raw. vegan. refined sugar free. blueberry cheesecake

RAW. VEGAN. REFINED SUGAR FREE Blueberry Cheesecake

Slightly adapted from RAMY Health

PRE-SOAK the night before in separate bowls:

2-1/3 cups raw cashews 

1 cup dates

CRUST

2 cups raw slivered almonds

1 cup pre-soaked dates (soaked from the night before)

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

zest of 1/2 lemon

juice of 1/2 lemon

generous pinch of kosher salt ***Do this to taste. Leaving it out will result in a bland crust***

CHEESECAKE

2-1/3 cups raw cashews (soaked from the night before)

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup agave/maple syrup/honey 

***I used honey which technically is not vegan. :( ***

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

juice of 1/2 lemon

generous pinch of kosher salt ***Do this to taste. Leaving it out will result in a bland cheesecake filling***

If needed, add 1 - 2 tablespoons of almond milk ***Only add the almond milk if your mixture is not blending in your food processor.***

BLUEBERRY TOPPING

1/2 cup blueberries - fresh or frozen

1/4 cup agave/maple syrup/honey

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup blueberries - fresh or frozen for garnish

***I like to cook my blueberries with a little honey in a small saucepan until it's thick and syrup-y.***

Remember to pre-soak the cashew and dates in separate bowls overnight.

Line a 8 x 8 square pan with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a food processor, pulse all CRUST ingredients until dough-like. Press CRUST into prepared pan and flatten with hand/fingers getting into corners and sides evenly.

Carefully wipe out food processor bowl and pulse CHEESECAKE ingredients. Blend until smooth. Add almond milk if needed. Cheesecake mixture should look thick and smooth. ***Depending on your food processor, the cashews will not come out entirely smooth.***

Spread mixture out onto your prepared crust.

Wash out your food processor bowl. In your clean bowl, pulse BLUEBERRY TOPPING ingredients. This mixture will look a chunky from the coconut oil if your coconut oil is in a solid form/cold. Spread topping onto cheesecake. Wrap pan in plastic and freeze for 4 hours or overnight.

Remove from freezer, cut into squares and top with blueberries (fresh or cooked with honey).

vegan blueberry muffins

My doctor has presented me with a health challenge and I'm testing out a vegan diet for a couple of months. I'm already a vegetarian so giving up meat is not an issue. But no butter? No milk/cream? No cheese? Probably one of the worst times of the year to quit eating dairy with Thanksgiving & Christmas on the horizon. Anyway, I'm on week two and I'm not gonna lie, it's challenging. Tofutti products, soy/almond/oat milks and non-dairy based butters fill my frig now. Thank goodness that "some" dark chocolate is vegan. I've got to have something! 

These vegan blueberry muffins look and kind of taste like regular blueberry muffins. They are missing the taste of buttery-goodness, but if you're allergic to dairy or like me testing out a vegan diet, give these a try. I especially liked them warm out of the oven and slathered with fake butter spread. Yum!

Vegan Blueberry Muffins
slightly adapted from Madhuram's Eggless Cooking
makes 9 muffins

INGREDIENTS
2 cup all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
zest of a lemon
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup soy milk ***Soy milk worked best for me. Almond milk resulted in dense, and not as fluffy muffins.***
1/3 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1-1/2 cups blueberries - fresh or frozen

Preheat your oven to 375ºF. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper liners. Set aside. 

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt and lemon zest. In another bowl, whisk together sugar, soy milk, oil, vanilla extract and vinegar. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and with a spatula gently fold/mix together. Try not to over mix. Add the blueberries and gently fold them into the batter.

With a large scoop, divide batter into the prepared muffin tin. ***I was able to get 9 muffins.*** Bake for 18 - 22 minutes. 

The muffins will be golden brown on top. You can also insert a tooth pick into a muffin and when it comes out clean, they're done. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin.

basic muffins

My pantry and frig are ALWAYS stocked to make anything. I have on hand basic staples for baking - eggs, butter and milk in my frig, and some sort of frozen fruit in my freezer. The base of these muffins can be made with everyday staples from your kitchen and the blueberries can swapped out for your favorite mix-ins.


I found this recipe many moons ago from Martha Stewart"s Everday Food magazine. If you want blueberry muffins in a hurry, this recipe is for you!!!


Basic Muffins
makes 12 regular muffins or 8 jumbo ones


1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled ***I know this sounds like A LOT of butter. It's technically one tablespoon for each muffin.***
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt


1 1/2 cups blueberries - fresh or frozen
zest of half a lemon ***My addition and optional.***
turbinado sugar for sprinkling ***Turbinado sugar or raw sugar are those brown little packets from your local coffee shop. Just snag a couple extra packets the next time you grab a cup-a-joe.***


Preheat oven to 375˚. Line your muffin tin with paper cupcake liners or brush with melted butter and dust with flour. Set aside.

***You can also cut out large squares of parchment paper and press them into the muffin tins. Or you can buy them pre-cut and pre-formed online.***


In a small bowl or measuring cup - mix together melted butter, eggs, milk and vanilla. ***If you're using lemon zest, add into wet ingredients.***
In a large bowl - whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
Add wet mixture to dry ingredients. Gently fold/mix until moist. Do not over mix. Add in your desired mix-ins. ***Here is where you add your blueberries.*** Gently fold.
Using a large cookie scoop, divide evenly into your prepared muffin tin. 

***Sprinkle with turbinado sugar for added texture and crunch. I've also dotted mine with more blueberries.***


Bake for 15 - 20 minutes.
Remove muffins from their tin and cool slightly. Serve warm.


Mix-Ins
Corn Muffins - reduce flour to 1 cup and add 3/4 cup of cornmeal and 1/3 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels (optional).
Berry Muffins - fold in 1 1/2 cups blueberries, raspberries, or chopped strawberries.
Cherry Pecan Muffins - fold in 3/4 cup chopped pecans and 3/4 cup dried cherries.
Chocolate Chip Muffins - reserve 1 tablespoon of flour from the recipe to toss with 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips. Fold into batter. the flour prevents the chips from sinking to the bottom.
Other yummy mix-ins - 3/4 cup chopped banana and 1/2 cup walnuts. 1/3 cup of peanut butter and dollops of raspberry jelly on top before baking. 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 3/4 cup chopped apple.