The perfect partner for a cup of good coffee, they were intensely chocolaty with the scent of coffee and vanilla, the cheesecake swirl rich and delicious!  If you are a coffee and chocolate fan, definitely give these a try!

    Vegan Cappuchino Cheesecake Swirl Brownies 
    Makes 16

    Cheesecake swirl:

    • 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut cream (from the top of a chilled can)
    • 1/2 cup cashew butter
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 2 Tbsp cornstarch
    • 1 Tbsp espresso powder
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

     

    Brownies:

    • 1/4 cup avocado oil
    • 1/2 cup apple sauce
    • 1 cup coconut sugar 
    • 2 Tbsp ground flax seed mixed with 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp filtered water
    • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 cup organic whole wheat pastry flour
    • 1/2 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1 Tbsp espresso powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
    • 1/2 tsp baking powder
    • 1/4 cup vegan dark chocolate chunks

     

    Ingredients:

    1. To make the swirl, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into a bowl and set aside.
    2. To make the brownies, pre-heat the oven to 375F degrees. Whisk together the sugar, avocado oil and applesauce until well combined and the sugar is starting to break down.
    3. Add the flax water mixture, and vanilla and beat until smooth.
    4. Add the flour, cacao powder and sea salt and beat until smooth.
    5. Scrape the batter into a greased 8×8 inch pan, then pour the swirl over it, then drop the jam by the tsp over that. Sprinkle with the chocolate chunks.
    6. Place in the oven, and Bake for about 30 minutes or until set (but do not over bake).
    7. Let cool completely before cutting into bars.
  • Vegan Chocolate Strawberry Cake 

    Vegan Chocolate Strawberry Cake 

    I haven’t made an actual layer cake in a while, so when I was craving chocolate cake this week, I decided to go for it.  They are a little more work than other cakes, and I am a busy person, so when I have time to make one, it is usually a relaxing day to play with recipes.  This one actually took me several days to make since I was making it after work, but I enjoyed the process.  I look at making cakes as a relaxing activity.  I thought about making just a regular chocolate cake, but I wanted to make something more special and incorporate berries, since Valentine’s Day is coming up.  I am all about the berries, and chocolate and pink desserts.  This one had a little of all of those things.

    It sort of evolved as I made it into the end result.  First, I made the chocolate cake layers. I used my date sweetened chocolate cake recipe for a nice and moist but light fluffy intensely chocolaty rich cake. I then was going to just put some berry jam and chopped berries.  But I thought, you know what would be even better?  A layer of strawberry cheesecake!  Why not?!  This is a fun experiment after all.

    So I made a strawberry cheesecake filling. Once that had set up, I wanted it to have a nice rich chocolate frosting, so I made my vegan cream cheese style frosting that has both coconut milk and cashew butter to make it rich and creamy. But I added in a good amount of cacao powder to give it that rich chocolate flavor.  It almost tasted like chocolate mousse and it was hard to stop sampling it!

    I could not wait to try the finished product!  It was so heavenly!  The soft decadent cake was perfect with the creamy sweet cheesecake filling, flavorful berries, and rich chocolate frosting!  This would be perfect for Valentine’s Day!  But of course it would be good year round, I am always in the mood for cake!

    Vegan Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Cheesecake Filling
    Makes one 2 layer 6 inch cake

    Ingredients:

    2 6 inch cake pans

    Cake:

    • 1 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
    • 1/4 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 1/2 tsp sea salt
    • 1 1/4 cups packed soft medjool dates, pitted, soaked in water for 30 minutes and drained
    • 1/4 cup almond butter
    • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 2 cups filtered water
    • 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

     

    Frosting:

    • 1 15 oz can organic full fat coconut milk, chilled (use a brand that is at least 3/4 of the can coconut cream or the frosting will not set up, I prefer Thai Kitchen brand)
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
    • 1/3 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/3 cup maple syrup
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 tsp cider vinegar
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp melted coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid

     

    Directions:

    1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and position rack in center of oven.
    2. Oil two 6 inch round cake pans with coconut oil and line the bottom with parchment.
    3. Whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt in a large bowl to blend well.
    4. Place dates, water, almond butter, and vanilla extract into a blender, and blend until smooth, then whisk this blended mixture into the flour mixture until well blended. Whisk in the cider vinegar until bubbles form.
    5. Pour the cake batter into prepared pans, and place in the oven.
    6. Bake cakes until set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean, about 30-35 minutes.  Remove from oven, let cool completely, then un-mold them onto two plates. cover and set aside.
    7. To make the filling, combine all ingredients but the fresh berries in a high speed blender and blend until completely smooth. Stir in the chopped berries.
    8. Place one cake into the bottom of a springform pan, then pour the cheesecake filling over it.  Place the other cake on top, and put into the freezer for a few hours until the center is all set.  Keep in the refrigerator until ready to frost.
    9. To make the frosting, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until completely smooth.  Pour into a bowl and place in the freezer until the consistency of stiffly whipped cream (about 30-45 minutes depending on how warm it has gotten.  Once it is ready place in the refrigerator until ready to frost.
    10. Unmold the spring form pan and place the cake on a plate.  Spread the frosting on the top and down the sides of the cake.
    11. Decorate with remaining frosting and enjoy!
  • Vegan Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake

    Vegan Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake

    For Thanksgiving, part of the tradition at my house is to always have some fabulous desserts. Pumpkin pie is traditional, but sometimes I like to switch it up a little bit with the pumpkin desserts.  I made some pumpkin creme caramel before and pumpkin cakes, and this year I decided that a vegan pumpkin pie cheesecake would be amazing!  Cheesecake happens to be one of my all time favorite desserts after all, so why not combine it with the classic Thanksgiving dessert!

    I have had pumpkin cheesecake before, but it was less pumpkiny and more just cheesecake flavored.  Which there is nothing wrong with, but I really wanted this one to taste like creamy pumpkin pie.  So, there would be plenty of pumpkin and spices in it!  For the crust, usually for my no bake cheesecakes, I use a no bake oat crust, but this time I decided to make a pie crust style one.  Just to kind of go with the pumpkin pie theme.  It was hard to stop sampling!

    Once the cheesecake was all set up, I topped it off with a coconut cream.  I piped mine on, but you could just spread it on if you wanted and it would be just as good! This cheesecake was sooo good!  It tasted like pumpkin pie but in cheesecake form, and the amount of aromatic spices was perfect!  The crust was nice and buttery and crunchy which I loved with the cheesecake as well!  If you are looking for a delicious dessert to make for Thanksgiving consider this cheesecake!

    Vegan Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake

    Makes 1 6 inch cheesecake

    Ingredients:

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp organic whole wheat pastry flour*
    • 2 Tbsp tapioca flour (or cornstarch would work as well)
    • 2 Tbsp maple sugar
    • pinch tsp sea salt
    • 3 Tbsp vegan butter (such as Earth Balance)

     

    Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup canned pumpkin
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste
    • 3/4 cup melted coconut butter

     

    Topping:

    • 1 1/4 cups canned full fat coconut milk (you want to use a brand that is at least 3/4 of the can thick cream or it will not work for this recipe, I like Thai Kitchen brand)
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp melted coconut butter (not coconut oil), warmed to liquid

     

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat oven to 375F degrees.
    2. To make the crust, in a large bowl, mix together flour, tapioca flour,  sugar, and sea salt. Mix in butter and stir (or use your hands and knead) until a smooth dough is created. Press into the bottom of a 6 inch round spring form pan.
    3. Place in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until just starting to brown and set.  Remove from the oven, and let cool completely.
    4. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    5. Pour the filling over the prepared crust and smooth the top.
    6. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    7. Remove from the freezer, and set in the refrigerator while you make the topping.
    8. To make the topping, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until completely smooth.  Pour into a bowl and place in the freezer until the consistency of stiffly whipped cream (about 30-45 minutes depending on how warm it has gotten).
    9. Pipe or spread the topping over the cake.
    10. un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick cream or it will not work in this recipe.

  • Vegan Raspberry Cheesecake Dessert Hummus

    Vegan Raspberry Cheesecake Dessert Hummus

    I am a huge hummus fan. When Eric and I went on vacation last month, almost every day for lunch I would buy hummus and vegetables to dip in it for lunch and it made me so happy. They are not all created equally though, some are definitely better than others.  We make a really good one at my work, that I think is one of the best I have tried.  It is a huge batch, starting off with 20 cups uncooked chickpeas so a big job to make, but I don’t mind doing it at all because I love the stuff!  I don’t just love savory hummus though, I love the sweet stuff too.

    Dessert hummus wasn’t really a thing until a few years back but from the first time I heard of it I loved the idea. Why not get your fiber and protein in your dessert?  I made some for myself and I was hooked. I think I made a chocolate one first, but I have since branched out to others, like chocolate chip cookie dough, salted caramel, chocolate cake batter, and cake batter. Last week, I decided to make a raspberry cheesecake flavored one.  Because cheesecake sounded good, but I hadn’t made a dessert hummus in a while, and also hummus is easier to make than a cake.

    This is super simple to make, you just throw everything in the blender, buzz it and voila!  Deliciousness!  I used chickpeas as a base, because I always have a large amount pre-cooked and portioned out in my freezer.  But you could use white beans if you wanted.  I added some coconut cream and cashew butter to give the hummus that creamy cheesecake feel, and it was so silky smooth and creamy!  For the sweetener I used maple syrup, because it blends in well, but if you wanted to you could use 1/2 cup of pitted medjool dates (I have done this before in my dessert hummus and it works well).

    Lastly I added in plenty of berries and a touch of lemon juice to give it that something extra.  It turned out super delicious!  I love this just with a spoon (which is how I ended up eating most of it) , or for dipping chocolate or brownies into, or fresh fruit if you wanted to keep it a bit lighter and more healthy.  If you still think dessert hummus sounds weird, just give it a try, I almost guarantee you will change your mind!

    Vegan Raspberry Cheesecake Dessert Hummus
    Makes about 3 cups

    Ingredients:

    • 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
    • 1/3 cup maple syrup (or to taste, if you like it sweeter add 1/2 cup)
    • 1/2 cup coconut milk (or as needed)
    • 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
    • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter or almond butter

     

    Instructions:

    Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth (adding a little more water if necessary).  Keeps in the refrigerator for about 1 week in a sealed container.

     

  • Vegan White Chocolate Mango Raspberry Cheesecake

    Vegan White Chocolate Mango Raspberry Cheesecake

        

    I can’t believe it is already July!  Time has flown this year with all that is going on, and I feel a bit out of sorts as to what month it is lately since I am not in my usual routine.  I haven’t done much cooking and baking lately because my kitchen has been in the process of being remodeled and it’s been hard to use it. Luckily it is about done, and since July is here, and it is hot, I thought it would be the perfect time to make a no bake cheesecake!  Which is honestly what I usually make anyway because they are just as delicious as the baked but easier.  Since mangoes are super delicious right now, and some at the store were calling my name, I decided to make a white chocolate mango raspberry cheesecake!

    For the base, I used my usual full fat coconut milk. I always have cans of it on hand, and it makes for luscious cheesecake.  I then usually add something like cashews or chickpeas to add bulk and a nice texture but this time I simply used a good amount of sweet mango since this was a mango cheesecake after all.  I also added in a bit of lime juice and vanilla for flavor plus maple syrup to sweeten it and it was heavenly!  Instead of the usual coconut butter I use to thicken my cheesecakes, I used melted cacao butter this time to give it the white chocolate flavor. 

    Although I could have made my raspberry swirl completely with raw raspberries, I mixed them with jam so that they would be a little less runny and more vibrant in color and it worked out perfectly.  That bright red against the pale yellow of the mango cheesecake was lovely! I could not wait to try it, but I had to wait until the next day because I was making it at night. 

    Once I finally unmolded it and got to dive in, it was heavenly!  Rich and creamy with a sweet mango flavor, a hint of lime, mellow white chocolate and jammy raspberries!  It tasted like summer, which is what I was going for, I didn’t have to heat up the oven to make it and it was easy to make!  If you are in the mood for cheesecake give this a try! 

    Vegan White Chocolate Mango Raspberry Cheesecake

    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup almonds (for nut free version use finely shredded unsweetened dried coconut instead)
    • 3/4 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup cubed fresh mango
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 3 Tbsp lime juice 
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste
    • 3/4 cup melted cacao butter

     

    Swirl:

    • 2/3 cup organic raspberry jam mashed together with 1/3 cup fresh raspberries

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Pour half the filling over the prepared crust  then drop some of the jam over than randomly (but spaced out) by the tsp as well. Swirl with a knife a few times. Repeat with the remaining filling and jam.
    5. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    6. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick cream or it will not work in this recipe.

  • Vegan Raspberry Swirled Chocolate Cheesecake

    Vegan Raspberry Swirled Chocolate Cheesecake

         

    Cheesecake has to be my all time favorite dessert!  Even before I was vegan I would make it or buy it a lot. There is just something so crave worthy about the creamy rich texture, and I love that I can make whatever flavor I am craving at the time. I have over 50 recipes for cheesecake on this blog alone. But I am still coming up with new ones though!  I make most of my cheesecakes coconut cream based, cashew based or even a combination of coconut cream and chickpeas (which sounds odd but it works really well and tastes great).  But never a tofu cheesecake surprisingly, which seems to be a vegan staple. Well, I finally made one last weekend. 

    Tofu has a cheese like texture when treated right, so why not?  Also it is a little bit less heavy than the coconut cream on my stomach, so I figured why not give it a try!  Also, it is high in protein, which is a nice perk as well for someone like me who works out a lot and I like to get a little extra when I can.  For the crust, I used a simple almond, oat and date combo and it worked out well and was easy to make. If you wanted it nut free, you could use sunflower seeds, and sunflower seed butter instead of the almond. 

    The filling was really simple to make, tofu, maple syrup, cacao butter and sea salt buzzed up in a blender.  It tastes like rich chocolate mousse thanks to the cacao butter giving it a little richness and it was dreamy!  I made a quick raspberry jam to swirl into it, because raspberry and chocolate are so heavenly together!  

    The cheesecake turned out rich and creamy, slightly less heavy than the coconut cream ones, and a little more mousse like.  It had a rich chocolate flavor, and that tart sweet raspberry swirled into it was perfect!  If you are a fan of chocolate, definitely give this a try!  It is easy to make and so good! I love that it doesn’t require baking also!

    Vegan Raspberry Swirled Chocolate Cheesecake

    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup roasted almonds (for a nut free version, use sunflower seeds)
    • 1/2 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1 Tbsp almond butter
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Swirl:

    • 3/4 cup raspberries, mashed 
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp cornstarch

     

    Filling:

    • 2 cups organic firm silken tofu
    • 1/2 cup maple syrup
    • 1/4 cup cacao powder
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbp cacao butter, warmed to liquid

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. To make the filling, place the raspberries, maple syrup and cornstarch in a saucepan, and cook over medium heat until thickened.  Remove from heat and let cool. 
    4. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    5. To assemble, pour half the filling over the crust, then drop half the raspberry swirl by the tsp over it. Swirl with a knife. Pour the remaining filling over that, and then drop more of the jam over it, and swirl with a knife. Tap on the counter to level. 
    6. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry, but cover the top so it doesn’t dry out).
    7. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

  • Vegan Tiramisu Cheesecake

    Vegan Tiramisu Cheesecake

        

    The first time I ever tried tiramisu was at an Italian restaurant with my Mom when we were on a family vacation. I wasn’t a huge fan of coffee at the time, but it still sounded interesting so I ordered some.  It was fabulous!  Layers of soft cakey lady fingers with a hint of coffee, lots of cream and a touch of chocolate.  We decided that we wanted to try to make some at home, and we made the traditional type with the ladyfingers, zabagliogne made with egg yolks and heavy cream and all.  It was a process but it turned out so good!  I still love tiramisu but I make much easier veganized versions of it now that taste just as good. 

    I have been craving tiramisu lately because I haven’t had it in so long, so I decided to make a tiramisu cheesecake.  I had recently bought some really good coffee from a local coffee roaster called Dogwood Coffee.  Eric and I love to go there and get oat milk lattes (they always have yummy seasonal ones) and so I thought I would buy some to try at home.  I got their Neon Espresso and it is sooo good!  Just a splash of oatmilk and it is perfect!  It has a chocolate like flavor and it so smooth. I figured it would be so good in my tiramisu.  

    For the base, instead of the usual cheesecake crust or lady fingers, I made a layer of vanilla cake with a hint of coffee.  Then I soaked it with a bit an espresso syrup, and dusted it with cacao powder.  Next I made the cheesecake layer.  I used my usual vanilla cheesecake base, but added the espresso to it. I use a mixture of coconut milk and chickpeas as my base, which may sound weird, but trust me you can’t taste the chickpeas at all.  They were my swap for cashews a while back to make nut free cheesecake, and I make most of my cheesecakes this way now. 

    I could not wait to try it!  To finish it off I dusted it off with a bit of cacao powder and it was perfect!  It tasted just like tiramisu, but in cheesecake form!  Creamy, with a light coffee flavor, a soft layer of espresso soaked cake on the bottom, it is so good!  Even better with a cup of coffee on the side.  If you are a fan of tiramisu definitely give this a try! 

    Vegan Tiramisu Cheesecake

    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Ingredients:

    one 6 inch cake pan

    Bottom Cake:

    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp organic whole wheat pastry flour*
    • 1/4 tsp plus 1/8 tsp baking soda
    • 1/4 tsp baking powder
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 cup maple sugar
    • 1/2 cup full fat coconut milk (the thick kind, I prefer Thai Kitchen brand) at room temperature
    • 2 Tbsp strong brewed good quality espresso 
    • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1 1/2 tsp cider vinegar

     

    Soak:

    • 1 Tbsp strong brewed good quality espresso 
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 Tbsp cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder 

     

      Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup cooked chickpeas
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 2 tsp finely ground good quality espresso
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbp coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid

     

      Topping:

    • cacao powder unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting
    • chopped vegan dark chocolate

     

      Instructions:

    1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and position rack in center of oven.
    2. Oil a 6 inch round baking pan and line it with parchment at the bottom so it will not stick.
    3. Whisk flour, espresso, baking soda, sea salt, and sugar in a large bowl to blend well.
    4. Whisk coconut milk and vanilla extract together in small bowl to blend well, then whisk into the flour mixture until well blended.
    5. Whisk the cider vinegar into the batter.
    6. Transfer the cake batter to prepared pan then place in the oven, and bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached, about 20 minutes.
    7. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
    8. Mix together the coffee and maple syrup for the soak, then brush the cake with it generously (you may have a little left over). Dust with 1 Tbsp cacao powder. Set aside. 
    9. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    10. Pour over the prepared cake.
    11. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    12. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and dust with cacao powder and sprinkle with dark chocolate.
    13. Enjoy!

    Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator, keeps for up to 1 week.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick cream or it will not work in this recipe.

