Would you believe me if I told you that a cheesecake without any cream cheese is delicious?  Skeptic?  I was too, until I tried this… all the goodness without all the guilt.  Get your belly ready

When I’ve told others about this raw cheese-less cheesecake, the first thing they’ve asked is, “Then what it is it made out of?!”  You can imagine the crooked faces I get when I say it’s all fresh raw natural ingredients- nuts, lemon, vanilla beans, honey, and berries.  But yep, it’s true… all natural, all in their raw form, all absolutely delicious.  How could those ingredients end up tasting like cheesecake you ask?  It’s rather surprising, but all it takes it the combo. of fresh lemon juice and vanilla to create that delicious cheesecake flavor.  Those two ingredients along with the creaminess of cashews does the trick.  Who would’ve thought?!

I’ve heard of raw cheesecakes, and I have definitely tried raw treats and been surprised by their deliciousness, but I honestly didn’t think a cream-based dessert could be this good… not without dairy anyway.  That all changed a few weeks back when I was cruising through my neighborhood market and a girl offered me a sample of raw cheesecake.  I tried it, gasped, and was hooked.  Just like that.

I use a springform pan for this… it allows the cheesecake to stay together while freezing, but then be easily cut and served with its removable bottom.  (They are the pans that have the detachable bottom.)  If you don’t have one, you can make this in a standard pie pan and then scoop it out as you would any pie.  Having one helps though, I think!  (You can buy them at stores like Marshall’s & Ross for fairly cheap!)

The beauty of this recipe, beyond the taste and guilt-free aspects of course, is the ease.  No baking required, no water-baths, no worrying about timing.  You just blend the ingredients, place them all in the freezer, and enjoy.  The toughest part is planning to soak the nuts overnight before making it… and that’s just a matter of placing some nuts in a bowl of water.  Can’t get much simpler really  What I will say though, if I have to choose a con, is its cost.  Buying these ingredients, if you don’t already have them lying around, can add up… so definitely visit that bulk section if your store has one!  The market around here has coconut oil, cacao, honey, cashews, agave, almonds, dates, etc. all in bulk, so one can just buy what they need… it can help the wallet a wee.  Never bad to save money…

INGREDIENTS

Using your fingers, open up dates and remove seeds

Place the soaked almonds (pour out any excess water from the soaking),

dates, and coconut in a food processor

Blend until smooth

Empty “dough” into a springform pan (nonstick)

Press the almond crust down, creating an even smooth crust along the bottom of the pan

Now make the filling…

To get the vanilla out, cut down the center of the vanilla bean (lengthwise),

but don’t cut all the way through- you just want to open the bean up

Scrape the vanilla out using the flat/dull side of a knife

You’ll get roughly a tsp vanilla from one bean

Juice the lemons…

Place the soaked cashews, lemon juice, coconut oil, honey, and vanilla in the food processor (if using the same processor used to make the almond crust, clean it out before making the filling)

Blend until smooth and creamy

Pour the filling over the almond crust

Place the cheesecake in the freezer, uncovered, for about 5-6 hours

About 15 minutes before eating, make the topping…

Add cacao powder to honey

Stir until blended and all cacao lumps are smoothed out

Remove the cheesecake from the freezer

Top with frozen berries and cherries

Then drizzle the cacao sauce over the berries and cheesecake

Remove the springform pan

Let the cheesecake and berries soften a bit, about 10-15 minutes, cut, and serve!

To store, place remaining cheesecake back in the freezer- it will keep well for days,

being eaten and refrozen again over and over… if it lasts that long that is!!

Enjoy!

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask!!