Blueberry, Lime & Coconut Vegan Cheesecake

Craving some cheesecake and the tropical flavors of summer? This is a perfect treat to escape the cold for a bit, and enjoy a healthier for you version of your typical overly fattening cheesecake. Completely dairy free, this tasty cake is also packed with protein. Whenever I used to eat dairy cheesecake, it would often make me feel nauseous because it was just too rich. Although packed with flavor, this cake is amazing without creating that overbearing feeling or nausea. No sugar either.. just a touch of maple syrup to sweeten this baby, and the rest of the richness in sweetness is due to... raisins?! Can you believe that? You have to try it to believe it. It requires no baking, just pop it in the refrigerator overnight, (or if you're impatient like me, you can eat it a little under-solidified.. but it will be a bit mushy if you don't give it enough time to set...) I promise you'll enjoy it. Let's give this a go...

Ingredients for the crust:

1 cup of almonds
1 cup of raisins
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
½ cup of water

Ingredients for the filling:

1 can of coconut cream
The juice of 1 lime
⅔ cups of cashews (soaked in water 15 minutes prior to using)
2 tablespoons of maple syrup

Ingredients for the topping:

1 cup of blueberries (or any berries of your choice really.. I used blueberries and a bit of blackberries)
½ cup of raisins
1 teaspoon of lime zest

Directions:

Let your cashews soak in water for about 15 minutes and put aside for now, best to let them soak before beginning anything else to save time so they will be ready once you need to use them. Blend together your crust ingredients in a food processor and spread along the bottom of pie pan(s) of your choice. You can use 1 8-9" round, or mini pie molds. Cleaning the processor is optional if you don't mind a few chunks of leftover crust mixed in with your filling. Add filling ingredients into your food processor, making sure cashews are drained and dried before adding. Blend well and layer on top of your crust. Scrape out as much as you can from the processor, and then finally (again, it's optional to clean the processor out), add your topping ingredients. Lime zest can be gathered by grating the peel of the lime you used the juice from. Blend together well and spread over the top of your cheesecake. It's okay if the top 2 layers blend together a bit, feel free even to create swirls and designs in your cake.

Place in refrigerator overnight for best results, but if you're impatient you can get away with putting it in the freezer for a few hours until it solidifies. Unfortunately I did this but didn't let it set long enough and it turned to mush when I scooped it out. Still good of course, but I do recommend letting it set for the proper amount of time.

Serve with more fresh fruit topping of your choice (for example if you used blueberries, you can serve with fresh blueberries on top!) and even some soy ice cream if you need some kind of addition. This is the kind of cheesecake that tastes excellent on its own. Enjoy!