    Notes: If you would rather use coconut sugar or even just granulated sugar for this, either will work in place of the maple sugar. If you would like to make a 9 inch round cake, double the entire recipe, and bake it in a 9 inch round pan, increasing the baking time to 40 minutes (depending on your oven). This cake can be made gluten free by swapping out the whole wheat pastry flour for Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all purpose baking flour (this is a brand I have used before and have tested it in cakes with great results).

  • Vegan Raspberry Rose Cheesecake

    Vegan Raspberry Rose Cheesecake

    I know we are far from summer, but I am missing summer berries, so I thought I would make a raspberry cheesecake to remind me of it.  When I was little my favorite kind of cheesecake was the kind with the raspberry swirls.  Whenever someone had one of those cheesecake variety packs with all different flavors that was always the one I chose, even above chocolate and caramel. I am a big fan of fruit in desserts, and the contrast of the sweet tart raspberries to the sweet vanilla cheesecake is heavenly.  Well, I thought I would make one similar to that and take it up a notch by adding more raspberries to the cheesecake part and a little rosewater to make it smell absolutely heavenly!

    I used to always make all my vegan cheesecake with cashews as the base, but later that changed to coconut because cashews are spendy, and my body doesn’t always like them.  Also many of my readers were asking for nut free versions.  Now I have revamped that cheesecake base to include chickpeas along with the coconut to create a cheesecake that is creamy and rich tasting but not so heavy on the stomach.  Trust me, you can not taste them in there, you would swear it was cashews and chickpeas are the perfect sub for them!  Plus they are cheap and I always have them on hand since I usually just make a large amount then freeze them later for using in my meals.  

    I added raspberries, vanilla and rosewater to flavor the cheesecake base and it was heavenly!  I could not wait to try it in its chilled form!  But first I made a crust for it with oats and pistachios, because I think pistachios are so lovely with rose.  If you wanted this cake to be nut free though, you could just use shredded coconut instead.  I swirled the cheesecake with really good raspberry jam to give it loads of raspberry flavor.  Eric’s Dad gave us this jam that he made from his home grown raspberries and it is seriously the best I have ever tasted!  It worked perfect in the cheesecake!

    I had to wait overnight for it to chill, but it was worth the wait.  Sooo dreamy and crave worthy!  The base was rich, creamy, smooth and sweet scented with rose, vanilla and berries, and the gooey jam and salty sweet crust were perfect with it!  If you are missing summer too, make this cheesecake! It would also be perfect for upcoming Valentine’s Day next month! 

    Vegan Raspberry Rose Cheesecake

    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup pistachios (for nut free version use finely shredded unsweetened dried coconut instead)
    • 3/4 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup cooked chickpeas
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1 Tbsp rose water 
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbp coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid
    • 1/2 cup fresh organic raspberries 

     

    Swirl:

    • 2/3 cup organic raspberry jam

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Pour half the filling over the prepared crust  then drop some of the jam over than randomly (but spaced out) by the tsp as well. Swirl with a knife a few times. Repeat with the remaining filling and jam.
    5. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    6. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick cream or it will not work in this recipe. 

  • Vegan Caramel Apple Cheesecake

    Vegan Caramel Apple Cheesecake

    I made a visit to a local apple orchard a few weekends back, and I still had some apples on hand, so I decided that I had to make something really delicious with them.  Pie sounded good, but you know what sounded even better?  A cheesecake with the elements of apple pie included.  A caramel apple cheesecake!  I had made one years ago, back when I was completely raw vegan, and it was really good, but I have been wanting to make a non-raw version for a while now.  Not that it wasn’t delicious, but I know not everyone wants to crack open Thai coconuts to make a cheesecake, and I felt that having cooked apples included in it and a crunchy streusel on top would make it even better.

    For my cheesecakes I usually make a crust involving oats and dates, and although it tastes good, I just want it a bit more crispy sometimes so I decided to try something new with this one. Plus, I figured the topping could double as a crust, because they would both have oats and I wanted them both crunchy.  So I made sort of a granola to solve the non-crunchy crust problem and it worked perfect!  I just used a mixture similar to what I use in my oil free granola recipe and it was super delicious even before it was turned into crust and topping.

    For the filling, I used my classic vanilla cheesecake filling, including an ingredient some may find odd, but it really works here.  Chickpeas!  I use them in place of raw cashews in my cheesecakes because then the cheesecake isn’t as heavy (but still rich tasting), and they are a lot cheaper.  Don’t worry you can not taste them at all, since they are a pretty neutral flavor they blend right in with everything else.  My taste testers were shocked to find out that they were in there since it tasted just like traditional cheesecake filling. I cooked the apples on the stove with a bit of maple sugar and spices and they were flavorful and delicious even before I assembled the cake.

    Lets not forget the caramel though. I made a gooey date caramel to swirl into the cake and drizzle on top and it was hard to stop tasting.  I could not wait to try the finished cake!  Sadly I had to wait until the next day to try it since I was making it after work at night.  But it was well worth the wait!  It was rich and creamy, the mellow vanilla cheesecake perfect with the sweet tart apples and crunchy cinnamony crust and crumble on top!  Plus the gooey date caramel of course!   Soooo good! If you have apples on hand, you know what to make!

    Vegan Caramel Apple Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust and topping:

    • 1 1/2 cups organic rolled oats
    • 1/4 cup almond butter, divided
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
    • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 cup soft, pitted medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them in filtered water first, then drain very well before using.)

     

    Apples:

    • 4 medium tart sweet organic apples (such as honeycrisp), diced into 1/2 inch pieces
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
    • 2 Tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 Tbsp cornstarch

     

    Caramel:

    • 1 1/4 cups soft, pitted medjool dates (of not soft, soak in filtered water 30 minutes and drain before using)
    • 1/4 cup almond butter
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup filtered water (or as needed
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup cooked chickpeas*
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid

     

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees, and line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
    2. In a bowl, combine the oats, 3 Tbsp almond butter, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg and sea salt, and scrunch together with your hands until it is all coated. Spread out on the prepared pan, and bake for about 20-25 minutes until it is starting to brown and crunchy.  Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
    3. Line the bottom of a 6 inch spring form pan with parchment paper.
    4. To make the crust, place 1 cup of the oats, the dates and 1 Tbsp almond butter in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan and set aside in the freezer.
    5. To make the apples, combine the apples, maple syrup, and cinnamon in a pot and cook over medium heat until the apples have softened, about 15 minutes.  Mix together the lemon juice and cornstarch and cook until the sauce around the apples thickens.  Let cool.
    6. To make the caramel, blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth (adding a little more water a very small amount at a time if needed to create a thick but pour-able consistency.
    7. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    8. To assemble the cheesecake, pour half the filling over the crust, then drop some of the caramel by the Tbsp over it, and swirl with a knife.  Scatter half the apple mixture over that, then pour the remaining filling over them.  Drop some more of the caramel on top of the cake and swirl with a knife (being careful not to go too deep so you don’t disturb the apple layer in the middle).
    9. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    10. Remove from the freezer and un-mold.
    11. Scatter the remaining apples over the top, then top off with even more of the oat mixture.  Drizzle more caramel over the top and serve!

    This cake keeps for 1 week in a container in the refrigerator.

    *I use chickpeas in this, and no you can not taste them, they simply give it a nice smooth texture.  If you prefer cashews though, soaked cashews will work in place of them if you do not care for the chickpeas.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

  • Vegan Peanut Butter and Jelly Cheesecake

    Vegan Peanut Butter and Jelly Cheesecake

    I have been wanting to make a peanut butter and jelly cheesecake lately. It all started a few weeks back when I made some peanut butter and jelly ice cream, and peanut butter and jelly white chocolates and I was going to make the cake right away but I decided to wait until my Birthday! A peanut butter and jelly cheesecake sounded like the perfect Birthday cake! I am obsessed with the combo after all and 4 years ago I made a peanut butter and jelly cream pie instead of cake and that was good.

    So I went for the cheesecake last weekend. It is actually my birthday today, but I made the cake early so I could enjoy it for a few days and not have to make it on my Birthday. Many people ask me why I make my birthday cake instead of buying it. Well, if I make it myself, I get exactly what I want. Plus I have fun making it! It is kind of like making art, making cakes. At least for me. I enjoy the process of creating recipes.

    Although I could have just made this cake vanilla and swirled it with peanut butter and jelly I decided to swirl it with peanut butter cheesecake and berry cheesecake. It just made it more pretty and extra delicious. I used a secret ingredient in the cake as well. Some chickpeas in place of the cashews I used to always use in my vegan cheesecake. Honestly they taste about the same, and my tummy likes them better. Also, it is so much cheaper and I always have chickpeas on hand. Don’t worry you can’t taste them at all!

    In addition to the cheesecake fillings, I did swirl the cake with gooey peanut butter and berry jam. I could not wait to try it! But it had to set up overnight first. It was well worth the wait though. It turned out sooo good! It was the perfect birthday cake, and a lot easier to make than a layer cake. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good layer cake, but cheesecake has a special place in my heart.

    Vegan Peanut Butter and Jelly Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water
      first and drain well)
    • 1 Tbsp organic peanut butter
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk*)
    • 3/4 cup cooked chickpeas
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbp coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid
    • 1/2 cup fresh organic raspberries or strawberries
    • 1/4 cup smooth organic peanut butter

     

    Swirl:

    • 1/3 cup organic raspberry or strawberry jam
    • 1/3 cup peanut butter

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the raspberries and peanut butter in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Divide between 2 bowls.
    5. Add one back to the blender with the raspberries and blend until smooth then pour back into the bowl. Whisk the peanut butter into the other bowl until well blended.
    6. drop half of each bowl of filling over the prepared crust by the tsp. randomly, then tap on the table, and drop some of the jam and peanut butter over than randomly (but spaced out) by the tsp as well. Swirl with a knife a few times. Repeat with the remaining filling and more peanut butter and jelly.
    7. Place cheesecake in the freezer until it is set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    8. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

  • Vegan Snickers Almond Cheesecake

    Vegan Snickers Almond Cheesecake

    I loved Snickers bars as a kid. They were always the thing I traded other candy for on Halloween (well tied with peanut butter cups of course), because I couldn’t get enough of them. Well, as an adult I like to make my own home made healthier veganized version of Snickers, as well as Snickers inspired desserts, because that flavor combination is heavenly! They did not have Snickers almond bars when I was younger, but I have always thought those sounded good so when I decided to make a cheesecake last weekend I made a Snickers almond cheesecake. Just for those of you who are not big fans of peanuts like my Mom.

    I was really excited about this cheesecake. I haven’t made a cake in a while, and cheesecake happens to be my favorite. Raw Guru had also just sent me some Dastony almond butter so I figured it would be perfect for using in the caramel for the cake. Caramel is an essential part of Snickers after all. I made some gooey almond date caramel and it was perfect in the cake! Also, half of it I made into a super delicious chocolate fudge! These two toppings would be amazing on coconut milk ice cream as well, just sayin’!

    I made two different cheesecake layers, a vanilla almond which was supposed to taste kind of like the nougat in Snickers, and a chocolate almond on the bottom. I think it looks prettier with two layers, and I love a good chocolate and vanilla contrast so everyone is happy! I also put a layer of fudge and caramel, plus crunchy almonds and chocolate in the middle, and on top of the cake. I could not wait to try the finished product!

    It was sooo heavenly! Rich, creamy and dreamy with gooey caramel, intense dark chocolate and crunchy almonds! Way better than an actual Snickers bar! If you are in the mood for something decadent, give this cake a try!

    Vegan Snickers Almond Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

    Caramel and Fudge:

    Filling:

    • 1 1/2 cups full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen coconut cream, but their full organic full fat coconut milk will also work*)
    • 1 cup Raw Guru almond meal
    • 3/4 cup soft, pitted medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them in filtered water before using and drain well)
    • 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
    • 3/4 cup coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid
    • 1/4 cup Raw Guru cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 2 Tbsp vegan dark chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
    • 1/4 cup roughly chopped roasted almonds

    For topping:

    • 2 Tbsp vegan dark chocolate chips or chunks
    • 2 Tbsp roughly chipped roasted almonds

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. To make the caramel, blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth, then pour into 2 bowls. Put one back into the blender and add the cacao powder and blend until smooth. You want both to be pour-able but still thick, if they are too thick, whisk in a touch more filtered water until you reach the desired consistency.
    4. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the cacao powder, almonds and chocolate chips in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    5. Divide the filling mixture between 2 bowls. Pour one back into the blender along with 1/4 cup cacao powder and blend until smooth. Pour over the cheesecake crust.
    6. Next, drop some of the caramel and fudge by the tspful over the filling in the pan, then sprinkle over the almonds and chocolate chunks.
    7. Pour the second vanilla almond layer over that.
    8. Place back in the freezer to set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    9. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and drizzle with the remaining caramel and fudge and sprinkle with almonds and chocolate chunks. Enjoy!
    10. Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick when chilled.

  • Vegan Cheesecake Stuffed Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

    Vegan Cheesecake Stuffed Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

    When I am out running, often times I do my best thinking. It could be working out a problem in my head, thinking of the possible options to fix it, thinking up possible art projects, or many times it is ideas for recipes. That was how I came up with the chocolate dipped cheesecake stuffed strawberries that I made last week. I was thinking about how refreshing and delicious strawberries sounded and just wanted to make a simple recipe fixing them. I know I have been sharing a lot of strawberry recipes lately, but I am loving the fact that they are on sale a lot lately and they taste amazing because they are in season.

    We are kind of berry deprived much of the year here in Minnesota unless they come from far away but those ones aren’t very good, and they are expensive. I try to eat locally as much as possible too. Nothing beats fresh Minnesota strawberries! Anyways, back to those yummy chocolate dipped cheesecake stuffed strawberries. They are easy to make, so that is the best part, they just take a little time if you want them to look pretty.

    First, I dipped them in good quality vegan dark chocolate, then I made a luscious cheesecake filling. In the past I have made my cheesecake filling with a combination of full fat coconut milk cream and cashew butter, but since cashews don’t always agree with me I was happy that I had just received some Dastony macadamia nut butter from Raw Guru to use instead! It is super delicious stuff! I consider macadamia nuts kind of special, and the butter is just as amazing. It made for a creamy and delicious cheesecake filling.

    Once it was all piped into the strawberries, I was super excited. These are waaayyy better than classic chocolate dipped strawberries. But maybe I am biased since cheesecake is one of my favorite desserts. These are heavenly! If you want to impress someone, make them a plate of these babies! Now is the perfect time to make them too since strawberries are so flavorful this time of the year!

    Vegan Cheesecake Stuffed Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

    Makes 16

    Ingredients:

    • 16 larger fresh organic strawberries
    • 1 cup vegan dark chocolate or chocolate chips, chopped
    • 1/2 cup full fat coconut milk (the cream part from the top of the can)
    • 3 Tbsp Dastony macadamia nut butter, or raw cashew butter
    • 1/3 cup Dastony coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp lemon juice
    • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

    Instructions:

    1. Melt the dark chocolate in the top of a double boiler, then dip each strawberry into it, let the excess drip off and then set them on a parchment lined tray. Place in the refrigerator until the chocolate has hardened.
    2. Meanwhile, to make the cheesecake filling, in a blender or food processor, combine the coconut milk, macadamia nut butter, coconut butter, maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and sea salt until well combined. Pour into a bowl, and place in the freezer for about 30-45 minutes or until thickened to the consistency of whipped cream stirring every so often. Once it has reached the desired consistency, put it in the refrigerator.
    3. Meanwhile, using a pairing knife, cut divets into the tops of the strawberries so you have a little cavity to put the filling in. Set aside in the refrigerator until you are ready to fill them.
    4. To fill the strawberries, place the filling in a pastry bag (or a ziplock bag with a hole cut in the corner), and pipe into the tops of the strawberries.
    5. Place back in the refrigerator for about an hour until they firm up more.
    6. Enjoy! Store any extras in the refrigerator.

  • Vegan Yogurt Cheesecake in a Jar

    Vegan Yogurt Cheesecake in a Jar

    Cheesecake is my favorite dessert. It was even before I went vegan. I thought I would never enjoy it again when I had to give up dairy, but boy was I wrong! Vegan cheesecakes are even more delicious than their dairy cousins if you ask me. In fact, it was a raw cheesecake that made me decide to take the plunge and go vegan 7 years ago. I tried it and it was so good, I decided that if I could still enjoy delicious goodies like cheesecake as a vegan it would not be bad after all! I don’t even miss any non-vegan items now.

    Sometimes I want cheesecake, but I don’t want to make a whole big giant one just for myself and my boyfriend Eric so I make smaller ones. But last week, I had made some vanilla coconut yogurt using some vanilla Sunbiotics probiotics powder from Raw Guru and I decided that it would be amazing in some mini cheesecakes. I decided to do something I haven’t done before and made cheesecakes in a jar. Why not? They are portable, so if you want to bring a treat to go with your lunch, or save it for later, just screw the top on!

    Once the coconut yogurt is made, these are really easy to whip up fast. The yogurt is an overnight process, but it really is worth it, and that probiotic powder gives it the perfect tang! I try to get in a daily dose of gut healthy probiotics so I love that I can include it in dessert. I wanted these to be simple and easy so for the crust, I used some home made vanilla granola I already had on hand. You could use store bought though if you wanted.

    I made 3 different fillings, because variety is the spice of life! But of course you could just pick one (the filling recipes below are for 3 jars). I made strawberry, blueberry and caramel and they were all super delicious! This is not a super stiff dense cheesecake, it is more light and creamy like a cheesecake yogurt mousse which is how I wanted it. These are crave worthy! If you are a cheesecake fan, give these a try!

    Vegan Yogurt Cheesecake in a Jar 

    Serves 3

    Ingredients:

    Vanilla Coconut Cheesecake Yogurt:

    • 2 cups organic full fat coconut milk (use a brand that has a thick cream at the top (2/3 of the can), such as Thai Kitchen or it won’t be thick enough)
    • 1 tsp Sunbiotics vanilla probiotic powder
    • 1/2 cup Dastony coconut butter or home made coconut butter (not oil), warmed to liquid
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • ¼ cup date paste* or maple syrup

    For assembly:

    • Vegan Vanilla Granola
    • Flavor of choice (pick one):
      • Caramel: 1/2 cup date paste mixed with 3 Tbsp almond butter, 1 tsp vanilla and a few Tbsp filtered water to thin out (add more if too thick).
      • Raspberry: Mash 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries with 2 Tbsp maple syrup
      • Blueberry: Mash 1 1 1/2 cup frozen (thawed) blueberries with 2 Tbsp maple syrup

    1. To make the yogurt, combine the coconut milk and probiotic powder in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl, cover, and let sit overnight on the counter until tangy.
    2. The next day, blend with coconut butter, vanilla extract, and date paste until smooth, then pour into a bowl and chill until just thickened to the consistency or heavy cream.
    3. To assemble, put 3 Tbsp granola into the bottom of 3 small jars, then top with 2/3 of the cheesecake yogurt (divided between the three).
    4. Top with the flavor of choice (dividing evenly between the three), then the remaining yogurt.
    5. Serve!
    6. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 1 week with a lid on.

