Sugar and Spice: Vegan gingerbread cheesecake bites
I’m a huge fan of cheesecake (the actual, regular kind), but I’d always been curious about vegan cheesecake. I made these little bites for a party, so not only was it a nice, guilt-free item among the less healthy options, but it was something that my friend with a gluten allergy could enjoy as well. As you can see, I also made a pan without the gingerbread spices, but topped with pomegranate arils.
For the crust:
- 1 cup pitted dates, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes then drained
- 1 cup raw walnuts
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
Add dates to a food processor and blend until it forms into a ball. Remove and set aside.
Add the nuts to the machine and process into a meal. Place the dates back into the food processor, along with the salt, and blend until a loose dough forms. If the mixture is too dry, add a few more dates. If too wet, add more walnuts.
For the filling:
- 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, soaked in water for 4-6 hours then drained
- scant 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons full-fat coconut milk
- 1/2 cup maple syrup (can use honey if not vegan)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger, plus more for sprinkling
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender and puree until very smooth. Taste and adjust the spices.
Grease two, 12-cup mini muffin tins with coconut oil. Place a small strip of paper (about 1/2-inch wide, 3-4 inches in length) in each tin to act as tabs for pulling out the cheesecakes once they set.
Place about 1/2 tablespoon of the crust mixture in each tin, pressing down firmly with your fingers (can be helpful to wet your fingers to keep this mixture from sticking).
Ladle the filling into the tins, gently tapping a few times to remove any air bubbles. Cover the tins with plastic wrap and freeze for about 4-6 hours.
Once set, use the tabs to pop out the cheesecakes. I found it was easiest to set the bottom of the pans in warm water for a few seconds to loosen them.
Makes 24 cheesecake bites.
Recipe adapted from: Minimalist Baker
