Since this whole crazy health crisis started, I’ve been doing a lot of stress baking—and, no, the irony of eating sweets during a health crisis does not escape me. The way I see it, I’m better off making the snacks myself, so I can at least control the amount and type of sugar, and avoid weird tongue-twisting ingredients that the human body is not meant to ingest.
Enter this dairy-free 7-Ingredient Vegan Cheesecake recipe. The base, with cashews, is surprisingly satisfying, so even though the cakes are teeny, I don’t feel the urge to eat them all in one sitting. (Well, I do, but it’s easy to keep it in check because they’re pretty filling.) The original recipe suggests several different toppings, but I’ve chosen blueberries, partly because I still have a bunch of pick-your-own local berries in my freezer, and partly because it’s fruit, so that makes it a health food. Or something.
Tips:
- I found the walnut/date crust in the original recipe to be too sticky and heavy. Instead, I mix about 1 cup of crumbled graham crackers with 2 to 3 tablespoons margarine/vegan butter until it begins to stick together.
- Light coconut milk can be used in place of full-fat, though the cakes will be slightly less firm.
- If you don’t have fresh berries, you can swirl a teaspoon of jam into each cake.
Beverage suggestion: Pomegranate juice if you’re keeping it G-rated; Pinot Blanc if it’s wine o’clock
Robin Catalano believes in the power of storytelling to connect communities and cultures. She’s applied her creative approach to writing for magazines, books, blogs, websites, and a wide variety of marketing projects, and has published more than 75 articles and 1,000+ blog posts. As an editor, she has worked on more than 350 books for publishers including Penguin Random House, Workman, and Simon & Schuster. She has also served as a book coach for independent authors, helping them take their ideas from concept to print. An avid traveler and travel writer, Robin lives, reads, and writes voraciously in upstate NY.