    *Date Paste: Blend 1 ¼ cups pitted soft medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them in filtered water for 30 minutes and drain) and 2/3 cup filtered water in a blender until smooth.  Store in a jar in the refrigerator up to 1 week.  This can be used in recipes instead of other liquid sweeteners such as maple syrup or coconut nectar.

  • Vegan Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

    Vegan Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

    It’s my 9 year blogaversary! 10 years ago, I randomly decided to start a blog to share recipes with friends and family since I was always posting them on Facebook anyhow. Little did I know that I would still be doing it 10 years later, or be reaching this many people! I have had fun with it though, and it’s been a pleasure sharing with you all! So here’s to another year of new recipes! I figured I would make something good to celebrate my blogaversary, and I decided on something chocolate despite the name of my blog.

    I am in a chocolate sort of mood lately. I made some raspberry almond butter cups earlier this week, and some turmeric white chocolates, and some peanut butter cups, and I really enjoyed them all, but I wanted something a little more decadent and bigger like a cake for the weekend. I didn’t feel like baking though, so I went for a no bake cheesecake! To be honest, I have never baked a vegan cheesecake because all of the ones I make are no bake and it is so much easier! They turn out all perfect and creamy without the use of the oven. This one was going to be all chocolate.

    Not just dark chocolate though, even though it is my favorite when it comes to chocolate bars. I was envisioning 3 different layers of chocolate in the cake. I was recently asked if I could make a French silk cheesecake, and this was kind of that, only better because that would have only had 2 layers only one of which would have been chocolate. This one would have white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate layers.

    For the base of the whole thing, I used a combination of full fat coconut cream and chickpeas. Now you may be thinking that it sounds odd to put chickpeas in a cheesecake, but they are my equal swap for cashews (which are standard in a lot of vegan cheesecakes). The cake is already pretty rich thanks to the coconut milk, so the chickpeas taste the same as cashews in the cake when combined with it. Also, this makes the cake nut free for those who have allergies. I added in some melted cacao butter to give it a white chocolate flavor along with the coconut butter to thicken the cake and it was a heavenly cheesecake base. Just a touch of vanilla as well to give it that amazing white chocolate scent.

    For the chocolate layers I added in some cacao powder and dark chocolate chips, and they were amazing as well. I knew this was going to be good! It turned out beautiful! But it needed some decoration on top so I had some fun with some vegan dark chocolate I had on hand and made some shapes. OMG was the cheesecake ever good! It was silky smooth! The dark chocolate layer really rich and intense, the milk one more mellow, and the white chocolate more sweet with the aroma of vanilla! All together a heavenly combination! If you are in the mood for something of the chocolate variety, give this a try! It would be perfect for upcoming Valentine’s Day!

    Vegan Triple Chocolate Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

    Filling:

    • 1 1/2 cups full fat coconut cream (I used the thick part of a can of Thai Kitchen coconut cream, but their full organic full fat coconut milk will also work*)
    • 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp cooked chickpeas
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
    • 1/2 cup plus 1 Tbp coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp cacao butter warmed to liquid (or additional coconut butter if unavailable)
    • 4 Tbsp cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder (divided)
    • 2 Tbsp vegan dark chocolate chips or chocolate chunks

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the cacao powder and chocolate chips in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Divide the filling mixture between 3 bowls. Pour one back into the blender along with 1 Tbsp cacao powder and blend until smooth. Pour back into the bowl and set aside.
    5. Pour the next bowl into the blender and add the remaining 3 Tbsp cacao powder and the chocolate chips and blend until smooth. Pour this layer over the crust in the pan, and put in the freezer for 10 minutes to set the layer.
    6. Pour the second layer (the one with 1 Tbsp cacao powder) over the first layer in the pan, then set in the freezer for 10 minutes.
    7. Pour the remaining vanilla filling over the other layers in the pan, then place bac
    8. Place back in the freezer to set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    9. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick when chilled.

  • Vegan Lemon Cheesecake

    Vegan Lemon Cheesecake

    I have always loved all things lemon when it comes to dessert. Growing up, I loved those tart lemon curd bars with the powdered sugar on top, and lemon poppy seed muffins, or a good lemon meringue pie.  I think I get it from my Mom, because she was the same way and tended to like to make desserts with lemon.  We definitely made those bars, although we made the ones from the box not from scratch.  But they were still good. There is just something so delicious about tart lemon in desserts.  And it has to actually be tart to be up to my current standards.  None of this so full of sugar that it is more sweet than tart stuff or just lemon flavor and no juice.  It has be real lemons and make me pucker a bit.  I hadn’t really made anything featuring lemon lately and it is the season when they are at their best so I picked up a bag of organic lemons at the store and hoped for inspiration.  Luckily it came fast. I decided that a lemon cheesecake with a lemon curd topping sounded perfect.

    About 10 years ago, before I went vegan I made a non-vegan lemon cheesecake with a vanilla lemon filling and tart lemon curd topping that was super delicious.  I wanted this cake to taste just like that one, only better.  I wanted the cheesecake filling to be creamy, rich and taste like traditional cheesecake, and the way I achieved that was a mixture of the cream from a can of full fat coconut milk, and chickpeas.  Now, you may be thinking I have gone crazy using chickpeas in my cheesecake filling but hear me out.  I used to use a mixture of coconut cream and cashews all of the time, and that was the perfect texture, but I have a hard time digesting cashews and they are expensive so I tried swapping the cashews with chickpeas last year to see if they would be a good substitute to make the cake nut free.  It worked perfect!  You end up with a cake that has the exact same consistency, and same flavor!  So now I just use the chickpeas.  I always have them on hand in my freezer portioned out anyhow for meals and soups because I make a huge batch every few weeks. Just trust me on this one, they make the filling perfect!

    It also had to have plenty of tart lemon, so I added both zest and juice to the filling plus maple syrup to sweeten it and some vanilla of course.  It was super delicious even before I poured it into the crust.  Once that set, I made a nice tart lemon curd to top it off.  It was a lovely hue of yellow.  I could not wait to taste this cake!  But I had to wait until the next day for it to set because I was making it at night after work.

    I knew this was going to be good, but it turned out even better than I imagined!  The filling was the perfect consistency, smooth, creamy and rich, the perfect balance of tart and sweet with plenty of lemon and a hint of vanilla.  The curd on top was nice and tart, and the perfect contrast to the filling.  It tastes like sunshine in cake form, which we could all use a bit of right now since we are smack dab in the middle of Winter (at least where I live).  If you are a fan of lemon, definitely give this a try!  I hope you are all having a wonderful January!

    Vegan Lemon Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup organic gluten free rolled oats, or quinoa flakes
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

     

    Curd Topping:

    • 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
    • 1 Tbsp filtered water
    • 1/2 Tbsp organic lemon zest
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 2 Tbsp cornstarch
    • pinch of sea salt
    • pinch turmeric (optional, for color)
    • 1 Tbsp full fat coconut milk
    • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Pour the filling over the prepared crust, and place cheesecake in the freezer until the top starts to set, at least 30 minutes. Once the top has set, you can make the filling.
    5. To make curd topping, combine the lemon juice, water, zest, maple syrup, cornstarch, sea salt and coconut milk in a saucepan and cook over medium heat just until it thickens.  Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla and coconut oil.
    6. Pour the lemon curd over the filling, and place back in the freezer to set for about 4 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    7. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

     

  • Vegan Macadamia Nut Cheesecake Brownies

    Vegan Macadamia Nut Cheesecake Brownies

    I have always considered macadamia nuts as kind of special. They are more rich and buttery than other nuts, a little bit more spendy most of the time since they have to grow 7 years before they are harvested and are really hard to crack.  But for special occasions they are so good!  I have made some really good vegan macadamia nut cheese before and it was amazing.  Even those in my family who are not vegan loved it.  Another recipe I love is my Macadamia Coconut White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies, a veganized version of a bakery classic. And, I have to also mention one of the most popular recipes on my blog that happens to contain macadamia nuts, my Raw Banana Macadamia Coconut Cream pie.  It  is epic.  So when Raw Guru sent me a jar of their Dastony macadamia nut butter I was super excited.  I knew it would be amazing in whatever I chose to use it in.  But I wanted it to be something extra delicious so I decided to combine it with chocolate in the form of cheesecake brownies!

    It had been an incredibly busy stressful week, so brownies were the perfect thing to make!  I consider baking to be an awesome stress reliever and mood booster.  One can not stay stressed while baking brownies.  I mean, it is a happy experience!  Licking the excess batter from the bowl, taking in the heavenly aroma while your brownies bake, and of course enjoying the finished product!  Bonus points if you listen to good music while you are making them and wear your comfy pjs.  For these brownies, I used my usual gluten free brownie base with a little of the macadamia nut butter added and it was chocolaty deliciousness!  Super easy to make too, you just whisk it together.

    For the “cheesecake” part, I used a mixture of coconut cream (the unsweetened kind) and the macadamia nut butter sweetened with a little vanilla and maple syrup.  It was heavenly!  Once the brownies were assembled, I also sprinkled them with some macadamia nuts and chocolate chips to make them pretty and to add some texture.  They baked up beautifully!  I couldn’t wait to try them, but since I wanted them to look pretty for you all in my pictures I had to wait until they cooled completely to cut them.  If you are making them and don’t care how they look though, by all means dive in when they are still warm and the chocolate chips are gooey.  These are sooo incredibly good!  Rich fudgy brownie base with luscious cream cheese, crunchy macadamia nuts and chocolate chips!  You would never guess that they are vegan by tasting them. These might be the perfect thing to share with someone you want to convince that vegan food is amazing.

    Vegan Macadamia Nut Cheesecake Brownies
    Makes 16

    Ingredients:

    Cheesecake:

    • 3/4 cup thick coconut cream (I used Thai Kitchen, you want one that is unsweetened without additives)
    • 1/2 cup Dastony macadamia nut butter*
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 2 Tbsp arrowroot starch or cornstarch

     

    Brownies:

     

    Instructions:

    1. Whisk together the flax seeds and water, and allow to sit for 15 minutes.  Set aside.
    2. To make the cheesecake, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into a bowl and set aside.
    3. To make the brownies, pre-heat the oven to 350F degrees. Whisk together the sugar, oil and nut butter until well combined and the sugar is starting to break down.  Add the water and flax mixture and vanilla and beat until smooth.
    4. Add the flour, cacao powder and sea salt and beat until smooth.  Scrape the batter into a greased 8×8 inch pan, then drop the cheesecake over it in 2 Tbsp amounts, and swirl it with a knife.  Sprinkle with macadamia nuts.
    5. Place in the oven, and Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until set (but do not over bake).  Let cool before cutting into bars.

     

    *If you prefer cashew butter, or can’t get macadamia nut butter, you can use cashew butter instead of the macadamia nut butter.

  • Vegan Pumpkin Turtle Cheesecake 

    Vegan Pumpkin Turtle Cheesecake 

    I see food items and recipes all the time that I say to myself I would like to veganize.  There was a magazine next to the checkout line when I was at the store and said it was all pumpkin desserts.  On the cover was the most glorious looking pumpkin turtle cheesecake.  But of course it was not vegan.  So I said to myself and to the cashier, I have to veganize this!  It looks sooo good! That was about a month ago, and I told myself I would wait until October to make it, but hey it was a couple of days away so close enough for me!  I get kind of excited about pumpkin stuff, because it means that we are in the midst of my favorite season, not to mention it is so good!  Especially the desserts that involve spices.  Like the Pumpkin Spice Caramel Lava Cakes I made recently.  This cheesecake won’t be the last pumpkin thing I make this year by any means, I am just getting started.

    I have actually made a pumpkin turtle cheesecake in the past, but it was a raw cheesecake. This one is a bit easier because it doesn’t require cracking open any coconuts, just a few steps in the food processor and some whisking to make the caramel and fudge.  Although I love date caramel, sometimes I want a quicker option so I reach for the almond butter and make a simple quick caramel with maple syrup whisked into it with a little vanilla and sea salt.  It seriously tastes like caramel, is a lot easier to make, and you can make it as sweet (or not sweet) as you like by adjusting the maple syrup amount.  For the fudge on this cake, I whisked some cacao powder into half the caramel.  So easy and so good!  Luckily Raw Guru recently sent me a box that contained some really good quality Dastony Sprouted Almond butter to make my caramel and fudge for this cake with.  It is silky smooth with a sweet nutty flavor and is honestly some of the best almond butter I have tried and it worked perfectly for this recipe!

    The cake had a smooth, creamy lightly spiced pumpkin cheesecake filling, and I swirled the caramel, fudge and pecans into it. Then I topped it off with a coconut whipped cream, more caramel, fudge and pecans plus some really adorable Rawmio Dark Chocolate Hearts I also received in the box from Raw Guru.  The cake was super delicious!  I was very pleased with how it turned out and my family loved it as well!  If you are looking for a decadent Fall treat, give this a try! If you would like some of the Dastony Raw Sprouted Almond Butter or Rawmio Dark Chocolate Hearts for yourself, you can find them on their website!

    Vegan Pumpkin Turtle Cheesecake 
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/4 cup organic rolled oats or you may use almond meal for gluten free
    • 1/4 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 tsp cinnamon

     

    Filling:

    • 3/4 cup (about half a 15 oz can) Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk* (make sure you shake the can before you measure)
    • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
    • 1 Tbsp Dastony sprouted raw almond butter
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp cinnamon
    • 1 tsp ginger
    • 1/8 tsp cloves
    • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 3/4 cup Dastony raw coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid

     

    Caramel and Fudge:

     

    Topping:

    • 3/4 cup (about half a 15 oz can) Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk*
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp Dastony raw coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid

     

    For topping:

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil a 6 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine the coconut milk, pumpkin, maple syrup, spices, vanilla and sea salt in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Add the coconut butter and process until smooth.  Set aside.
    4. To make the caramel and fudge, whisk together the almond butter, maple syrup, and sea salt until smooth, then add 1 Tbsp filtered water (or a little more if it is too thick to be a pour-able caramel consistency) and whisk until smooth.  Divide between 2 bowls, and whisk the cacao powder and 1 Tbsp filtered water into one (or a little more water if too thick to be pour-able fudge).
    5. To assemble the cake, pour the filling over the crust, then drop some of the caramel and fudge (about half of each) over it by the tsp, sprinkle the 1/4 cup pecans over it and swirl with a knife.
    6. Place cheesecake in the freezer while you make the cream.
    7. To make the cream, blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth, then pour into a bowl and place in the freezer (whisking about every 5-10 minutes) until it thickens to the consistency of heavy cream.  At that point spoon it over the top of the cake and smooth to the edges.  Place back in the freezer for 4 hours (or until set) or you can place it in the refrigerator (covered) overnight.
    8. Once cake is set, un-mold, and drizzle it with the rest of the caramel and fudge, and decorate with pecans and dark chocolate hearts. Serve!
    9. Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

  • Vegan Cheesecake Dessert Hummus

    Vegan Cheesecake Dessert Hummus

    I love hummus of any sort, and I am always trying to come up with new and interesting flavors.  I love the classic hummus with tahini, lemon, and lots of garlic and cumin of course, and I can get that kind in the deli I work in because ours is really good.  But when I am at home, I like to experiment.  Especially with dessert hummus.  If you haven’t heard about the latest trend in the last year of dessert hummus, and think it sounds weird, trust me it is amazing stuff.  I mean, you get to enjoy dessert and a protein and fiber rich snack at the same time!  Which is why I love it.  I like my desserts to have nutritional benefits sometimes and this is perfect for that.  I have made many different kinds, including chocolate cake batter, red velvet cake batter, mint chip, strawberry, pumpkin pie and salted caramel and they were all delicious.  I realized however I was missing cheesecake dessert hummus. How could I miss my favorite dessert for a hummus flavor inspiration?

    So a few days back I decided to make some cheesecake dessert hummus. You may think that chickpeas in something cheesecake flavored sounds odd, but I actually use chickpeas in some of my nut free cheesecake fillings. They are neutral and they blend in well.  So I knew they would be perfect in this hummus!  They composed the bulk of it, but I also added coconut milk instead of water to make it creamy, as well as cashew butter in place of the tahini in traditional hummus.  I sweetened it with a bit of maple syrup and added a touch of vanilla and it smelled amazing.  Lastly to give it the tang of cheese I added some lemon juice and of course sea salt.  I buzzed it up in the vitamix until it was nice and smooth and I could not wait to try it out!

    It was so good!  I enjoyed it with some berries, and it was like eating cheesecake, only soft enough cheesecake to dip things into.  You can’t go wrong with that.  There are so many things you could pair it with.  Chocolate, graham crackers, cookies, different types of fruit etc.  If you are a big cheesecake fan or an adventurous hummus flavors person you should definitely give this a try!

    Vegan Cheesecake Dessert Hummus
    Makes about 3 cups

    Ingredients:

    • 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
    • 1/3 cup maple syrup (or to taste, if you like it sweeter add 1/2 cup)
    • 1/2 cup coconut milk (or as needed)
    • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter or almond butter

     

    Instructions:

    Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth (adding a little more water if necessary).  Keeps in the refrigerator for about 1 week in a sealed container.

     

  • Vegan Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake 

    Vegan Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake 

    I make my own Birthday cake every year, and half the time when I tell people that, they are baffled as to why.  I even had someone tell me that it was sad that I made my own, and someone else should make me one or buy me one.  But that is not how I feel at all.  My boyfriend or family would be happy to buy me one I am sure.  I mean, I grew up most of my life with other people making me cakes.  But at one point back when I was in college and I started baking a lot, I decided that I loved making my own, because then I could make something fun, something healthier probably than I would get at a bakery, and a cake that was exactly what I wanted.  Sometimes it was not cake at all, a few years  I made pies because I like those too and that was what I felt like. Even put candles in them and everything. Most years I have an idea of what I want way before hand.  Like last year,  I made a Vegan Snickers Pie.  It was bomb!  But this year I knew I wanted something with raspberries and vanilla and I went back and forth between cheesecake and a baked vanilla layer cake.

    I ended up deciding on the cheesecake, because I had a lot going on at the time, and I figured it would be easier to make, plus the heat index was 108F degrees that day and it was super humid, and I did not want to heat up the oven.  Also, I always know cheesecakes are going to be good and I hadn’t made one in a really long time.  They were my favorite dessert for a while a few years back when I ate only raw foods, and I made one almost every weekend. Now it is usually every few months, and whenever I make one I am reminded of how good they are.  Funny story, a raw vegan cheesecake was the reason I decided to go vegan. I made one, and it was so good, that I decided to never make a dairy cheesecake again, and that maybe I didn’t need dairy after all.  Because that was the main thing that was stopping me from being a vegan, the cheese and dairy products.  I became vegan after that and haven’t missed animal products. Anyways, back to the cake I made for my Birthday. I decided to make a raspberry white chocolate cheesecake.

