Strawberry Cheesecake Bites (Dairy-free and No-bake)

October 19, 2018 • Dessert • dairy-free, gluten-free, no-bake, plant-based, vegan • No comments

Let me give you the inspiration behind this recipe, besides the fact that everyone loves cheesecake! So, I was out to eat at my favorite local vegan restaurant and had their pumpkin cheesecake for dessert, which blew me away. I went home and decided I needed to recreate that masterpiece, but instead went with the classic strawberry flavor, which is my favorite. These cheesecake bites are so delicious and full of healthy fats! Another awesome thing about these is they are no-bake!

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 1 cup packed pitted medjool dates
• 1 cup raw walnuts

For the filling:

• 2 cups raw soaked cashews
• 1/2 cup canned coconut milk (shaken)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup freeze-dried strawberries

Top layer:

• 1 cup fresh strawberries
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp chia seeds

Instructions

1. For the crust- add the medjool dates to a food processor or high speed blender (I used my Vitamix). Blend until small bits remain and it forms into a ball. Remove and set aside. Next, add the raw walnuts to the blender and blend into a meal. Then add dates back in and blend until a loose dough forms. It should stick together.
2. Line a 12 slot muffin tin with paper liners. Scoop a bit more than 1 tbs of crust into each muffin slot and press down with fingers. I used a little glass cup that was the right size to push each mixture down.
3. Clean your blender. Then make the filling. Add the raw cashews (that have been soaked), canned coconut milk (shaken), coconut oil, maple syrup, lemon juice and vanilla extract to your blender and blend about 2 min on high until its silky smooth. Spoon a heaping tbs into each muffin tin to form a layer over the crust. You'll still have about half of the filling left in the blender. Place the whole tray in the freezer.
4. Add about 1 cup of freeze-dried strawberries to the filling in the blender and blend until well combined. After the cheesecakes have set in the freezer for about 10 min, remove the tray and evenly distribute the rest of the filling. Place the tray back in the freezer.
5. I used my Magic Bullet for this last part, but you can use the same blender you've been using, just clean it again before this step. Place the following in the blender: 1 cup fresh strawberries, 1 tbs lemon juice, and 1 tbs chia seeds. Puree mixture. After cheesecakes have set in the freezer for an additional 10 min, spoonful about 1 tbs of this mixture on top of each cheesecake. Top each with a strawberry and place in freezer to set for 3 hours before eating. I like to let mine thaw for about 15 min at room temperature before eating, but you can also enjoy them frozen! They will keep up to 2 weeks in a air-tight container in the freezer.