Raw blackcurrant & vanilla cheesecake recipe
Recipe by Harriet Meyer-Knight
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For the crust
½ cup raw cashews
½ cup activated almonds
½ cup pitted dates
2 T coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla bean powder
¼ tsp kosher salt
For the cheesecake
2 cups cashews, soaked in cold water for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight
½ cup coconut cream
¼ cup coconut oil
⅓ cup maple syrup
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 T vanilla bean powder
¼ cup freeze-dried blackcurrant powder
For the berry layer
1 cup fresh or frozen ViBERi Blackcurrants or ViBERi SuperBeri Mix (thawed, if frozen)
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 T chia seeds
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- Place the crust ingredients into a high-powered blender and pulverize until it comes together into a sort of sticky dough, with small nut bits remaining. Don’t over process. Press evenly on the bottom of a bottomless cake tin (roughly 20 cm).
- In a high-powered blender, combine all filling ingredients except the freeze-dried blackcurrants. Blend for about 2 minutes, or until the mixture is silky smooth and creamy. Scrape down the sides, as necessary. You may need to add a bit more coconut milk or lemon juice to get it to blend smoothly if your blender isn’t super high-powered. Once it’s smooth, taste the mixture and adjust the sweetness and tartness levels by adding more maple syrup, vanilla or lemon juice, if desired.
- Pour two-thirds of the filling into the prepared pan over the crust. Smooth out the top and tap the pan hard against the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. Place in the freezer. Add the freeze-dried blackcurrants to the remaining batter and blend to incorporate. Spread over the plain layer. Return to the freezer.
- Rinse out the blender and add the fresh or thawed blackcurrants, lemon juice and chia seeds to it. Blend until smooth, then pour over the other layers.
- Place in the freezer to set for at least 3 hours or until completely firm before slicing and serving. Run your knife under hot water to warm it up before cutting the cheesecake with the still-hot (dried) knife. You can let it thaw for about 20 minutes from frozen at room temperature, or for the best texture, transfer to the refrigerator at least an hour before serving. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.
- Serve with a sprinkle of fresh or freeze-dried berries and edible flowers like pansies if you have them.