    Raspberries are my favorite fruit, and back in the day when I was in school I would joke that if I ever owned my own restaurant I would name it “Raspberry”.  Yeah, that is not going to happen, but you get the idea, I really love raspberries.  I had plenty of cacao butter on hand, so a raspberry white chocolate cake was the perfect thing to make!  It is really quite simple to make a raw cheesecake too, don’t let this one fool you.  I made a raspberry filling and a vanilla filling, both containing the cacao butter for white chocolate, as well as a raspberry swirl. It turned out exactly how I wanted it!  So rich and delicious, creamy like dairy cheesecake, and scented with sweet raspberries, vanilla and white chocolate. This is the perfect cake for Summer!  So, if you have raspberries on hand, give it a try!

    Vegan Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake 
    Makes one 8 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic rolled oats
    • 1/2 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil an 8 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine the coconut milk, cashew butter, maple syrup, lemon juice and zest, vanilla and sea salt in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Add 1/2 cup of the coconut butter and cacao butter and process until smooth.  Divide the filling between 2 bowls.
    4. Add one bowl of filling back to the food processor and add 1 cup of raspberries and 2 Tbsp coconut butter and process until smooth.  Pour back into the bowl and set aside.
    5. Rinse out the food processor and puree the other 1/2 cup of raspberries until a loose jam consistency.
    6. To assemble the cake, Pour all but about 1/4 cup of the raspberry cheesecake filling over the crust, then drop some of the raspberry puree over that by the tsp, and swirl with a knife.  Then pour the vanilla filling over that, and drop the raspberry filling and raspberry jam over that by the tsp (you may have extra, but don’t add it if you have enough already on top of the cake or it will look messy) swirling it with a knife to make the top pretty.
    7. Place cheesecake in the freezer to set for about 4-5 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    8. Remove from the freezer, un-mold, and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

     

  • Vegan Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake Popsicles

    Vegan Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake Popsicles

    It feels like Summer here, so I am craving popsicles.  When I was little, they were an essential item that we always had to have around in the freezer.  The plain fruit sweetened ones were my favorite, especially the raspberry or strawberry.  I wasn’t as big of a fan of the fake ones that were blue and green and whatnot.  Although I would never turn down a Freezee (those colored tubes of popsicle ice in case you have not heard of them), those were very popular when I was little.  Now as an adult, I like to get a little more creative with my popsicles, adding interesting flavors, or turning classic desserts into them.  Like the strawberry lemon cheesecake popsicles I made last weekend.  They tasted just like strawberry cheesecake!  I suppose it might be more appropriate to call them ice cream bars, but I am just sticking with popsicle, because that is the mold shape that I have.  I had organic strawberries on hand so I didn’t have to buy any ingredients, which is always a win in my opinion!

    The strawberries are so good and flavorful lately too, so I knew these were going to be good before I even made them.  What most people don’t realize is that it is really easy to substitute dairy in vegan recipes like this one.  Vegan cheesecake is just as delicious if not even more delicious than traditional dairy cheesecake.  I made a rich ice cream base with coconut milk and cashew butter and it tasted just like cheesecake once I added the vanilla.  I also added plenty of lemon zest and a bit of juice to give it a refreshing lemon flavor that didn’t overpower.  I wanted these to be layered, so I had a layer of strawberries, then a layer of strawberry cheesecake cream then the plain lemon cheesecake cream. They were lovely!  Then I just had to let them chill and set.

    I wanted to try one, but I had to leave them overnight because I made them in the evening.  But it was perfect, because I got to try them the next day when it was pretty warm out after taking a walk, and I needed something refreshing.  They were sooo good!  They tasted just like cheesecake with a hint of lemon and the sweet jammy strawberries were what made it!  you would never guess that this does not contain any dairy, since it tastes so rich and delicious!  Give these a try, no need to wait until it is actually Summer!

    Vegan Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake Popsicles

    Makes 8

    Ingredients:

    • 2 cups full fat coconut milk
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • pinch sea salt
    • 1 Tbsp lemon zest
    • 2 Tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 cup organic strawberries, chopped (divided)

     

    Instructions:

    1. Combine the full fat coconut milk, cashew butter, syrup, vanilla, sea salt, lemon zest and juice in a blender and blend until smooth.  Remove half and set aside in a bowl.
    2. Drop a few strawberries into the bottoms of 8 popsicle molds.
    3. Blend the remaining coconut mixture (that you did not remove) with the remaining berries, then pour over the strawberries in the molds. Pour the mixture you had set aside without the strawberries over that.
    4. Place sticks into the molds, leaving about 1 inch at the top, then place in the freezer until completely hard, about 4-6 hours (or overnight).
  • Vegan White Mulberry Pecan Caramel White Chocolate Cheesecake 

    Vegan White Mulberry Pecan Caramel White Chocolate Cheesecake 

    I draw inspiration from many things.  A non-vegan recipe I see online, or just walking through the produce department.  Or, my favorite, when someone gives me ingredients to play with and make something fabulous.  Vivapura was kind enough to send me some of their awesome products to use in my recipes, and I could not wait to create something with them.  They sent raw cacao butter, raw cashews, white mulberries, and vanilla coconut cream.  So much of my favorite things!  So, I thought that they deserved to be used in something beautiful.  A vegan cheesecake, my all time favorite vegan dessert.  A Vegan White Mulberry Pecan Caramel Cheesecake to be exact!  I have made a mulberry caramel before and it was amazing, so I thought why not make it and swirl it into a vanilla white chocolate cheesecake!  This is the sort of thing that vanilla lovers like me really appreciate.  I have been making a lot of chocolate lately, so it is about time I let vanilla steal the show.

    For the cheesecake base, I used a combination of thick full fat coconut milk and raw soaked cashews.  I think that this combination mimics the flavor and texture of regular dairy cheesecake the best.  Plus, I had all of those beautiful cashews from Vivapura to use in my dessert!  To thicken the filling, I used vanilla coconut cream from Vivapura and melted their melted raw cacao butter.  It gave it the most delicious vanilla white chocolate aroma!  The filling was rich and delicious even before I poured it into the cake to set up, and I had to keep tasting it because it was so good (the best part of being a dessert maker)! For the caramel, I blended dates and mulberries with some raw pecan butter and it was luscious!  This is the type of stuff you want to pour over your ice cream, but trust me it is wonderful in cheesecake too!

    It turned out amazing!  I would never go back to dairy cheesecake ever because vegan cheesecake like this is bomb!  The vanilla white chocolate cheesecake was creamy, rich and delicious just like dairy cheesecake only better.  The mulberry caramel was the perfect pairing with it, it was simply heavenly! If you would like to enjoy this cake, scroll down for the recipe.  And, guess what?!  Vivapura is letting me give away to one lucky winner one bag of Raw Cacao Butter!  Just think of all of the delicious things you can make with it.  And, this is a good sized bag, so you can make several different recipes!  If you would like to win a bag for yourself, simply comment on this post! What would you like to make with it if you won it?  Giveaway ends February 27th.  Also, definitely head over to the Vivapura website and check out all of the goodies that they have!

    Vegan White Mulberry Pecan Caramel Cheesecake 
    Makes one 8 inch cake

    Crust:

     

    Filling:

     

    White Mulberry Caramel:

    • 1 cup soft, pitted medjool dates, (soaked in filtered water for 30 minutes if not soft, and drained)
    • 3/4 cup Vivapura white mulberries
    • 1/3 cup raw pecan butter (or almond butter if unavailable)
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 3/4 cup filtered water (or as needed)

     

    For garnish:

    • white mulberries
    • pecans

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil an 8 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the jam in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Set aside.
    4. To make the mulberry caramel, place all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until smooth. If it is too thick, add a little more water.  Pour into a bowl.
    5. To assemble, pour the 1/3 of filling over the prepared crust, then drop 1/4 cup of the caramel over that by the tsp spreading it out so you have even little circles of it.  Swirl with a knife. Pour half the remaining filling over that, then another 1/4 cup of caramel, dropping it in the same manor you did with the last 1/4 cup.  Pour the last 1/3 of the filling over that, and repeat with the caramel (you will have extra caramel), swirling it to make the top pretty.
    6. Place cheesecake in the freezer to set for about 4-5 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    7. Remove from the freezer, and un-mold the cake.  Place it on a plate.
    8. Thin out the remaining caramel a little with water so that it will drip easily.  Spread the caramel over the top of the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides.  Garnish the top of the cake with dried mulberries and pecans.
    9. Enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

     

  • Vegan Double Chocolate Cheesecake (Nut Free)

    Vegan Double Chocolate Cheesecake (Nut Free)

    Since that nut free Vanilla Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake I made last weekend turned out so good, I decided that this weekend I needed to make a chocolate one for all of you chocolate lovers out there.  You know who you are, the people who can never resist anything chocolate, and always choose it over vanilla.  Eric (my boyfriend) is like that.  In fact, the first dessert I ever made for his Birthday was a raw Mexican chocolate cheesecake. I don’t hate on chocolate just because I usually have a thing for vanilla.  In fact this week I have been craving something decadent and chocolaty so it is a win for everyone me making the chocolate cheesecake this weekend.  I didn’t want to make anything that was too difficult either, and vegan cheesecakes are usually pretty straight forward.  What mattered to me here was that the cheesecake be rich, decadent and still be healthier than traditional cheesecake.  I think I achieved all of that.

    For the crust, I my usual go to crust of oats, coconut and dates but with cacao powder this time to make it rich and sort of raw brownie like.  It was the perfect base for the richness to come.  The filling is a little unusual.  Like the other nut free cheesecake I made last weekend, I included chickpeas in this one for the creamy filling instead of my usual go-to cashews.  And you know what?  You can not even tell the difference once it is all blended up.  Once you add in the cacao powder you would never even know that they are in there!  Also, this cheesecake is completely fruit sweetened as well as an added bonus, because I used dates this time instead of maple syrup.  Dates are nature’s candy, and I love using them in desserts.  Anyways, back to that cheesecake filling…it was delicious even before I poured it into the crust.  Like a dreamy chocolate mousse that I could eat out of a bowl.  I decided to stir vegan chocolate chips into it to make it even more delicious!

    Since I made the cheesecake at night, I had to wait until the next day for it to set, but it was well worth the wait!  I topped it off with a gooey chocolate ganache, and I could not wait to dive in!  It was rich, delicious and everything I imagined it to be!  Perfect for all of you chocolate lovers out there.  I think this might be the perfect Valentine’s dessert if you and your significant other love chocolate.  So if you are going out to dinner, skip the dessert and make your own, because it is much more fun to make your own, and then you will have leftovers for later too!  And, nothing beats cheesecake leftovers!

    Vegan Double Chocolate Cheesecake (Nut Free)
    Makes one 8 inch cake

    One 8 inch spring form pan 

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic rolled oats
    • 1/2 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/4 cup raw cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

     

    Ganache:

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil an 8 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the chocolate chips in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Stir in the chocolate chips.
    4. Pour the filling over the prepared crust.
    5. Place cheesecake in the freezer to set for about 4-5 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    6. Remove from the freezer, un-mold and set in the refrigerator while you make the ganache.
    7. In the top of a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate and whisk in the coconut milk until smooth.  Pour over the top of the cake, and let it drip down the sides. Place in the refrigerator until it is more set, about 30 minutes.  Enjoy!
    8. Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

  • Vegan Raspberry Swirled Vanilla Cheesecake (Nut Free)

    Vegan Raspberry Swirled Vanilla Cheesecake (Nut Free)

    I have probably made over 200 cheesecakes since I started to love them at a young age.  I enjoyed them as a kid, but I never ate them very often because they were for special occasions in my family.  Then by the time I was in college, I was buying a slice at a local co-op bakery every weekend as a treat after my cross country races as a treat because they were so good.  I was hooked.  But then I thought to  myself, I like to bake.  Why not make my own?  So I did, and the weekend tradition was baking a cheesecake.  My cheesecakes were the best I had ever had too and I loved that I could make whatever flavor I felt like at the time.  Then I decided to go vegan and I thought I would never enjoy it again.   Boy was I wrong though.  One of my friends asked me to make him a raw cheesecake, and I was skeptical that it would be as good as the dairy ones I was used to in the past.  But it turned out amazing!  I started making cheesecakes again, and I was in love with vegan cheesecake.  In fact I have over 150 recipes for cheesecake in various forms on my blog, all of which are vegan.  So that just tells you how much I have to have it  in my life.  I don’t make it every weekend now, because I try to branch out and make other fabulous things like regular cakes and pies.  But when I do make it, I get pretty excited.  I have been wanting to make a nut free cheesecake for a while now, since before the Holidays and I finally got a chance last weekend.

    I do have some other nut free cheesecakes on my blog, and they are super delicious but they are raw cheesecakes and require the cracking open of coconuts.  Which I know not all of you want to do, and those darn coconuts can get spendy.  You need about 4 per cake and it is a lot of work.  So, I wanted to come up with a different nut free cheesecake base.  I came up with chickpeas and canned coconut milk.  Ok, I know it sounds like a weird and disgusting combination but trust me on this one.  Chickpeas work wonders in creating a silky smooth texture if you have a high speed blender.  I actually got the idea when I was making dessert hummus.  And, I have used chickpeas in an ice cream cake before so I knew it would work.  You can not taste them at all, and in fact, when mixed with the coconut milk, coconut butter, maple syrup and vanilla it tastes just like delicious vanilla cream.  I thought about making a plain vanilla cheesecake and just topping it off with berries, but instead I decided to swirl the berries in.

    Because then you get delicious hidden bites of berries throughout the cake.  I used a raspberry jam this time, because it is Winter here and fresh berries are super expensive.  Plus, Eric’s Dad gave us some of the best tasting raspberry jam ever and I wanted to use it in something special like this cake.  I just made a simple oat coconut date crust as a base for the cake and it was perfect!  The cheesecake turned out so good you would not even know it was vegan or had chickpeas in it.  The tart raspberry was the perfect partner for the sweet luscious vanilla scented creamy cheesecake!  The best part about this cake is it doesn’t require baking and it is relatively easy if you have a high speed blender.  So, if you are in the mood for cheesecake, give this baby a try!

    Vegan Raspberry Swirled Vanilla Cheesecake (Nut Free)
    Makes one 8 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic rolled oats
    • 1/2 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first and drain well)
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil an 8 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together (if they are not holding together when squeezed, add a few tsp filtered water and blend). Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the jam in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
    4. Pour the 1/3 of filling over the prepared crust, then drop 1/4 cup of the jam over that by the tsp spreading it out so you have even little circles of it.  Swirl with a knife. Pour half the remaining filling over that, then another 1/4 cup of jam, dropping it in the same manor you did with the last 1/4 cup.  Pour the last 1/3 of the filling over that, and repeat with the jam, swirling it to make the top pretty.
    5. Place cheesecake in the freezer to set for about 4-5 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    6. Remove from the freezer, un-mold, and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

     

    *I use Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk.  If you are using a different brand, just make sure it is the thick type, 2/3 of the can at least should be very thick.

    **Make sure your jam is vegan and does not contain gelatin.  If your jam is too thick to be swirled into the cake with a knife, add a little water to it until it is.  Alternatively, if you do not want to use jam, you can make your own raspberry puree with 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen (thawed and drained) raspberries, and 1 Tbsp maple syrup, blended in the blender.

  • Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Popsicles

    Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Popsicles

    I have been waiting months to make popsicles, and now that Summer is officially here, it is time to make them!  I made some strawberry lemonade ones last week, but this week I wanted something a bit more decadent.  More like sort of an ice cream pop than actual ice.  Although fudge pops are always good, I wanted something more along the lines of vanilla.  I had blueberries on hand, and was in a cheesecake sort of a mood, so blueberry popsicles it was!  There was this little ice cream shop up north that My Dad and I always used to stop at when we went on trips, and they had about 20 delicious flavors of ice cream, all of which I wanted to try.  I usually ended up with 2 different scoops, but after I tried their blueberry cheesecake ice cream, that was all I wanted.  It was so good!

    So, I knew these popsicles were going to be good, and better for me since they wouldn’t have any refined sugar or dairy in them. For the base, I kept it pretty simple and used a mixture of coconut milk and cashew butter to make it silky smooth with the flavor of cheesecake.  This is actually one of my favorite ice cream bases as well.  I sweetened it with maple syrup added a dash of vanilla and it was wonderful!  Lastly, I added the blueberries to half of it so that these would be pretty two tone popsicles.  They are actually only 7 ingredients including salt, so pretty easy to make.

    It was hard to wait to sample them, but since it was night when I made them I had to let them sit overnight to firm up.  They were well worth the wait though!  They tasted just like frozen cheesecake, the blueberries the perfect Summer addition to the rich base, bringing me back to my childhood with that delicious ice cream up North.  If you have a popsicle mold you need to try these babies out soon!

    Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake Popsicles

    Makes 8

    Ingredients:

    • 2 cups full fat coconut milk
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • pinch sea salt
    • 1/2 tsp cider vinegar
    • 1 cup organic blueberries, divided

     

    Instructions:

    1. Combine the full fat coconut milk, cashew butter, syrup, vanilla, sea salt, and cider vinegar in a blender and blend until smooth.
    2. Drop a few blueberries into the bottoms of 8 popsicle molds, then pour half of the coconut mixture over that.
    3. Blend the remaining coconut mixture with the remaining blueberries, then pour over the other coconut mixture in the molds.
    4. Place sticks into the molds, leaving about 1 inch at the top, then place in the freezer until completely hard, about 4-6 hours (or overnight).
  • Mini Vegan Vanilla Blackberry Cheesecakes

    Mini Vegan Vanilla Blackberry Cheesecakes

    It was beautiful here in Minnesota last weekend!  The sun was shining, it was warm enough for summer clothes and sandals and I even noticed some flowers starting to bloom when I was out for my walk with Eric.  I feel like Spring is here and in full swing! I love this time of the year when everything is coming back to life again after Winter.  So I am in a Spring and Summer sort of mood.  I bought a bunch of blackberries on sale at the store and decided that they needed to be made into a delicious dessert.  Not something super complicated though, because I was dedicating my time to being outside last weekend and not being stuck in the kitchen.

    I wanted cheesecake, so I decided to make some mini blackberry vanilla cheesecakes because they are super easy to make and just as good as a big one. Not only that, you get your own cute little cake to enjoy.  But I will admit I did not end up eating just one. For the crust I used a simple mixture of oats, dates, walnuts and a pinch of salt. Ingredients that are easy to find that most people have on hand.  Since I did not have any sprouted buckwheat on hand, my usual go to crust ingredient.  For the base I used coconut milk and cashew butter because I feel like that gives a vegan cheesecake the best texture.  I used to always use fresh young coconuts for my raw cheesecakes, but they are expensive and time consuming and I have found out that the proper full fat coconut milk can be just as good.  I used plenty of fresh blackberries in these because I wanted them to be nice and flavorful.

