Forget about the dairy with this delicious dairy-free cheesecake recipe. You'll love the surprise ingredients that keep it interesting in the kitchen. And there are a few steps involved, but it's absolutely worth it!
Place the graham crackers in a food processor and pulse until it resembles coarse, crumbly flour. Add the coconut oil and pulse for another second or two to combine.
Press the crumb crust into a 9" springform pan. Distribute evenly across the bottom and up a little on the sides of the pan. Set aside.
For the Vegan Meringue:
Pour the chickpea liquid into a mixing bowl (reserving the chickpeas for the filling), add the cream of tartar, and mix over medium-high speed until frothy, about one minute.
Add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing between each addition. Continue mixing on medium speed until peaks begin to form. Set aside.
For the Fluffy Dairy-free Cheesecake Filling:
Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C.
Place the chickpeas from the can of chickpeas, sugar, raw cashews, tofu, and coconut milk in a food processor. Pulse for several seconds to break down the cashews. Open the lid and stir down any ingredients that might have risen to the top. Pulse for several seconds, up to a minute until smooth and creamy.
Combine the chickpea mixture, vanilla, and lemon juice in the mixing bowl with the fluffy meringue mixture. Stir until just combined. Pour into your prepared crust.
Wrap the bottom of the pan in aluminum foil, being sure to cover the entire bottom. Place this in a roasting pan and pour water around the bottom of the pan. This is a water bath, and it will prevent the cheesecake from cracking in the middle.
Bake your cheesecake for 60 minutes and then turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in the oven for up to another hour (or until it's cooled). Remove from the oven and allow to cool before placing in the fridge. I recommend letting the cheesecake cool for at least four hours (or even a full day before slicing and serving.
For the Berry Sauce:
Prepare the berry sauce by combining the cornstarch, sugar, and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir to combine. Add the berries and bring to a boil Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for a minute or two until a thick sauce forms. Remove from heat, stir in the lemon juice, and cool. My post on blueberry sauce provides more information on making sauces.
*I used Coconut Cream from Trader Joe's and/or Sprouts because it's rich and mostly cream. Whatever kind of coconut milk you use, make sure it's a kind with a lot of fat. It helps if you refrigerate the can before making this recipe because the fat will solidify and you can easily drain the liquid. If there's a lot of liquid, you will want to drain the liquid and use that liquid in a smoothie or some other recipe.**It's not necessary to soak cashews for this recipe.If you don't have agar flakes, feel free to replace them with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.