Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake

🍰 Why We Love This Recipe

• Baked: Most vegan cheesecake recipes are no bake. While we still love how they taste, a baked vegan cheesecake definitely tastes a bit more like a classic cheesecake. The texture is soft and smooth, but still firm enough to hold up well for that perfect slice. It's absolutely delicious!
• Triple chocolate: With a chocolate cookie crust, chocolate filling, and chocolate ganache topping, this cheesecake is a chocolate lover's dream.
• Totally vegan and gluten free (optional): This recipe has all the silky richness and tanginess of a traditional cheesecake, without any of the dairy. It's also super easy to make gluten free with one simple swap!
• Easy to make: I think this vegan chocolate cheesecake is way easier to make than a regular cheesecake. You don't have to worry about using a water bath for baking, and it doesn't crack like a regular cheesecake!

🍫 Ingredients

Here's what you'll need to make this baked vegan chocolate cheesecake:

📋 Ingredient Notes

• Cashews: Be sure to use unsalted, raw cashews! It's also important to soak the cashews for at least two hours so they blend into a smooth filling. If they aren't soaked, the filling will be gritty.
• Arrowroot powder or cornstarch: Arrowroot may be harder to find than cornstarch, but they both work equally well to help firm up the finished cheesecake. We use it as a stabilizing and thickening agent since vegan cheesecakes don't contain egg like their non-vegan counterpart.
• Chocolate: We think semisweet is best in this cheesecake. Super dark chocolate will make for a bitter and very rich cheesecake. If that's your thing, go for it! But we prefer ours on the slightly sweeter side, so somewhere around 60% cacao content. When it comes to chocolate chips vs. chopped chocolate, either works in this recipe.
• Coconut cream: Coconut cream comes in a can and should have a thicker cream on the top and a thinner, milk-like liquid on the bottom. Be sure to only use the thicker cream layer in this recipe, otherwise the cheesecake filling will be too thin.
• Cocoa powder: We use an unsweetened cocoa powder in this recipe.
• Maple syrup: You can also substitute with agave syrup or another liquid sweetener of choice.

🔪 Step-by-step Instructions

(1) Soak cashews in room temperature water for 2-3 hours, then drain and rinse. Preheat oven to 350˚F / 175˚C.

(2) Add chocolate sandwich cookies and melted butter to a food processor and pulse until they form a crumb mixture. 

(3) Using the flat bottom of a measuring cup (or your hands), press the crust mixture into a 9" springform pan. Press the crust about 1" up the sides of the pan.

Bake the crust for 7 minutes, then remove from the oven and set a side. 

Reduce oven heat to 300˚F / 150˚C.

(4) To make the filling, add the cashews, coconut cream, cacao powder, cornstarch, cream cheese, maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt to a blender. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed to make sure all ingredients are evenly incorporated.

(5) Stream in the melted chocolate and continue blending until completely smooth. 

(6) Pour the filling into the crust and bake for 1 hour. After 1 hour, turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another 30 minutes so it can cool slowly (this will prevent cracking). Remove cheesecake from the oven and continue cooling for 30 minutes.  

(7) Add the coconut milk to a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat until very hot, but not simmering. Remove from heat and whisk/stir in chocolate until fully melted.

(8) Pour over the cooled cheesecake, then transfer to refrigerator to set for 2-3 hours.

(9) Optional: top with strawberry slices. To make this flower effect, we simply layer thinly sliced strawberries in concentric circles, starting from the outside. It's easy and looks fantastic! You can also finish off your cheesecake by dusting it with powdered sugar.

💭 Expert Tips and FAQs

• Soften your cream cheese: For the smoothest possible filling, bring your cream cheese to room temperature before adding to the blender.
• Don't forget to reduce the oven temperature after baking the crust: The crust bakes at 350˚, but you'll need to reduce to 300˚ for the actual cheesecake. We've found that in order to cook the cheesecake through without drying out the top, it needs to bake low and slow.
• Leave your cheesecake in the oven for 30 minutes to cool: Once the baking time is up, turn off your oven, but leave the cheesecake in there. We often prop the door open slightly with an oven mitt or dish towel. This helps the cheesecake cool slowly, which prevents cracking and helps it set.
• For best results: Let the cheesecake cool fully before slicing. It's best if you refrigerate the baked cheesecake for several hours before slicing, which gives it time to fully set. It also tastes best cold!
• Make it gluten free: Swap the sandwich cookies with a gluten free alternative. Otherwise, this vegan chocolate cheesecake is fully GF!
• Toppings: We love topping our vegan chocolate cheesecake with fresh berries, particularly strawberries. The freshness pairs perfectly with the rich chocolate! Raspberries are also a great choice. You can also serve a slice with vegan whipped cream to add a slightly lighter component.
• Storage: Store leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
• Freezer storage: You can also store individually wrapped slices in the freezer for up to 6 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

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