    They turned out super delicious without a lot of work, and if you are craving Summer and berries these might be just the cure!  I love blackberries and it makes me excited when I can get them on sale, and I feel like they are special so they deserve to be used in something delicious like these little cakes!  I hope you are all having a wonderful start to your week!

    Mini Vegan Vanilla Blackberry Cheesecakes
    Makes 10

    Ingredients:

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic rolled oats
    • 1/2 cup soft, pitted medjool dates
    • 1/2 cup walnuts
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 3/4 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp cashew butter
    • 2 Tbsp lemon juice
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 8 oz organic blackberries plus more for garnish

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the crust, combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until fine crumbs and starting to hold together when squeezed. Press into the bottoms of 10 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
    3. Pour the filling over the crust, and place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes or up to an hour.  Once they have firmed up, un-mold them and place them on a tray.
    4. Garnish with blackberries.  Serve!
    5. Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.

     

  • Vegan Key Lime Cheesecake

    Vegan Key Lime Cheesecake

    I can not believe Easter was last weekend!  The weeks have been flying by lately, and now it is starting to finally green up outside, so it is fitting I guess.  It always feels a little odd when Easter falls in March and it is still cold and brown outside.  I see flowers starting to come up and leaves starting to sprout and that makes me happy.  I have been enjoying my runs and walks outside more now that it is not just brown, at least on the days it is sunny and not raining.  So, since Easter was last weekend, I had to make something really good for dessert.  I didn’t make anything to extravagant for dinner, just a roasted vegetable lentil salad (because I wanted to spend time doing things besides cooking), so the dessert was the star of the show and I made it ahead of time.  It has been at least a year since I made a full sized cheesecake, so that was what I wanted.  Also, key lime pie was a close second…so I incorporated that into the cake, making a Key Lime Cheesecake!

    I have always been a key lime pie fan, ever since my Mom and I first enjoyed it when I was little, then recreated it many times at home.  It became our favorite dessert!  It has to be just the right amount of tart and sweet too.  Not too sweet that the lime is barely there.  The lime must be very present, and aromatic.  Which requires a lot of lime zest.  Luckily I just got myself a new citrus zester!  For the crust, I kept it simple, just throw in the food processor, blend and press into the pan.  No baking or anything required.  I made it rich with pistachios, sweetened it with dates and coconut and used rolled oats and coconut as the binder.  It was sweet, crunchy and delicious!

    For the filling, I thought about using just a coconut base, but then decided that I wanted to include avocado as well to make it extra rich and silky. Some of the best key lime pies I have made included avocado so I knew this would be fabulous!  I made it plenty tart with lots of lime zest and juice. This cake came together fast and easy.  The hardest part was waiting for it to chill and set.  Once set, I topped it off with fresh berries and it was lovely.  But the important thing is it tasted even better than it looked.  The perfect balance of sweet and tart, and it tasted just like key lime pie but in cheesecake form.  I hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend!

    Vegan Key Lime Cheesecake
    Makes one 8 inch cake

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup pistachios
    • 1/2 cup finely shredded coconut
    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic rolled oats
    • 1/2 cup pitted medjool dates (if not soft, soak them in filtered water first)
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt

     

    Filling:

    • 1 15 oz can Thai Kitchen organic full fat coconut milk
    • 2 large avocados (about 1 cup mashed)
    • 2 Tbsp organic lime zest
    • 1/2 cup lime juice
    • 1/2 cup maple syrup
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt
    • 1 1/2 cups raw coconut butter (NOT OIL), warmed to liquid
    • 1 large handful spinach

     

    Instructions:

    1. Oil an 8 inch spring form pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
    2. To make the crust, place all ingredients in a food processor, and process until crumbs and starting to hold together. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
    3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour the filling over the prepared crust, and place in the freezer to set for about 4-5 hours (or overnight in the refrigerator if you are not in a hurry).
    4. Remove from the freezer, un mold, and enjoy!  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.
  • Vegan Pink Velvet Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    Vegan Pink Velvet Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    Red Velvet Brownies 2

    One of my all time favorite relaxing activities is baking something delicious in the kitchen.  So, last Monday I decided to bake some brownies since it was my day off.  I haven’t made any in quite a while, so it was about time!  I knew I wanted to make something really good, and something chocolate.  So brownies were perfect!  I didn’t want run-of the mill brownies though, I wanted something special.  It took me a while to decide what kind.  Maybe something with berries, since Valentines day is just around the corner?  But I didn’t have any berries on hand.  Maybe something with coffee?  But I wasn’t feeling like a caffeine buzz. So, I decided on red velvet.  I have been wanting to make red velvet cheesecake brownies since last Summer, and now seemed like the perfect time since nothing is more perfect for Valentine’s Day than red velvet and chocolate.

    Red Velvet Brownies 5

    I decided to go a little different route than my usual brownies, and make these fruit sweetened and oil free as well.  So, I used dates to keep them moist, as well as give them a rich luscious sweetness.  They worked out perfectly too!  The brownies turned out nice and fudgy, which is how I prefer mine.  For the red velvet cheesecake swirl I used a mixture of cashew butter and coconut milk.  This is what I always use for cheesecake swirls in anything and I have had many people tell me that they are shocked that it is vegan.  It tastes just like cream cheese.  I tinted it with beet powder to make these festive and give them the red color, which ended up being really pink, so I decided to call them pink velvet instead.

    Red Velvet Brownies 3

    They smelled heavenly while baking, and I couldn’t wait to try them.  I had to let them cool and set up though, and it was hard to wait but well worth it.  They were rich and fudgy as brownies should be, and that luscious vanilla cream cheese swirl made them simply heavenly!  My taste testers loved them as well, which is very important to me.  I highly recommend making these the next time you have a craving for brownies.  They are yummalicious!

    Red Velvet Brownies 1

    Vegan Pink Velvet Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
    Makes 16

    Cream Cheese Swirl:

    • 3/4 cup thick coconut milk (from the top of a chilled can)
    • 1/2 cup cashew butter (or almond butter will also work here)
    • 2 Tbsp date paste or maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 2 tsp beet powder
    • 2 Tbsp arrowroot starch or cornstarch

     

    Brownies:

    • 1 cup date paste
    • 1/4 cup filtered water
    • 1/4 cup almond butter
    • 2 flax eggs (2 Tbsp ground flax seed, whisked together with 6 Tbsp filtered water)
    • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all-purpose flour
    • 1/2 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
    • ½ cup vegan chocolate chips

    Directions:

    1. To make the swirl, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl and set aside.
      To make the brownies, pre-heat the oven to 350F degrees.
    2. Whisk together the date paste, almond butter, water, flax eggs, and vanilla until well combined. Add the flour, cacao powder and sea salt and beat until smooth.
    3. Scrape the batter into a greased 8×8 inch pan, then drop the swirl over it in 2 Tbsp amounts, and swirl it with a knife.
    4. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Place in the oven, and Bake for about 25 minutes or until just set (but do not over bake or they will be dry, slightly underbaked is better, because they continue to set while cooling).
    5. Let cool before cutting into bars.

     

  • Vegan Mini Peppermint Swirl Cheesecakes

    Vegan Mini Peppermint Swirl Cheesecakes

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    One of the things I love about living in Minnesota is the beautiful scenery we get with the changes of the seasons.  Sure, it gets really cold here in the winter sometimes.  But you have to admit that waking up to a world of sparkling white outside your window is beautiful!  I had to get out and enjoy it last weekend, and I bundled up (but not too much because it was not below 30) and went for a run on the fresh powder.  I love how soft it is, and that squeaking sound my shoes make as they compact it with every footstep.  I also love being the first one on a trail to make the footprints.  So peaceful and serene.  The snow really put me in the mood for Christmas. Although I have been hearing Christmas music around in the stores, and people have their Christmas lights up and whatnot, I hadn’t really felt in the Christmas mood before that.

    peppermint-cheesecakes-4

    So, I put on some Christmas music, and decided to make something festive!  Something red and green and delicious!  Some Vegan Peppermint Cheesecakes! I have been using peppermint a lot in my diffuser, because it smells like candy canes.  And to be honest, that is what gave me the idea!  I am not a big candy cane fan (I have never liked sugary hard candy), but I love peppermint and vanilla together in desserts!  I made mini cheesecakes because they are easier and faster to make than one big one, and great for sharing!  I love sharing treats this time of the year!  And of course shocking people by telling them that they are vegan after they say they are delicious after tasting them.

    peppermint-cheesecakes-3

    These are simple to make, don’t let the swirls and color fool you.  For the crust, I chose a chocolate with a cookie dough like texture and a hint of mint.  It was so good I could have just eaten it like that (the big cookie dough fan that I am), but I wanted there to be enough for the cheesecakes! I used a rich coconut milk and cashew base, which always tastes the best in cheesecakes in my opinion.  For the colors, I went the natural route using matcha (green tea) powder, and beet powder to give them those beautiful hues.  Once they were all chilled and set, I could not wait to taste them!  They were super delicious, the mellow scent of vanilla and fresh peppermint the perfect flavors for the luscious creamy filling and rich chocolate crust! I highly recommend making these for your Holiday parties!  Sooo good!

    peppermint-cheesecakes-1

    Vegan Mini Peppermint Swirl Cheesecakes
    Makes 8

    Ingredients:

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp gluten free organic oat flour
    • 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 2 Tbsp organic raw cashew butter
    • 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/2 tsp pure peppermint extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/4 cup organic raw cashew butter
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 1 tsp matcha (green tea) powder or spinach powder*
    • 1 tsp beet powder*

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the crust, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 8 silicone muffin tins, and set them on a tray.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients but the matcha powder and beet powder in a blender and blend until smooth.
    3. Divide the filling between two bowls, and mix the matcha into one bowl, and the beet powder into the other.
    4. Drop the filling over the crust in the tins by the tsp, alternating the two colors until you have the tins full, then swirl with a toothpick to create marbling.
    5. Place cheesecakes in the freezer to firm up for 1-2 hours or until firm (depending on how warm the filling was).  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray to serve!
    6. Store any leftover cheesecakes in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

    *If you would like to use natural food colorings or spinach or beet juice instead of the powders, go right ahead!  Just add a little at a time until you reach the desired color.  Note that if you add a lot of liquid, you may need to add 1 Tbsp or more extra coconut butter to firm these up.

  • Vegan Maple Nut Cheesecake Dark Chocolates

    Vegan Maple Nut Cheesecake Dark Chocolates

    maple-nut-cheesecake-chocolates-3

    I have been in a candy making mood lately.  Most likely because Halloween is coming up, and I don’t buy candy at the store, but I love making it!  When I make my own, I can control the ingredients that go into it, which are always good quality.  I have made copy cat versions of Halloween candy classics, like Snickers, Twix, and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, but I like to create new delicious types of candy too.  Always chocolate though, I was never a fan of any Halloween candy that wasn’t chocolate.

    maple-nut-cheesecake-chocolates-2

    I made some Vegan Maple Nut Cheesecake Dark Chocolates last night, and they were so good I had to share the recipe with you all.  These are sort of like grown up Halloween Candy.  They were inspired by a raw cheesecake I made a while back with the same flavors.  It was simple but so good.  Also, maple and nuts make me think of fall.  Probably because of my family’s love for pecan pie.  But I would take cheesecake over pecan pie most days, so pecan cheesecake is what I was craving.  These are pretty simple to make, which is always a plus for me!  I don’t know about you, but I am not always in the mood for making something super complicated when I get home from work in the evening.  For the filling, I used a mixture of cashew butter, pecan butter, and coconut butter, and it was the most luscious delicious mixture!  Especially with the maple added.  Omg…I could have eaten it like that with a spoon!

    maple-nut-cheesecake-chocolates

    I did with some…but most of it made it to the being dipped in chocolate stage after pecans were added to it.  I chose pecans for my chocolates, but I am leaving it up to you what type of nuts you would like to use.  I know pecans can be spendy, or maybe you like walnuts or almonds better so if you like those swap them in for the pecans.  It is always ok to make recipes your own!  That is what I have always done after all, and how I learned how to create and make things!  Anyways, back to the chocolates…these turned out simply heavenly!  Chocolate covered nutty cheesecake heaven!  If you could create your own Halloween candy, what would you make?

    maple-nut-cheesecake-chocolates-1

    Vegan Maple Nut Cheesecake Dark Chocolates
    Makes 12

    • Cheesecake filling:
    • 1/3 cup raw pecan butter, walnut butter, or almond butter at room temperature
    • 1/3 cup raw cashew butter at room temperature
    • ¼ cup coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • Pinch sea salt
    • ¼ tsp maple extract
    • ¼ cup chopped pecans, walnuts, or almonds

     

    Coating:

    • 6 oz vegan dark chocolate, chopped

     

    1. Whisk together all of the ingredients for the filling except the pecans.   Place in the freezer for about 10 minutes until the mixture is a little thicker.
    2. Drop the mixture onto a parchment lined tray by the heaping teaspoonful, and sprinkle with pecans (pressing in lightly). Place back into the freezer until firm.
    3. Meanwhile, melt the dark chocolate in the top of a double boiler.
    4. Dip each ball of cheesecake into the chocolate and place back on the lined tray (I like to use a fork to set the candy on to dip it so that the excess can run off, and then I carefully use a knife to slide it off touching only the bottom, onto the tray).  One they are all dipped, place back in the freezer until the chocolate has set, about 10 minutes.
    5. Store chocolates in the refrigerator in a sealed container.
  • Mini Vegan Snickers Cheesecakes

    Mini Vegan Snickers Cheesecakes

    When I was little and dressed up and went out for Halloween, to be honest, the dressing up part was my favorite of everything, even over the candy. It was fun to be able to pretend to be someone or something else for a night.  My favorite costume was not all that exciting, a black cat. I have always had a love for cats, and it was fun to pretend to be one for my 5 year old self, and run around with a tail and ears.  I remember my friend’s Dad had a brilliant idea for her costume one year when I was just a black cat.  She was a basket of dirty laundry.  They cut a hole in the bottom of a laundry basket, held it on with suspenders, and filled it with clothes and a (empty) box of detergent.  It was pretty cute and a good idea but she was so embarrassed.  We will never forget that though!  After trick or treating when it was time to take stock of candy and dump it out on the living room floor, there was always a lot of trading going on.  I don’t know about you, but I only wanted the chocolate.  I gave away most of the other stuff, because I have never been a fan of fruity candy made with fake (well, I didn’t know it at the time, but it tasted different than fruit to me even then) flavors.  Snickers, Reese’s PB cups and Milky Ways were at the top of my list.

    mini-snickers-cheesecake-3

    As an adult, I make my own candy now!  It is made from good stuff, not all of the preservatives and fake things they put in a lot of commercial candy now-a-days.  This time of the year though, I also like to make Halloween candy themed desserts.  Which is exactly what I did on my day off last weekend.  I wanted cheesecake but didn’t want to make a big one, so I made some Mini Vegan Snickers Cheesecakes.  They came together pretty quick, and they were wonderful!

    mini-snickers-cheesecake-2

    I made a chocolate crust, then for the filling a creamy, dreamy mixture with a coconut milk base and a hint of peanut butter which ended up tasting like the nougat portion of a Snickers.  I stirred chopped dark chocolate and peanuts into it and topped the cakes off with them as well to give them texture and include the classic Snickers ingredients.  It was all topped off with a delicious peanut butter caramel.  These were simply crave worthy, and not a lot of work.  If you are having a Halloween party and are serving dessert other than candy, these would be perfect!

    mini-snickers-cheesecake-1

    Mini  Vegan Snickers Cheesecakes
    Makes 8

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup gluten free organic oat flour
    • 1 Tbsp cacao powder
    • 2 Tbsp organic peanut butter
    • 1 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/16 tsp sea salt

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1/2 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/4 cup organic peanut butter
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid

     

    Topping and mix ins:

    • ½  cup organic roasted peanuts (divided)
    • ½  cup chopped vegan dark chocolate (divided)

     

    Quick Caramel:

    • 1 Tbsp organic peanut butter
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • Pinch sea salt filtered water as needed

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the crust, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 8 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
    3. Stir ¼ cup of the peanuts, and ¼ cup of the chopped chocolate into the filling. Pour the filling over the crust, sprinkle the peanuts and chocolate chunks over it, and place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes or up to an hour.
    4. Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
    5. To make the caramel, whisk together the peanut butter, maple syrup, and just enough water to make it pourable.
    6. Once the cheesecakes have set, drizzle the caramel over the cheesecakes and serve! Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.

    mini-snickers-cheesecake

     

  • Vegan Caramel Pecan Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    Vegan Caramel Pecan Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

    vegan-caramel-pecan-cheesecake-brownies-4

    One time, back when I was in high school, I had to bring a dessert to a cross country banquet to share, and my Mom decided to make brownies.  Now mind you, we did not make them from scratch, we bought the mixes at the store, and at that point in my life I could not even imagine making brownies from scratch.  We were making some turtle brownies this time.  They came out of the oven lovely and smelling like decadent chocolaty goodness, but they had to cool on the counter.  We had to go somewhere, and thought nothing of leaving them out in the open, because our Maine Coon cat Heather was well behaved and never jumped up on counters as far as we knew, but when we got home, guess who thought that the brownies smelled good too?  We caught her up on the counter licking the caramel. Bye bye brownies, we had to start over, and luckily Heather did not get sick, but it was kind of funny.  I guess cats sometimes get sick of cat food and want goodies too.

    vegan-caramel-pecan-cheesecake-brownies-3

    Speaking of caramel in brownies…I  made some brownies with caramel in them on my day off this week and they were amazing.  I had leftover caramel from another dessert I had made, my delicious date caramel recipe that I make often for anything and everything, and I decided it would be awesome in brownies.  But not just brownies, cheesecake brownies with pecans. I was going for pure decadent rich deliciousness here.  I mean, I knew they would be good, but they FAR exceeded my expectations.  I used a mixture of pecan butter and avocado oil in the brownie part instead of coconut because I don’t like how hard coconut oil gets when cooled in desserts.  This made them fudgy and rich.  For the cheesecake part, a mixture of coconut milk and cashew butter because I think this gives it the best flavor, and this stuff was so good I could have eaten it with a spoon. once combined with the caramel and pecans and baked…wow, did it smell amazing!

    vegan-caramel-pecan-cheesecake-brownies-1

    I let them chill overnight, which was really hard considering I wanted to try them so bad, but I wanted them to cut nicely.  It was well worth the wait.  They were decadent, rich, and delicious.  You would not be able to tell that these are vegan, refined sugar free, and gluten free at all, they taste like regular brownies.  These are honestly the best brownies I have made, and I would proudly serve them to a group of omnivores!  Thumbs up from my taste testers too, bet you can’t eat just one!

    vegan-caramel-pecan-cheesecake-brownies-2

    Vegan Caramel Pecan Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
    Makes 16

    Ingredients:

    Caramel:

    • 1/2 cup soft medjool dates, pitted (if they are not soft, soak them in water and drain well first)
    • 1 heaping Tbsp pecan butter or almond butter
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/4 cup filtered water (or as needed)

     

    Cheesecake swirl:

    • 3/4 cup thick coconut milk (from the top of a chilled can)
    • 1/2 cup cashew butter
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 2 Tbsp arrowroot starch or cornstarch

     

    Brownies:

    • 1/2 cup avocado or olive oil
    • 3 Tbsp pecan butter, or almond butter
    • 1 cup coconut sugar
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp reduced aquafaba or 2 flax eggs*
    • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all-purpose flour
    • 1/2 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
    • 1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans (plus more for sprinkling the top)

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the caramel, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth (adding a little water if necessary, it should be the consistency of pourable but still thick caramel).  Pour into a bowl and set aside.
    2. To make the cheesecake swirl, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into a bowl and set aside.
    3. To make the brownies, pre-heat the oven to 350F degrees. Whisk together the sugar, oil and nut butter until well combined and the sugar is starting to break down.  Add the aquafaba and vanilla and beat until smooth.
    4. Add the flour, cacao powder and sea salt and beat until smooth, then stir in the pecans.  Scrape the batter into a greased 8×8 inch pan, then drop the cheesecake and caramel over it in 2 Tbsp amounts, and swirl it with a knife.  Sprinkle with a few more pecans.
    5. Place in the oven, and Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until set (but do not over bake).  Let cool before cutting into bars.

