Did you hear all that static noise? 😅 Sorry about that, but now I’m finally back and I can explain. My last post was almost a year ago, and my nonexistent posting afterwards came down to three reasons: inspiration, health and frustration.
As a student who doesn’t have to make all her meals (thanks mom!), it was hard finding inspiration and motivation to make food on a weekly basis. I found myself worrying over what to make each week, and I knew if I didn’t succeed I wouldn’t have the chance to make it over again (I get stressed easily). Besides that, I also wanted to eat healthier, and although the recipes posted here were mostly healthier versions, I think we can all agree that dessert is still dessert 😁. The other reason was based on my photo skills. I just couldn’t take a pretty photo with the dark winter lighting!
Now I’ve come to realize that the goal of this blog is to share healthy recipes, and I’ve decided to continue doing that. However, I might be posting once a month only and my photos might be good or bad, who knows…
Okay, now that that’s out of the way, here’s some delicious cheesecake!
I’m not vegan, but Pinterest has been baiting me with mouthwatering photos of vegan cheesecakes for years, so I decided I would make just that. This recipe was slightly adapted from Nirvana Cakery’s Strawberry Basil Vegan Cheesecake (go check it out, her photos are amazing!).
Strawberry Basil Vegan Cheesecake
A delicious vegan cheesecake to make in the hot summer days. Prepare at least one day in advance.
Adapted from: Strawberry Basil Vegan Cheesecake – Nirvana Cakery
Ingredients:
Crust layer
60 g almonds (1/2 cup)
70 g sunflower seeds (1/2 cup)
100 g dates, about 5 (1/2 cup)
¼ lemon, zest
1 tsp. maple syrup
Strawberry layer
100 g coconut butter (1/2 cup)*
2 tbsp. coconut oil
250 g strawberries (2 cups)
120 g cashews, soaked overnight (1 cup)
½ lemon, zest
½ lemon, juice
3 tbsp. maple syrup (60 g)
1 tsp. vanilla
Basil layer
35 g fresh basil (1 cup)
120 g cashews, soaked overnight (1 cup)
½ lemon, zest
½ lemon, juice
3 tbsp. maple syrup (60 g)
1 tsp. vanilla
1 can full fat coconut milk, refrigerated overnight (scoop out coconut cream)
50 g coconut oil, melted (1/4 cup)
Instructions:
- Crust layer: In a food processor, blend together almonds and sunflower seeds. Add dates, lemon zest and maple syrup, pulsing until sticky.
- Divide equally between three 3-inch cake pans with removable bottoms (greased and layered with parchment paper), pressing down firmly. Place in fridge.
- Strawberry layer: Melt the coconut butter and coconut oil together. Set aside to cool down.
- In a blender, blend together strawberries, cashews (rinsed), lemon zest and juice, maple syrup and vanilla. Add in the melted coconut mixture and blend until smooth. Divide evenly between the three cake pans until 2/3 full (I had some extra that I put in a ramekin). Freeze for at least 2 hours.
- Basil layer: Blanch the basil by putting it in boiling hot water for fifteen seconds. Immediately rinse with cold water or put it in ice water. Squeeze out excess water. In a blender, blend together basil, cashews (rinsed), lemon zest, juice, maple syrup, vanilla and coconut cream until smooth.
- Spoon half of the basil mixture into the cake pans and freeze overnight. The rest of the mixture goes into the fridge for frosting.
- When ready, whip the frosting until smooth (I had to add some coconut milk), then pipe on top of cake.
- Leave cake to thaw in fridge before serving.
* To make coconut butter, blend 1/2 cup coconut flakes in a food processor for 5 to 10 minutes.
A Kitchen Fable 