Us vegans are all about the raw cheesecake right now! I see gorgeous photos from bloggers, instagrammers, and foodies of creative and mouthwatering vegan desserts that are mostly or completely raw. A lot of these desserts are cashew based because when you blend cashews with water or milk they become super rich and creamy. And obviously, it’s a lot healthier to use cashews than butter, eggs, and dairy.
When I went to the grocery store recently, they had raw cashews on sale so I decided I would try my hand at the raw cheesecake thing. I had only attempted it once before. I made blueberry cheesecake squares topped with a hard chocolate shell. It tasted delicious, but did not come out very photogenic. I decided to stick with something simple this time around. I had fresh rosemary lying around and felt like it would go well with cheesecake. It lets the decadent cheesecake flavor take center stage, with bursts of rosemary coming through every bite or so.
For the most part, I follow the general recipe that people use for raw vegan cheesecake. The main difference is that my mini cheesecakes are crustless. I didn’t have the ingredients on hand, which usually include dates and nuts. But they’re just as delicious without it! And these mini versions are the perfect serving size because these cheesecakes are rich rich rich!
Ingredients You Will Need:
- 3/4 c. raw cashews, soaked in water overnight
- juice from 1/2 a lemon
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 c. grade B maple syrup
- 1.5 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cap of pure vanilla extract
- water and/or non-dairy milk as needed
- approx. 2 small sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped or whole
- optional: toppings like homemade jam, fresh fruit, nuts, chocolate, coconut flakes
What You Do:
- Drain and rinse cashews.
- Put cashews, lemon juice, salt, maple syrup, olive oil, and vanilla extract in a blender. Use water or non-dairy milk (or a combo) and add a few splashes as needed to help thin the mixture and get everything blended.
- Once you have a creamy mixture of medium thickness (you don’t want it watery or super thick), add in the rosemary and blend until distributed throughout.
- Pour batter into cupcake liners that have been placed in a muffin tin.
- Place in freezer for 4-6 hours. When ready to serve, let them sit at room temperature for a few minutes so you can pop the cheesecakes out of the muffin tin and peel off cupcake liners.
- You can store cheesecakes in freezer for about a week. When eating the leftovers, I like to let them sit at room temperature for about 15-20 minutes to thaw.
- ¾ c. raw cashews, soaked in water overnight
- juice from ½ a lemon
- pinch of salt
- ¼ c. grade B maple syrup
- 1.5 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cap of pure vanilla extract
- water and/or non-dairy milk as needed
- approx. 2 small sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped or whole
- optional: toppings like homemade jam, fresh fruit, nuts, chocolate, coconut flakes
- Drain and rinse cashews.
- Put cashews, lemon juice, salt, maple syrup, olive oil, and vanilla extract in a blender. Use water or non-dairy milk (or a combo) and add a few splashes as needed to help thin the mixture and get everything blended.
- Once you have a creamy mixture of medium thickness (you don't want it watery or super thick), add in the rosemary and blend until distributed throughout.
- Pour batter into cupcake liners that have been placed in a muffin tin.
- Place in freezer for 4-6 hours. When ready to serve, I like to let them sit at room temperature for a few minutes so you can pop the cheesecakes out of the muffin tin and peel off cupcake liners.
- You can store cheesecakes in freezer for about a week. When eating the leftovers, I would let them sit at room temperature for about 15-20 minutes to thaw.
Toppings are encouraged! I used some leftover frozen berries I had lying around to make a homemade jam. I just heated them in a saucepan and added coconut sugar to sweeten it. Once the jam was completely cool, I added it to the cheesecakes so it wouldn’t melt them.
These cheesecakes are so creamy and rich. They taste like cheesecake ice cream if I’m trying to be completely accurate! And I love that raw cheesecakes are so easy to make and only take a few ingredients! No excuses not to, right?
Jillian
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