     

    *The aquafaba is the liquid from cooked or canned chickpeas.  You want it to be thick like egg whites.  If you are wanting to make flax eggs, simply mix together 2 Tbsp ground flax seeds, and 6 Tbsp filtered water and let sit in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before using in the recipe.

     

    vegan-caramel-pecan-cheesecake-brownies

  • Mini Vegan Apple Maple Cheesecakes

    Mini Vegan Apple Maple Cheesecakes

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    Apples are abundant in my kitchen lately.  So, when I got home from work Friday, and had the urge to bake something to relive stress and chill out, it was going to be apple.  I had a bunch of ideas for what I wanted to make bouncing around in my head and couldn’t decide on just one, so I had to ask Eric help me decide.  He said apple cheesecake sounded the best to him.  It sounded good to me too, and I knew I would have more time on the weekend to bake something else if I wanted to so cheesecake it was!  The idea of apples and cream cheese has always been a winner to me, ever since I had a Dutch apple pie with cream cheese filling when I was a kid.  It was amazing.  So I was excited about these!  I decided to make mini cheesecakes, because they are much easier than making a large one, plus good for small families such as mine when you don’t want a giant cake.  Not only that, how cute is it to have your own little individual cheesecake?!

    mini-apple-cheesecakes-4

    I kept the crust simple and plain, because I wanted to showcase the cheesecake and apples. For the filling, I sweetened it with a little maple syrup and maple extract, and it tasted wonderful!  I could have eaten it with a spoon, like rich frosting, but I poured it into the molds of course.  I kept the apple part simple, just a little cinnamon and maple syrup like my classic apple pie, but it tasted so good because the apples were very flavorful.  It is important to buy things like local apples whenever you can, because they taste much better, and of course they have more nutrients than ones that have sat too long in transit.

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    I finished it all off once it was set with a little caramel, and it was so delicious!  I am glad Eric decided on these for the dessert to make, because they are better even than I expected!  Sweet, with the scent of maple and cinnamon, a little tart from the apples, and the gooey caramel to top it off… all together simply heavenly!  If you have some apples lying around from your last trip to the apple orchard, you must give these a try!

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    Mini Vegan Apple Maple Cheesecakes
    Makes 6

    Crust:

    • 1/4 cup gluten free organic oat flour
    • 2 Tbsp almond butter
    • 1 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/16 tsp sea salt

    Topping:

    • 2 cups diced apples
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • pinch sea salt
    • 1/4 tsp cinnamon

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1/2 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/4 cup cashew butter
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid

    Quick Caramel:

    • 1 Tbsp almond butter
    • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
    • filtered water as needed

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the crust, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 12 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the topping, combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until the apples are softened, about 7 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool.
    3. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
    4. Pour the filling over the crust, spoon the apples over it, and place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes or up to an hour.  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
    5. To make the caramel, whisk together the pecan butter, maple syrup, and just enough water to make it pourable.
    6. Once the cheesecakes have set, drizzle the caramel over the cheesecakes and serve! Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.
  • Vegan Mini Pumpkin Spice Cheesecakes and Sweetleaf Stevia Giveaway!

    Vegan Mini Pumpkin Spice Cheesecakes and Sweetleaf Stevia Giveaway!

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    When SweetLeaf Stevia contacted me to see if I would like to do a collaboration I could not say no!  To be honest, I have been buying their stevia for over 10 years, and I used to go through a lot of it.  I have tried a few other brands and none of them measure up taste and quality wise to Sweetleaf Stevia.  They have many products, but the sweet drops have always been my favorite.  English toffee was always my flavor of choice.  Back when I still drank lots of coffee, it was all I used to add to it.  I didn’t want all of that extra sugar most people put in their coffee after all, and it gave it a caramelly flavor without the sugar.  I would even bring it places with me in my purse so I could add it to my coffee because I didn’t care for the sweeteners at the coffee shops.  So, I can assure you Sweetleaf Stevia is quality product.  And, if you prefer another flavor in your coffee, they have 20 flavors of sweet drops!

    Sweetleaf 1

    They sent me several products to test out this time, including stevia packets, raspberry lemonade water drops, and liquid drops English Toffee (my favorite), Vanilla Creme, and Pumpkin Spice (which I was really excited about trying as it is Fall now).  The packets are awesome for adding to coffee or tea, because they are close to traditional sugar packets.  The raspberry lemonade drops make water more interesting, which is perfect for those who have trouble drinking lots of water because it is too boring for them.  That is not me, I love water, but it is good!  I added mine to some water with lemon in it already because I like the balance of tart and sweet and it was super refreshing!  As far as the liquid stevia flavors went, I enjoyed the vanilla in some coconut yogurt and it tasted delicious!  The English toffee, is awesome in coffee like I said, but also good to sweeten anything that you want to have a sort of caramel flavor.  So, for instance if you were making some coconut whipped cream, add it instead of the vanilla and maple syrup, because it tastes just as good, and no effect on your blood sugar!  My advice is, start by adding one dropperful, taste, and adjust to taste from there (adding by the drop after that, since you can’t take away, you can only add).  The pumpkin spice drops, I wanted to make something special with in honor of it finally being fall, and to show that you can make sugar free desserts.

     

    Pumpkin Cheesecakes 1

    So I made mini Pumpkin Spice Cheesecakes. Yes, they were completely sugar free!  Not even any dates in the crust.  The pumpkin spice stevia drops smell like delicious cinnamon, and I might add these are good in coffee too!  But they worked perfectly in the cheesecakes.  I made a sort of cookie crust for these, using the pumpkin spice drops, and it tasted slightly like spice cookies but more mellow.  For the filling, I added the pumpkin spice stevia as well, along with a few of my usual pumpkin spices and it was a delicious combination of flavor!  The stevia made the filling just sweet enough, and you would never have known it was sugar free!  Once they were all chilled, I topped them off with coconut whipped cream sweetened with…you guessed it, the pumpkin spice stevia drops.

    Pumpkin Cheesecakes 2

    These little cheesecakes were delicious!  You could not tell that they had no sugar in them, and I would be proud to serve them to guests at a Fall party.  Maybe you can’t do sugar in your diet, or you know someone else who can’t.  Share this recipe with them, they will thank you, trust me!  Even though I can eat sweets, I sometimes like to limit my sugar intake so these are perfect for that and you won’t feel deprived, or like you are eating something yucky (like some stuff that leaves the sugar out).  Sweetleaf Stevia is your savior when it comes to sugar free desserts just sayin!  Guess what?  They have been kind enough to allow me to give away some of their product!  I am giving away one of the English Toffee Sweet Drops and one of the Pumpkin Spice Sweet Drops to one lucky winner (in the US)!  Just scroll to the bottom of the page to enter my giveaway.  Or, head over to the Sweetleaf Stevia website and check out their products!  You can find them in most health food stores or Co ops (at least in Minnesota where I live).

    Sweetleaf

    Vegan Mini Pumpkin Spice Cheesecakes
    Makes 8

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic oat flour
    • 1/4 cup almond butter
    • 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 2 Tbsp filtered water
    • 1/4 tsp pumpkin spice Sweetleaf Stevia Drops
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
    • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
    • 1/4 tsp ginger
    • 1/16 tsp cloves
    • 1/16 tsp nutmeg
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 3/4 tsp pumpkin spice Sweetleaf Stevia Drops
    • 3/4 cup coconut butter, warmed to liquid

     

    For Topping:

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the crust, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 12 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
    3. Pour the filling over the crust, and place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes or up to an hour.  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
    4. Meanwhile, combine all of the topping ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into a bowl and place in the freezer until thickened (to the consistency of whipped cream) about 30 minutes.
    5. Once the cheesecakes have set, and topping has chilled, pipe the topping over the cheesecakes and serve! Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.



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  • Vegan Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes

    Vegan Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes

    I used to have this fabulous banana cream pie recipe that I made quite often when I was in college. It had the most luscious coconut banana cream filling, and sometimes I would even top it off with caramel and pecans for good measure and because it was so good.  I always made it in a deep dish pie plate just so there could be extra filling and whipped cream.  It was super decadent and super sugary.  Good memories come with that pie, and I was thinking about it when I got a bunch of free slightly damaged bananas from the store (super good deal by the way for anyone who is looking to make smoothies and banana bread).  I thought…man, that pie sounds good right now.  But it was a week night, and making a big pie would have been too time consuming, not to mention I wouldn’t have anyone to share it with until the weekend…so I came up with a compromise for something that I would enjoy just as much.  Mini caramel pecan banana cream cheesecakes.  I love cheesecake just as much as I loved that pie, so I was happy about it.  Someday I will completely remake that giant pie, but for now cheesecake!

    Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes 3

    This is something super simple that anyone can make by the way, which I know you all will love!  No complicated fancy steps.  For the crust, I made a pecan butter laced one that tasted like cookie dough.  It was the perfect base for the luscious filling!  Of course coconut had to be included here, so coconut milk blended with banana, vanilla  and maple syrup made the most delicious but simple filling.  For the caramel I went for the quick route and made my go to 30 second caramel made with pecan butter and maple syrup.  Seriously, it reminds me of caramel and if you don’t have dates on hand to make date caramel or don’t feel like blending anything this is perfect!  Plus, the slight nutty pecan flavor goes beautifully with the bananas.

    Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes 2

    They were ready in about an hour (most of which was chilling time) and they were scrumptious!  If you think you can’t bake, guess what?  With these you don’t have to!  Which is bonus for summertime when you don’t want to heat up the oven. Or, if you think you are bad at making vegan desserts, these are hard to mess up so they are a good place to start learning.  The next time you have bananas on hand, give these a go!  Trust me, you will be happy you did!

    Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes 4

    Vegan Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes
    Makes 8

    Crust:

    • 1/2 cup gluten free organic oat flour
    • 1/4 cup raw pecan butter*
    • 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/2 cup mashed organic banana
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 3/4 cup coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 1 sliced organic banana

     

    For Topping:

    • 1/4 cup raw pecan butter*
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • pinch sea salt
    • filtered water as needed

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the crust, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 12 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients but sliced banana in a blender and blend until smooth.
    3. Place the sliced bananas over the crust in the tins, then pour the filling over the bananas and place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes or up to an hour.  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
    4. whisk together the caramel ingredients, then drizzle over the finished cheesecakes and sprinkle them with pecans. Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.

    *If you do not have pecan butter, you may use your favorite nut butter instead.



  • Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Blueberry Jam Swirl 

    Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Blueberry Jam Swirl 

    What does one do with 3 lbs of blueberries?  Eat them all in a big bowl and end up like Violet Beauregarde in Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and turn into a giant blueberry?   To be completely honest after seeing that movie as a kid, I always thought about that scene of the movie when eating blueberries.  Not that it stopped me from eating them ever, it just made me laugh a little.  Well, I made a few things with those 3 lbs of blueberries I had at my house and I didn’t turn into a giant blueberry.  Although I am sure I am filled with plenty of antioxidants now.  I did eat some plain, as did Eric since he saw my huge bowl and swooped in to steal a few.  But I made some delicious recipes with them as well!  The first of which was a cheesecake ice cream with a blueberry swirl.  My Mom asked me if I had ever made blueberry jam, so I decided to make a quick blueberry jam, and it was so good, I decided it needed to be served with some cheesecake.  But I decided on cheesecake ice cream instead of actual cheesecake because it is Summer, and ice cream is so refreshing. I apologize if you are sick of my ice cream posts…but I am not sick of eating or creating ice cream yet!  It is good stuff!

    Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Blueberry Jam Swirl 1

    The base for this is actually quite simple.  I always use coconut milk for my ice cream bases.  Not low fat though.  Because  I used to use that when I was all fat phobic 10 years ago and it just makes for a harder more icy ice cream once it freezes.  If you use full fat, it turns out creamy and delicious.  Ice cream is meant to be an indulgence after all.  I would rather have a small amount of something rich than a large amount of something that is just ok.  Texture is very important to me.  This ice cream also has cashew butter to give it that cheesecake sort of flavor.  Plus a touch of vanilla bean, because vanilla bean flecks in ice cream has always made me smile. Growing up it made me feel like the ice cream was better quality (not that it always was, but the belief was there).

    Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Blueberry Jam Swirl 2

    I swirled my quick blueberry jam into it and omg…it was amazing!  So much more refreshing than just cheesecake would have been, and just as I had imagined it.  This reminds me of an ice cream I had as a kid in an ice cream shop up North in Minnesota that I used to go to with my Dad.  I had it several times one of the trips and asked for multiple scoops…like 3 in a waffle cone.  It was so good.  Well, this is just as good, and it is vegan!  Nothing beats that, am I right?!

    Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Blueberry Jam Swirl 4

    Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Blueberry Jam Swirl 
    Makes about 3 1/2 cups

    Ingredients:

    Blueberry Jam:

    • 3 cups fresh organic blueberries
    • 2-3 Tbsp maple syrup (to taste, depending on how sweet the berries are)
    • pinch sea salt
    • 1 Tbsp arrowroot powder dissolved in 1 Tbsp filtered water

    Ice Cream Base:

    • 1 15 oz can full fat organic coconut milk
    • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
    • 1/3 cup soft, pitted medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them in filtered water for 30 minutes before using)
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt
    • seeds of one vanilla bean, or 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

    Directions:

    1. To make the jam, combine all ingredients but the arrowroot mixture in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Lower to a simmer, and cook for about 20 minutes until the blueberries have popped and it is jammy.  Add the arrowroot mixture and cook just until thickened.  Remove from heat, and let cool completely, then refrigerate until cold (you will have extra for another use or for topping the ice cream, I store mine in a jar).
    2. To make the ice cream, combine coconut milk, cashew butter, dates, sea salt and vanilla in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into an ice cream maker and process according to directions. Alternatively, if you do not have an ice cream maker, pour it into a bowl, and whisk every half hour until it is to the consistency of a thick malt.
    3. Pour 1/3 of the ice cream base into a freezer safe container with a lid then drop some of the jam over it.  Repeat with another layer of ice cream and jam, then another.  Swirl with a knife to marble the jam (just a few times, not too much).  Place in the freezer with the lid on, and continue to freeze until firm enough to scoop (at least 4 hours or overnight). If it becomes too firm, simply let it sit out for 15 minutes before serving.  Serve with extra jam if you wish.



  • Vegan Mini Chocolate Almond Brownie Cheesecakes

    Vegan Mini Chocolate Almond Brownie Cheesecakes

    On my days off, I like to make something a little decadent. This time, I made some chocolate almond brownie cheesecakes.  I am loving desserts like this lately because they are easy, but they are just as delicious as their larger cousins.  I had just made some fresh almond butter, and I was craving chocolate cheesecake, so that is how I decided on the combo.  It has been darn near perfect weather here lately, but I still didn’t feel like heating up the oven to bake something.  It is funny, before I went vegan I was baking cheesecakes all the time, and now it seems weird to me.  Because all of the ones that I make are no-bake, and they all taste so much better to me than the dairy ones.  In fact now as a vegan, dairy kind of grosses me out.  Because of the harm to the animals while it is being produced, and what it is actually made out of.  So I am very happy to be able to make vegan cheesecakes.

    mini chocolate almond cheesecakes 1

    If you have never tried a vegan cheesecake, or you are not vegan and you are skeptical that they can be just as good as regular cheesecakes, this would be a good recipe for you to try.  It is pretty simple, the smaller cheesecakes are easier to make than one big one, and they taste amazing!  The brownie base is really simple to make, just mix it together and press it into the tins, no baking required!  But, it tastes as good as baked brownies and I included chocolate chips for extra chocolate goodness.  For the filling, I added in some almond butter along with the cacao powder to give these a nutty almond flavor and the mixture was so delicious I could not stop sampling it.  I used a coconut milk base, which is my favorite in cheesecakes, because it gives them a silky texture.

    mini chocolate almond cheesecakes 2

    These came together very fast, which is always a win when it comes to dessert as far as I am concerned.  I want to dive in, you know?  But unfortunately I had to take the pics before I dove in so that you can see what these delicious little chocolaty gems taste like.  They look delicious in the photos, but trust me, they taste even better.  These would be perfect to bring to a gathering because they are so much easier than carting a large cheesecake around that you later have to cut.  These are just set on a plate and serve!  Not a fan of almonds?  You can swap them out for your favorite nut butter.

    mini chocolate almond cheesecakes 3

    Vegan Mini Chocolate Almond Brownie Cheesecakes
    Makes 8

    Brownie:

    • 3/4 cup gluten free organic oat flour
    • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/4 cup organic almond butter
    • 1/4 cup coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/4 cup organic almond butter
    • 1/4 cup raw cacao powder
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid

     

    For Topping:

    • toasted almonds
    • 1/3 cup chopped vegan dark chocolate or vegan chocolate chips

     

    Instructions:

    1. To make the brownie, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 8 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour the filling over the brownie in the tins, sprinkle with the toasted almonds, and place in the freezer to firm up for about an hour.  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
    3. Melt the chocolate for the topping in the top of a double boiler until smooth, then drizzle over the finished cheesecakes.  Place them in the freezer until the chocolate has set for about 5 minutes then enjoy!  Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.

    mini chocolate almond cheesecakes



  • Vegan Mini Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecakes

    Vegan Mini Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecakes

    Vegan Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Cheesecakes 4

    When I was younger I used to browse recipes online and cook books from the library and actually make them exactly as they were.  But now I rarely do that.  Because of course, most of the recipes I come across that look really good to me are not vegan, and I didn’t used to be a vegan or care about the nutritional content of things, but now I do!  So now I say to myself, how can I veganize that and make it better?  So, I was having one of those moments recently when a friend on Facebook posted a recipe for some peanut butter cheesecake bars with a cookie dough bottom.  They sounded really good, and I knew I could make a vegan version!  But, I decided not to make them into bars, I made them into little mini cheesecakes instead. Because I have made a lot of bars lately, and I feel like cheesecakes are cuter. Yes, I sometimes decide on things based on cuteness.  Nothing wrong with that!  We eat with our eyes after all.

