LEMON CHEESECAKE
Roses are red, violets are blue, we love cheesecake and we’re sure you do too! This refined sugar free recipe screams summer parties, from the juice and zest of the lemons to the fragrant rose petals.
This can be stored in the freezer for a couple of months. If you freeze it, make sure it is pre-sliced and take however much you plan on eating a good few hours before and store in the fridge (overnight is ideal).
INGREDIENTS
For the base:
100g oats
100g almond
100g pitted dates (medjool if possible)
100g coconut oil (melted)
SERVES 12
For the toppings:
300g cashew
400g tin of full fat coconut milk - stored in the
fridge upside down for at least 2 hours before use
Zest and juice of 5 lemons
75g agave syrup
1 tbsp vanilla extract
80g Vivo Life vanilla VEGAN PROTEIN
3 tbsp agar agar powder (available in baking
sections of most shops)
Water
Dried rose petals to garnish (optional)
METHOD
Before you start, soak the cashews in water overnight, or for 10 - 15 minutes in freshly boiled water. Place the tin of coconut milk upside down in the fridge, which will help solidify the creamy part of the coconut milk. Preheat your oven to 170°c. On a baking tray, place the oats and almonds and coat with a couple of teaspoons of the coconut oil. Place in the oven, stirring regularly, until the oats and almonds are starting to go golden. Take the tray out of the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes.
Once the almonds and oats have cooled, place into a food processor and blitz until you have a medium fine texture. Add the dates, blend again, then slowly add the remaining coconut oil until the mixture has come together. Line a springform tin with greaseproof paper and add a little oil and spread. Transfer the base mixture to the tin and press down evenly. Transfer the base to the freezer while you make the filling.
Zest and juice your lemons. Take your tin of coconut milk out of the fridge and turn it back over to it is the right way up. Open the tin and take out just the coconut solids and place in a blender. Keep the coconut water as you will use this later.
Drain the cashews and add to the blender along with 3/4 of the lemon juice, half of the lemon zest, agave syrup and vanilla extract. Now blend until it is silky smooth. If you find you need more liquid, taste the mixture to see if you would like to add more lemon juice or a bit more agave if you want it sweeter. If not, add some of the coconut water and blend until the mixture is really smooth.
Add the vanilla VEGAN PROTEIN to the mixture and blend until well incorporated. If you have coconut water left, combine it with water until you get 150ml of liquid. Add to a small pan and bring to a simmer over a medium heat.
Add the agar agar and whisk until combined. Keep stirring over heat for about 1 minute. Blend your cashew mixture again and leave it running on a low speed.
Carefully add the agar agar mixture to the blender a large spoonful at a time until it’s all been added. Increase the speed of the blender and blend until the agar agar is fully incorporated.
The mixture will now become really thick (thanks to the agar agar).
Moving quickly, take the base out of the freezer and pour the mixture on top, spreading evenly.
Top with the remaining lemon zest and gently press in. You may notice the mixture has already started to solidify. Place in the freezer for an hour or two before moving it to a fridge.
If you are able to wait, this will taste better the next day as the flavours would have come together nicely. If you can’t wait, you can serve after those 2 hours in the freezer. Slice into 12 pieces and serve.