Raw Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake
Filling
1 cup nut butter, or cacao butter, grated
1/2 cup cacao powder
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 can full fat coconut milk, (400 ml)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract (the real stuff)
small pinch salt, finely ground
(i love the Himalayan or celtic kind… they actually help your cells retain water rather than lock it out like basic table salt does)
Topping
2 squares sugar free raw chocolate (your favorite kind), grated
Filling
Put all ingredients into a high-speed blender in the order listed.
Blend on low until combined, then blend on high until it reaches 42°C.
Pour filling into the crust and leave uncovered in the fridge to set for 4 hours or overnight.
Crust
(can get a pre-made walnut crust in Safeway now ;) but to make your own:
2 1/4 cups shredded coconut , fine, unsweetened (180g)
3 tbsp cacao powder (60ml) *
1 tsp vanilla bean powder
1 1/2 cups medjool dates or prunes with no ADDED sugar, pitted (360g)
pinch salt
Put shredded coconut, cacao powder, vanilla and salt into a food processor and pulse briefly to mix.
Add the pitted dates and process until the dates are finely chopped and the mixture starts to clump.
Press into a 20cm (8 inch) flan, cheesecake or springform tin and leave in the fridge to firm a little while you prepare the filling.
Topping
Grate a couple of squares of your favourite raw vegan chocolate over the top of the cheesecake.
Slice and serve.
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to three months.
Preparation
After: 4 hours or overnight
Need: Food processor, blender
Raw chocolate cheesecake variations
Different toppings: I used a homemade raw vegan chocolate orange chocolate for grating, but you really can use anything you like – plain, mint, orange – the possibilities are endless and give you lots of ways to dress up your cheesecake. You don’t even have to use grated chocolate, either. You could try , crumbled dried oranges, a mint cashew “icing” or whatever you normally love pairing with chocolate.
Different crusts: If you want to add a bit of crunch to your crust, try adding some walnuts, pecans or activated buckwheat to the mix before you process it. Of course the walnuts and pecans would mean that this dessert is no longer nut-free.
Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes: Add a layer of crust to a small bowl or ramekin and pour a layer of filling on to top make mini cheesecakes.
Nut-Free Chocolate Parfait: Make some cashew cream (or your favourite raw vegan cream), and layer it with the chocolate mix and fresh fruit to make a parfait.
Nut-free Chocolate Mousse: You can skip the crust altogether, and just make the filling, and pour it into bowls or jars instead, for a nut-free chocolate mousse. In jars, you can pour a little melted chocolate in a layer over the top to help seal it, and in bowls, you can just grate a little chocolate over the top to finish it off.
Nut-free Chocolate Biscuits: The chocolate crust mixture is perfect for forming into all kinds of shapes – cookies, macaroons, truffles, energy bites. Just shape the mix, squish it a bit so it holds together, and refrigerate, freeze or dehydrate until they’re firm and ready to eat. Or, you can eat the mix straight out the bowl like I do!
Carob Chocolate Cheesecake: Given the similar taste and properties of carob versus cacao, you could very easily swap out the cacao powder for carob powder and make yourself a chocolate-free raw vegan cheesecake.
White Chocolate Cheesecake: If you’re feeling adventurous, you could try making a “white chocolate” version of this cheesecake. Basically leave out the cacao powder from the crust and the filling, and see how it goes. This is something I’ve been wanting to try for a while, but I haven’t got around to it yet.
Caramel Cheesecake: You could try substituting the cacao powder for mesquite powder, or even lucuma powder to create a caramelly-flavoured cheesecake. Again I haven’t tried this, but maybe one day…
Berry Cheesecake: If you swap the cacao powder for freeze-dried berry powder, either in the filling-only, or even in the crust and the filling, you could create a really nice berry-flavoured nut-free raw vegan cheesecake. Just saying!