    Vegan Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Cheesecakes 3

    I am game for cookie dough anything, and I love peanut butter so I was excited about this.  I made some vegan cookie dough with oat flour as the base and a little peanut butter added in…’cause why not?!  I stirred in some of my favorite vegan chocolate chips and it was good stuff.  I could have just eaten that. I am one of those types of people who likes cookie dough better than actual baked cookies and I am not ashamed of it.  I restrained myself from sampling too much, and pressed it into the bottoms of my muffin tins.  That is the beauty of mini cheesecakes, you can use fun little muffin tins that are easy to unmold (mine are silicone, that way I am not wasting paper and foil).

    Vegan Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Cheesecakes

    For the filling, I used a simple coconut milk base laced with peanut butter and it was luscious.  I knew these were going to be amazing once they had chilled.  I topped them off with some melted dark chocolate too, because that is what the other recipe I was basing this off of had, and they looked like pure deliciousness goodness.  Talk about little heavenly bites!  This is some crave worthy stuff.  Three of my favorite things all together, cheesecake, cookie dough and peanut butter.  You can’t go wrong with that!  Trust me, you need to try out these little gems and share them with your family and friends.  They will thank you, and you will all be happy!

     

    Vegan Mini Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecakes

    Makes 8

    Cookie Dough:

    • 1 cup gluten free organic oat flour
    • 1/4 cup organic peanut butter
    • 1/4 cup coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

     

    Cheesecake Filling:

    • 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
    • 1/4 cup organic peanut butter
    • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 1/8 tsp sea salt
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid

     

    For Topping:

    • 1/3 cup chopped vegan dark chocolate or vegan chocolate chips

    Instructions:

    1. To make the cookie dough, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 8 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
    2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour the filling over the cookie dough in the tins, and place in the freezer to firm up for about an hour.  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
    3. Melt the chocolate for the topping in the top of a double boiler until smooth, then drizzle over the finished cheesecakes.  Place them in the freezer until the chocolate has set for about 5 minutes then enjoy!  Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.

     



  • Vegan Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie

    Vegan Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie

    Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie 6

    Cheesecake anything always gets me going.  From the time I was little I would always choose cheesecake over any other dessert hands down.  There is just something crave worthy about the texture and flavor of it.  For a while when I was in college I would buy a piece of cheesecake from the local co op every weekend and really look forward to it.  They probably thought I was weird too when I asked for the biggest piece every time.  I then learned to make my own, and it was something I made often.  When I went vegan, I discovered I could make cheesecakes just as delicious (if not more, because dairy and eggs really gross me out now) as their conventional cousins.  And, I have made loads of vegan cheesecakes.  I don’t think I could ever tire of them.

    Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie 3

    So, last weekend, I thought cheesecake and pie both sounded good and I decided on a cheesecake pie.  I wanted it to have plenty of fruit in it, because fruit pies are my favorite, and I wanted it to be sort of like a cheesecake cream pie.  I had lots of blackberries and blueberries I had rescued from the discard pile as being too ugly to sell, and I knew they would be delicious in my pie, because glamorous berries don’t matter when they are buried in cheesecake.  For the filling I used a coconut cashew base, which is my favorite for texture and flavor in vegan cheesecakes, and it turned out perfect once the flavorful ripe berries were added.  I topped it all off with a whipped coconut cream in cream pie fashion.  It was lovely.

    Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie 4

    It tasted amazing as well. The crust crunchy, slightly salty and sweet, the filling melt in your mouth rich, sweet with berries and creamy, and the topping almost cloudlike.  You could not tell it was vegan at all, and it was way better than any cream pies or cheesecakes I had eaten growing up.  It was decadent as all get out.  It was a good weekend and I wanted the dessert to reflect that.  Eric and I had visited a local winery for a wine tasting and bought some berry wine, so we enjoyed it with that after dinner Sunday.  It was the perfect end to a really great day.

    Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie

    Vegan Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie
    Makes one 8 inch pie

    1 8 inch pie plate

    Crust:
    3/4 cup finely shredded dried coconut
    3/4 cup sprouted, dehydrated buckwheat groats, or raw walnuts
    1/2 cup ground flaxseed
    1 cup soft pitted medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them 30 minutes and drain well before using)
    1/4 tsp sea salt

    Filling:
    1 15 oz can full fat organic coconut milk, chilled
    1/2 cup pitted soft medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them 30 minutes and drain well before using)
    1 Tbsp lemon juice
    1/4 tsp sea salt
    2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    3/4 cup raw cashews, soaked for 4 hours and drained
    3/4 cup coconut butter warmed to liquid
    1 1/2 cup mixed fresh organic blackberries and blueberries, divided

    Topping:
    1 15 oz can full fat organic coconut milk, chilled
    1/4 cup pitted, soft medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them 30 minutes and drain well before using)
    pinch sea salt
    1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp raw coconut butter, warmed to liquid

    For the crust, combine all ingredients in the food processor until finely chopped and starting to hold together when squeezed (if it doesn’t you may need a few more dates).  Press the mixture into a 8 inch pie pan or spring form pan greased with coconut oil.
    For the filling, combine all ingredients but the berries in a high speed blender and blend until smooth. Add 3/4 cup of the berries and blend until smooth. Stir in the remaining berries and pour into the crust. Place in the freezer to firm up (about 2 hours).
    Meanwhile, for the cream topping, combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until completely smooth. Pour into a bowl and place in the freezer until it is thick like whipped cream (whisking every so often), about 45 minutes.  Once the cream is ready, spread over the top of the pie.  Pie keeps refrigerated for 1 week in a container.

    Black and Blue Berry Cheesecake Pie 2



  • 5 Ingredient Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

    5 Ingredient Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

    It was really hot and sticky last Monday.  I went out for a walk in the afternoon, and when I got home, I felt like I had been dipped into a stinky pond.  I took a refreshing bath laced with peppermint oil, and that helped to cool me down, but I also decided that I needed to make ice cream.  Because ice cream is always appreciated on a hot day, am I right?!  I knew I wanted to make something with strawberries, since I had a bunch of organic strawberries on hand, but I did not want it to require a lot of time or energy to make.

    Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

    If you have followed my blog at all, you may have noticed in the past I make some pretty fabulous ice cream flavors with a few components, like red velvet cake ice cream, or blueberry cobbler ice cream that have things that have to be made besides just the ice cream.  Well I was not doing that.  I wanted a simple blend and churn and chill ice cream.  What I decided on was strawberry cheesecake ice cream.  And it only ended up having 5 ingredients, which was awesome.

    Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream 3

    I always make coconut milk based ice creams, but I enhanced this one with cashew butter to make it taste like cheesecake. The organic strawberries were pretty sweet and flavorful, so all that was needed to sweeten it was some dates (but not too many).  This is as simple as it gets, but I promise you it is so good, and so worth making for yourself to enjoy!  I have included instructions for both with an ice cream maker and without, so everyone can make this.

    Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream 1

    5 Ingredient Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
    Makes 3 cups

    1 15 oz can full fat organic coconut milk
    1/2 cup raw cashew butter
    1 1/2 cups fresh organic strawberries
    1/4 cup soft, pitted medjool dates (if they are not soft, soak them in filtered water for 30 minutes before using)
    1/4 tsp sea salt

    Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into an ice cream maker and process according to directions.  Alternatively, if you do not have an ice cream maker, pour it into a bowl, and whisk every half hour until it is to the consistency of a thick malt.  Pour into a freezer safe container with a lid, and continue to freeze until firm enough to scoop (at least 4 hours or overnight). If it becomes too firm, simply let it sit out for 15 minutes before serving.



  • Raw Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake

    Raw Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake

    tulips

    Happy first full official day of Spring! I am so ready for it, and even though it doesn’t feel like Spring yet, I am using it as an excuse to wear my cute Spring clothes and eat Spring like desserts. I even got some beautiful Tulips from Eric which was awesome since I won’t be seeing any growing for a few weeks. I love when the Spring flowers first start to pop out of the ground, it is like the life has come back here since after winter everything is pretty brown.

    strawberry cheesecake 2

    Here in Minnesota it is not yet strawberry season, but I sure am craving them since to me strawberries remind me of Spring. They are the first berries available here during the growing season.  Luckilly I have frozen berries to satisfy that craving. Wyman’s was kind enough to send me some coupons to get some of their frozen berries to create a recipe with.  I was super happy about that, since I will have to wait for mid June to see fresh local strawberries here.  I don’t mind using frozen berries in the Winter because they tend to have more flavor than any fresh out of season berries you can buy (plus fresh are outrageously priced, think $12 a container which is what I saw a few weeks back).

    strawberry cheesecake 4

    Anyways, I decided I wanted to make something grand with these berries.  I wanted a big beautiful cheesecake filled with berry flavor and rich in white chocolate and coconut. I hadn’t made a raw cheesecake in a while, so this was the perfect time.  This was actually pretty simple to make, no multiple layers just strawberry white chocolate and berry puree swirled throughout and to top it off.  My Mom used to make a cheesecake tart with berries on top in a glaze, and I wanted it to look like that.

    strawberry cheesecake 1

    It turned out wonderful.  Sweet, loads of strawberry flavor and delicious. Those frozen berries worked out perfect, and there was no hulling or cleaning required which I was all for.  This would be a showstopper dessert for Easter dinner, but of course you don’t need any excuse to make it, just go for it.  I have included directions for making it with full fat canned coconut milk if young coconut meat is not your jam (and you don’t mind it not being raw).  It happens to be just a little larger than the raw cake, so please note that if you are making it. I hope you all have a wonderful Spring!

    strawberry cheesecake

    Raw Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake

    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:
    2/3 cup raw sprouted buckwheat groats (or additional coconut)
    1/3 cup ground flax seed
    3/4 cup dried finely shredded coconut
    1/8 teaspoon sea salt
    10-12 soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped (if they are not soft, soak them in water until they are and drain them well)

    Filling:
    4 cups young coconut meat*
    1/2 cup coconut water
    1 Tbsp lemon juice
    2/3 cup pitted medjool dates or 2/3 cup raw coconut nectar
    1/2  teaspoon sea salt
    1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract and seeds from half a vanilla bean
    2 cups Wyman’s frozen strawberries, thawed, and drained of any excess liquid
    1/2 cup raw coconut butter (warmed to liquid)
    1/3 cup raw cacao butter, warmed to liquid

    strawberry swirl/puree:
    1 cup Wyman’s Frozen Strawberries, thawed and any excess liquid drained off
    1 Tbsp lemon juice
    3 medjool dates, pitted

    For topping:
    2 cups Wyman’s frozen strawberries, thawed and drained of any excess liquid

    Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pans with coconut oil. To prepare the crust, process flax, coconut, buckwheat and sea salt in a food processor until fine crumbs, then add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers (if not holding together, add more dates). Firmly press crust into the bottom of the prepared pan, and set aside.
    To make the filling, in a high speed blender or food processor, combine coconut meat, water, dates, sea salt, vanilla, and berries in a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. With the processor running, add the coconut butter and cacao butter and process for a minute until blended. Set aside.
    For the puree, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until smooth.  Set aside.
    To assemble cheesecake, pour 1/3 of the cheesecake mixture over the crust, then drop some of the puree by the heaping tsp over that and swirl with a knife.  Then pour over half the remaining cheesecake, then more of the swirl by the heaping tsp. then swirl with a knife. Pour the remaining cheesecake mixture over that, then more of the puree (you will have extra puree leftover for the topping).
    Place in the freezer for about 4 hours to firm up.
    Once the cheesecake has firmed up, Place the whole strawberries on top of it, cut side down, and drizzle with the remaining puree.

    *If you do not have access to young coconut meat and you do not mind the recipe not being nut free, you can substitute 4 cups raw cashews soaked for 4 hours and drained in the filling.
    *If you have access to fresh organic strawberries, feel free to use them instead of the frozen.

    Non-Raw Filling for 8 inch cake:
    2 15 oz cans Thai Kitchen full fat organic coconut milk
    3/4 cup pitted medjool dates
    2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    1/4 tsp sea salt
    2 cups Wyman’s Frozen Strawberries, thawed and any excess liquid drained off
    1 1/4 cups coconut butter, warmed to liquid
    1/2 cup cacao butter, warmed to liquid

    Use the crust recipe for the 6 inch raw cake, the only thing that will be different is the filling.
    To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or large food processor and blend until smooth.  Continue with the rest of the recipe as you would with the raw cake above (the strawberry puree is the same).

    strawberry cheesecake 5

  • Vegan Gingerbread Cheesecake and a L. C. Finns Extract Giveaway!

    Vegan Gingerbread Cheesecake and a L. C. Finns Extract Giveaway!

    IMG_1629

    When L. C. Finns contacted me and asked if I would like to try their line of flavor extracts I was excited.  I looked on their website and discovered that they make all of their extracts small batch by hand, and they are made with real ingredients!  Heck yes I wanted to try them.  And even better, they are located very close to where I live!  I am always up for supporting local companies, especially ones like this one that use real stuff in their products.

    IMG_1545

    Another thing that caught my eye was the flavors that they make.  Of course there was the vanilla extract, but they also have coffee, cardamom, anise, hibiscus, cinnamon, and ginger. I don’t think I have ever seen these flavors in natural form elsewhere.  When the box arrived I could not wait to open it.  I immediately had to smell them.  They smelled amazing.  The beautiful aromas making my nose happy. And, they were all full sized bottles, how generous!  I was very grateful to receive such a gift.

    IMG_1627

    I had to test them out in a few recipes, my Vegan Mocha Pumpkin Bread, and my Vegan Hazelnut Cardamom Chocolate Chunk Cookies.  They contributed lovely flavors to both!  I decided that I needed to create something even more spectacular with them, so I made a Vegan Gingerbread Cheesecake! About 10 years ago, I had made a gingerbread cheesecake for Christmas, and it was so good.  I have never attempted to veganize it until now.

    IMG_1640

    I was excited about this.  I could use four of the flavor extracts in it, the vanilla, the cinnamon, the ginger and the anise. I made little vegan gingerbread cookies, then used those as the base of the cheesecake, then made a luscious cheesecake filling from coconut milk flavored with the same aromatic ingredients.  This was going to be sooo good!

    IMG_1641

    The extracts added a special little aromatic note to the cake, it was beautiful!  Are you intrigued yet about these lovely extracts?  Well, guess what? L. C. Finns was kind enough to let me do a giveaway of their products.  One lucky winner will get a set of all seven extracts!  So, scroll to the bottom of the page to enter (US residents only please)!  Or, if you would like, you can purchase the extracts for yourself L. C. Finns website HERE.  These would be perfect for Christmas presents or Christmas baking.

    IMG_1642

    Vegan Gingerbread Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:

    1 cup crushed vegan gingerbread cookies (recipe follows)
    1 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

    Filling:

    1 cup gingerbread crumbs
    2 15 oz cans full fat coconut milk
    2/3 cup maple syrup
    1/4 tsp sea salt
    2 tsp each L.C. Finns cinnamon, ginger, vanilla and anise extracts
    2 tsp cinnamon
    1 Tbsp ginger
    1/2 tsp nutmeg
    1/2 tsp cloves
    1 1/2 cups coconut butter (not oil), warmed to liquid

    Preheat the oven to 375F degrees. To make the crust, place the 2 cups gingerbread cookies in a food processor, and process until crumbs.  Add the coconut oil, and pulse until it is well incorporated. Press the crust into the bottom of a 6 inch round deep springform cake pan.  Place in the oven and bake for about 10 minutes until it is browning a little and set. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.

    Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine all ingredients but the coconut butter, in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth. With the motor running, add the coconut butter and process a minute more (if it starts to get lumpy at all during the process it is just the fat separating because it is 2 different temperatures. Just continue to blend until it is smooth, and it will get warm so it will just have to chill longer). Pour the filling over the prepared crust, and place in the freezer to set for about 4 hours. Decorate with extra gingerbread cookies.

    Mini Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
    Makes about 50 mini cookies

    1 Tbsp ground flax seed
    3 Tbsp filtered water
    2 1/4 cups gluten free all purpose flour
    1/3 cup coconut sugar
    2 tsp cinnamon
    2 tsp ground ginger
    1/4 tsp nutmeg
    1/4 tsp cloves
    1/4 tsp baking soda
    1/4 tsp sea salt
    1/3 cup maple syrup
    1/2 cup melted coconut oil
    1 tsp each L.C. Finns cinnamon, ginger, vanilla and anise extracts

    In a small bowl, whisk together the flax seed and water and set aside.
    In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, and sea salt.
    Whisk in the remaining ingredients, and the flax mixture until smooth. Scoop dough onto a piece of parchment, and sort of flatten with your hands. Place in the freezer for about 30-45 minutes, or until it is more firm and rollable.
    Pre-heat the oven to 350F When ready to roll, flour a rolling pin, and roll the dough out 1/8 inch thick on a sheet of parchment. Cut into small shapes with a cookie cutter and place on two parchment lined baking sheets. Re-roll any scraps and cut them out as well (if at any time it gets too warm and sticky, place back in the freezer for 5-10 min).
    Place cookies in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes until set, a little crispy, and starting to brown at the edges. Let cool completely. You will need to crush up 2 cups for the recipe, but reserve the rest for decorating or eating.

    IMG_1644



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  • Raw White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

    Raw White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

    Raw Pumpkin Spice White Chocolate Cheesecake 1

    I was hard core craving some pumpkin spice cheesecake last weekend.  But just plain pumpkin spice wasn’t going to cut it, I wanted to add white chocolate as well.  oddly enough it has been a while since I made a raw cheesecake since I have been working on my book making other types of cakes.  I used to make one practically every weekend last year!  So, I got back into my groove and whipped this one up.

    Raw Pumpkin Spice White Chocolate Cheesecake 2

    It is actually pretty simple to make, don’t let that decorative looking swirl on top fool you.  I used melted cacao butter in place of some of the coconut butter to give it that white chocolate flavor and oh my was it ever heavenly, even before pouring it into the crust. I lightly spiced the pumpkin portion and it was sooo good!  Just a little chill in the freezer and it was all ready.

    Raw Pumpkin Spice White Chocolate Cheesecake 4

    This cake is simply crave worthy.  I think it would be the perfect swap for pumpkin pie at holiday get togethers if you want something a little more interesting.  I have included the recipe for a vegan cake using coconut milk and cooked pumpkin puree if you do not have access to young coconut meat and don’t feel like taking apart a pumpkin or squash.  So no excuse not to try this if you don’t have young coconuts in your area!  I hope you all are enjoying pumpkin season as much as I am!

    Raw Pumpkin Spice White Chocolate Cheesecake 3

    Raw White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:
    1/2 cup raw sprouted buckwheat groats, dried in the dehydrator

    3/4 cup dried finely shredded coconut

    1/4 cup ground flaxseed

    1/8 teaspoon sea salt
    1/2 tsp cinnamon
    2/3 cup soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped
    Filling:
    4 cups young coconut meat*
    1/2 cup coconut water
    1/2 cup raw coconut nectar or your choice of raw liquid sweetener
    1/2 teaspoon sea salt
    1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract and seeds from half a vanilla bean
    1 inch piece fresh ginger
    2 tsp cinnamon
    1/4 tsp cloves
    1/4 tsp nutmeg
    1/4 cup raw cacao butter, warmed to liquid
    1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp raw coconut butter (warmed to liquid)
    1 cup raw sweet squash such as kabocha or raw carrot**, chopped
    Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pan with coconut oil. To prepare the crust, process buckwheat, coconut and sea salt in a food processor until it is fine crumbs, then add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers (if not holding together, add more dates). Firmly press crust into the bottom of the prepared pan, and set aside.
    To make the filling, in a food processor combine coconut, coconut water, coconut nectar, sea salt vanilla, and spices and blend until smooth and creamy. With the processor running, add the cacao butter, coconut butter, and process for a minute until blended. Remove the filling from the food processor and divide into 2 bowls. Place one back into the food processor and add the squash.  Blend until smooth then remove from the processor and set aside (if your food processor is not strong enough to make it smooth you may need to strain it through a fine meshed strainer).
    Pour the pumpkin filling into the prepared crust, reserving about 3 Tbsp in a bowl.  Pour the plain filling over that, then drop the remaining pumpkin filling by the 1/2 tsp over that and swirl with a knife to create marbling. Place the cake in the freezer for about 4-5 hours until firm.  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *If you do not have access to young coconut meat, you can substitute 4 cups raw cashews soaked for 4 hours and drained for the coconut and filtered water for the coconut water.

    **I use squash or carrot in place of pumpkin in these because it is sweeter and easier to work with and you will never know the difference.  If you wish however you can use pumpkin but you may need to sweeten a little more.

    Vegan Non-Raw Version

    Use crust recipe from raw version

    Filling:

    2 15 oz cans full fat coconut milk

    1/3 cup maple syrup

    1/4 tsp sea salt

    2 tsp pure vanilla extract

    1 1/4 cups coconut butter, divided, warmed to liquid*

    1/3 ccup up cacao butter, melted to liquid

    1 cooked pumpkin puree (you may use canned)

    2 tsp cinnamon

    1 tsp powdered ginger

    1/4 tsp nutmeg

    1/8 tsp cloves

    Prepare the crust the same as you would for the raw crust version.

    Combine the coconut milk, maple syrup, sea salt,  and vanilla in a high speed blender and blend until smooth.

    Pour in 1 cup of the coconut butter and the cacao butter with the motor running slowly (so that it does not clump up.  But if it does, just continue to blend until any lumps are gone).  Remove half the mixture, and place in a bowl.

    Add the pumpkin and spices to the remaining mixture in the blender, and blend until smooth.  Add the coconut butter in the same manor you added it before.

    Pour the pumpkin filling into the prepared crust, reserving about 3 Tbsp in a bowl.  Pour the plain filling over that, then drop the remaining pumpkin filling by the 1/2 tsp over that and swirl with a knife to create marbling.

    Place the cake in the freezer for about 4-5 hours until firm.  Store any leftover cake in the refrigerator.

    *Note: if your canned pumpkin is especially watery, you may need a few Tbsp more coconut butter.



  • Raw Strawberry Rhubarb Cheesecake Bars

    Raw Strawberry Rhubarb Cheesecake Bars

    Straw Rhu Bars 1

    I was over at my Dad’s house on Father’s Day and I picked  a whole bunch of rhubarb.  I almost left without it, but Eric reminded me it was there, and I was all like… “Are you wanting me to bake something with it, or is that a hint?” Of course it was, and he had a point. Rhubarb is delicious.  Especially when used in desserts, and paired with some sort of berries.  Which is what I decided to do this time.

    Straw Rhu Bars 3

    The next day I thought about it long and hard and what sounded the absolute best to me were some strawberry rhubarb bars.  I had seen a baked version on Pinterest a while back and said to myself, “I need to rawify and veganize those!” That was a couple months ago though, so it was about time I did, and now I finally had more rhubarb to do so!

    Straw Rhu Bars 2

    I wanted these to be intensely strawberry rhubarb. Sometimes when you make a cheesecake the filling takes away from the flavors of the fruit, but not mine.  I used strawberries and rhubarb both in the creamy filling and in a jammy swirl that marbled throughout the bars.  They were pure delicious goodness!  Tart and sweet just how strawberry rhubarb desserts should be not overly sweetened (I feel some people use too much sweetener with rhubarb and it is not tart enough anymore).  Perfectly balanced.  It is the height of strawberry rhubarb season, and if you love the combo like I do, you must try these.

    Straw Rhu Bars 4

    Raw Strawberry Rhubarb Cheesecake Bars 
    Makes 12

    Crust:

    1 cups finely shredded dried coconut

    1 cup sprouted buckwheat groats (or additional shredded coconut)

    1/2 cup soft medjool dates, pitted

    1/4 tsp himalayan salt

    2 Tbsp ground flaxseed

    Filling:

    2 cups young coconut meat, packed

    1/4 cup raw coconut nectar or maple syrup

    1 tsp vanilla extract

    pinch sea salt

    1 cup organic strawberries

    1 cup diced organic rhubarb

    1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp raw coconut butter or oil, warmed to liquid

    Swirl:

    1/2 cup organic strawberries

    1/2 cup diced organic rhubarb

    1 Tbsp raw coconut nectar or maple syrup

    2 tsp raw coconut butter, warmed to liquid

    For the crust, combine all ingredients in the food processor and process until small crumbs and starting to hold together.
    Press into an 8×8 inch (or 9×9 inch if you want the bars thinner) pan lined with foil or parchment and oiled with coconut oil (for easy removal).  Set aside in the freezer.
    For the filling, combine all ingredients but the coconut butter in a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add the coconut butter and blend until smooth.  Set aside in a bowl.

    To make the swirl, blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.  Set aside.

    To assemble the bars, drop some of the swirl by the tsp over the crust, then pour the filling over that.  Drop the rest of the swirl by the tsp over that, then swirl with a knife.
    Place in the freezer to set, about 2 hours.  Cut into bars and serve!
    Store any extra bars in the refrigerator.

     



  • Raw Neapolitan Cheesecake, Blogaversary and a Giveaway!

    Raw Neapolitan Cheesecake, Blogaversary and a Giveaway!

    4 years ago today I posted my first recipe on this blog.  It was a red velvet cupcake recipe featuring beets, and it was not plant based at all because I had used cream cheese frosting and I had taken a single photo of the cupcakes with the worst lighting possible.  But I was proud of it.  I was sharing my recipes as I wanted to not just on Facebook, but on a blog.  Before I started blogging, blogs to me were something other professional people did.  Not just random people looking to share recipes with their friends like I was trying to do at that point.  So it felt like an accomplishment.

    That was after all what I started this blog for.  To simply share dessert recipes with friends.  So much has changed since then.  It has become more than that.  I still share recipes, but with way more people than I had originally imagined.  That is awesome.  It makes me happy that so many of you want to read my recipes!  I have changed my ways of eating as well.  I went from vegetarian to vegan to mostly raw recipes and including savory items as well with the occasional body care recipe.
    I figure why limit myself to just desserts, and I know others might like to enjoy what I am having for dinner as well.  I never thought I would have the audience I now have, and I am extremely grateful for each and every one of you who take the time to visit my blog and hear what I have to say or to find a recipe to try. Thank you so much for making my day by being here.

    Since it is my blogaversary, I thought I would make a delicious cake to celebrate!  A Raw Neapolitan Cheesecake to be exact.  Neapolitan ice cream reminds me of birthday parties as a kid for some reason, so I thought a neapolitan cake for my blog’s birthday would be appropriate.  I made a simple raw cheesecake with fresh organic strawberries for one layer, raw cacao powder for the next and vanilla bean for the other and it was delicious!  Simple to make as well, which I know you all appreciate. I think this might be a good recipe for Valentine’s Day as well since anything with strawberries and chocolate is welcome on that holiday (at least for me).

    Lastly, besides the delicious cake, to celebrate I am giving away a copy of my latest book “Fragrant Vanilla Cake: Sweet and Savory” to one lucky winner!  So scroll down to the bottom to enter!  Good luck to you all and thank you for allowing me to keep my blog going with all of your support!

    Raw Neapolitan Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:
    2/3 cup raw sprouted buckwheat groats (or additional coconut)
    1/3 cup ground flaxseed
    3/4 cup dried finely shredded coconut
    1/3 cup raw cacao powder
    1/8 teaspoon sea salt
    10-12 soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped (if they are not soft, soak them in water until they are and drain them well)

    Filling:
    4 cups young coconut meat*
    1/2 cup coconut water
    2/3 cup raw coconut nectar, or maple syrup
    1/2  teaspoon sea salt
    1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract and seeds from half a vanilla bean
    3/4 cup raw coconut butter (warmed to liquid)

    1/2 cup fresh organic strawberries
    3 Tbsp raw cacao powder

    Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pan with coconut oil. To prepare the crust, process flax, coconut, buckwheat and sea salt in a food processor until fine crumbs, then add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers (if not holding together, add more dates). Firmly press crust into the bottom of the prepared pan, and set aside.

    To make the filling, in a high speed blender or food processor, combine coconut meat, water, coconut nectar, sea salt, vanilla and blend until smooth and creamy. With the processor running, add the coconut butter and process for a minute until blended.

    Divide the mixture into 3 bowls.  Place one back into the blender and add the 1/2 cup strawberries. Blend until smooth, then pour back into the bowl.  Rinse out the blender. Add the second bowl back to the food processor and add the cacao powder.  Blend until smooth, and pour back into the bowl.

    To assemble the cake, pour the chocolate filling into the pan over the crust, reserving 2 Tbsp in the bowl and smooth out.  Then pour the vanilla filling over that smoothing out and reserving 2 Tbsp in the bowl.  Pour the strawberry filling over that, and smooth out.  Then drop the reserved fillings over that randomly by the 1/2 tsp, and swirl with a knife then a toothpick for smaller swirls.  Place in the freezer for about 4 hours to firm up. Store in the fridge.

    *If you do not have access to young coconut meat, you can substitute 4 cups raw cashews soaked for 4 hours and drained.


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  • Raw Fire and Ice Cheesecake

    Raw Fire and Ice Cheesecake

    It went from a brown Christmas, almost 40 degrees and balmy for Minnesota this time of the year…down to below zero and snowy. It is definitely a winter wonderland now and I can hear the kids out on the sledding hill by my house having fun and breaking in their new sleds since we finally have snow here.  It isn’t so bad most of the time if you are moving when you are outside, but there was a day last week where the wind was so bad, my face felt like it was on fire.  Not the worst weather I have ever been out in though.  The worst was about 5 years ago, when I was up north and there was about a 20 below windchill.  It was the type of thing where my face mask turned into a giant sheet of ice from my breathing out moisture and it was hard to breath.  Needless to say, I ran a little, then came in and finished the rest on the treadmill.  Weather like this is not my favorite, I am a summer girl for sure.  So, I decided that I needed to make something to bring a little warmth to my winter in the form of dessert.

    There is always hot chocolate, but that is not exciting to me…so I got it into my head that I wanted to make a fire and ice cheesecake.  I got the idea while I was outside in that cold weather trying to distract myself from the chill with warm thoughts.  A cheesecake that gave both the sensation of hot and cold.  Sounded like a fun thing to create, so why not? For the fire part, a chocolate filling, laced with orange, habanero, and ginger.  For the ice part, a lemon lime coconut vanilla filling.  Little tart pomegranate seeds to dot the inside of the cake as well, and create little juicy bits of deliciousness.  I even added a little chipotle powder to the crunchy chocolate crust for more fire to contrast the cool.

    Upon taking a bite, it was a wonderful sensation.  The coolness of the cheesecake and citrus, and the heat of the warming chilies and ginger was wonderful and tart pomegranate seeds were a nice contrast.  A marriage of flavors perfect for each other.  This cake is for those of you who love a little kick to your sweets. I love spicy with chocolate and sweet so it was right up my alley.  I hope those of you who are experiencing winter too right now are staying warm.

    Raw Fire and Ice Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:
    2/3 cup raw sprouted buckwheat groats (or additional coconut)
    1/3 cup ground flaxseed

    3/4 cup dried finely shredded coconut
    1/3 cup raw cacao powder
    1/4 tsp ground chipotle powder

    1/8 teaspoon sea salt
    10-12 soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped (if they are not soft, soak them in water until they are and drain them well)

    Filling:

    4 cups young coconut meat*
    1/4 cup coconut water

    2/3 cup raw coconut nectar, or maple syrup
    1/2  teaspoon sea salt
    1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract and seeds from half a vanilla bean
    2/3 cup raw coconut butter (warmed to liquid)

    zest of one lemon and one lime
    2 Tbsp lime juice

    1 inch chunk fresh ginger
    1/2 fresh habanero, seeded
    zest of one orange
    2 Tbsp orange juice
    1/4 cup raw cacao powder

    3/4 cup pomegranate seeds

    Citrus zest strips and slices, pomegranate seeds (for decorating the cake)

    Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pan with coconut oil. To prepare the crust, process flax, coconut, buckwheat and sea salt in a food processor until fine crumbs, then add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers (if not holding together, add more dates). Firmly press crust into the bottom of the prepared pan, and set aside.
    To make the filling, in a high speed blender or food processor, combine coconut meat, water, coconut nectar, sea salt, and vanilla and blend until smooth and creamy. With the processor running, add the coconut butter and process for a minute until blended.  Divide the mixture into 2 bowls and add one back to the blender.  Add the lime and lemon zest, the lime juice, and blend until smooth. Pour back into the bowl.  Rinse out the blender, then add the other bowl and the ginger, habanero, orange, and cacao powder to the blender.  Blend until smooth then pour back into the bowl.
    To assemble cheesecake, pour all but about 3 Tbsp of the chocolate mixture into the pan over the crust, then sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, then pour over the vanilla lemon lime filling.  Drop the remaining chocolate filling by the 1/2 tsp over the top of the other filling and swirl with a knife to create large swirls, and a toothpick for smaller ones.  Place in the freezer for about 4 hours to firm up. Garnish the top of the cake with citrus zest, slices and pomegranate seeds. Store in the fridge.

    *If you do not have access to young coconut meat, you can substitute 4 cups raw cashews soaked for 4 hours and drained.



  • Raw Pretty in Pink Birthday Cheesecake

    Raw Pretty in Pink Birthday Cheesecake

    Yesterday, I turned 27.  However, I still feel as if I should be 21…as 27 is getting so close to 30!  This will not stop me however from acting younger than my age.  I never want to be boring, and I still like to do things like wear hello kitty kitty band-aids, run through sprinklers and have a pink birthday cake.

    Yes, I had to have a pink Birthday cake!  I have been asked by so many people in the last week, “Shouldn’t someone else make your cake?”  or “You shouldn’t have to bake on your Birthday!”  My answer to that was, no one I know would be able to create the cake I wanted the exact way I wanted it.  Plus, making cakes is something I enjoy and shouldn’t I enjoy myself on my birthday?  Plus…technically I wasn’t baking it because it was a raw cheesecake.
    I didn’t spend my entire day on it however, I also took the time to celebrate with family and a good friend going out to dinner at La Belle Vie, one of my favorite restaurants!

    Because although I made my cake, I didn’t want to cook dinner on my birthday, and their food is excellent!  It was a wonderful time, and we all had a lot of fun!

    Back to the birthday cheesecake…it had a pistachio crust, and the filling was vanilla rosewater scented with a layer of vanilla with lavender, then strawberry, and last raspberry.  It was beautiful naked, but since it was a birthday cake, I decided to pipe cashew coconut frosting around the cake to make it even more beautiful!

    It was delicious as well, fragrant and rich…just as cheesecake should be.  I much enjoyed it, and it made me happy just looking at it knowing it was exactly the birthday cake I had dreamed of creating, plus even better!  Since I am not the type of person who wants a boring white birthday cake full of bleached flour and white sugar.  Real ingredients are what I find truly delicious.
    Whoever made the rule that you can’t make your own birthday cake probably just didn’t feel like making one or didn’t know how to…making my own birthday cake is an experience I much enjoy, and will repeat for many years to come!

    Raw Pretty in Pink Birthday Cheesecake
    Makes one 6 inch cake

    Crust:
    3/4 cup shelled pistachios
    1/8 teaspoon sea salt
    3-4 soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped
    Filling:
    2 1/2 cups raw cashews (preferably soaked overnight and drained)
    1/2 cup young coconut meat (or additional soaked cashews)
    1/2 cup coconut water (or filtered water)
    1 tsp rosewater
    1 Tbsp lemon juice
    1/3 cup plus 3 Tbsp raw coconut nectar or maple syrup
    1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp coconut oil (warmed to liquid)
    1/2 teaspoon sea salt
    1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract and seeds from half a vanilla bean (other half reserved for topping)
    1/2 cup fresh organic strawberries
    1/2 cup fresh organic red raspberries
    1 Tbsp organic lavender
    Cream Topping:
    3/4 cup raw cashew pieces (preferably soaked overnight)
    1/2 cup coconut water
    3/4 cup fresh young coconut meat (or additional soaked cashews if not available)
    2 tablespoons raw coconut nectar or maple syrup
    1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and seeds of half a vanilla bean (reserved from filling)
    1/4 cup raw coconut oil (warmed to liquid)4-6 fresh organic raspberries

    Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pans with coconut oil. To prepare the crust, process pistachios and sea salt in a food processor until the pistachios are fine crumbs, then add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers. Firmly press crust into the bottom of the prepared pan, and set aside.
    To make the filling, drain the cashews and combine them with coconut meat, coconut water, lemon juice, rosewater, nectar, coconut oil, sea salt and vanilla in a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. Remove the filling from the food processor, and divide evenly between 3 bowls. Place 1/3 into the food processor and add 1/2 cup of strawberries. Puree until smooth and scrape back in the bowl. Add another 3rd of the filling to the food processor and add 1/2 cup raspberries, and puree until smooth. Add the lavender to the third bowl and stir in until combined.
    To assemble the cheesecake, pour the vanilla lavender filling over the crust, then smooth to the sides.  Then the strawberry, then the raspberry. Place in the freezer until it is set, 4 to 6 hours, then once set store in the fridge.
    To make topping, drain cashews and blend all ingredients until smooth in a food processor, then divide into 2 bowls.  Place one half back in the food processor and throw in about 4-6 raspberries, and blend (to tint pink).  Place back in the bowl and set bowls in the freezer about 30 minutes until a frosting consistency. Place the two frostings in pastry bags and pipe decoratively around the top and bottom of the cheesecake. Store leftover cake in the fridge.