New York-style baked coconut & vanilla “cheesecake”
Here’s another dessert I was thrilled about when I managed to veganize it – baked cheesecake was my favourite dessert before going vegan. I use shop-bought, coconut-based vegan “cream cheese” in the mix and caramel Lotus Biscoff biscuits for the base.
Recipe excerpted with kind permission from the newly released Vegan 100 by Gaz Oakley (Quadrille, £20) Photography © Simon Smith.
Ingredients
fresh mint, to decorate
For the base:
300 g Lotus Biscoff biscuits
300 g Lotus Biscoff biscuits
160 g (2/3 cup) vegan “butter”, melted
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
For the filling:
65 g (1/2 cup) almond flour (ground almonds)
360 g vegan “cream cheese”
1 x 400 ml (14 oz) can coconut milk
200 g (1 cup) unrefined caster (granulated) sugar
5 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour
3 tbsp cornflour (aka cornstarch)
2 tsp vanilla extract
For the stewed rhubarb:
4 sticks of rhubarb, chopped
juice and zest of 1 orange
120 ml (1/2 cup) water
4 tbsp agave nectar
Instructions
1
Preheat the oven to 170˚C (340˚F). Lightly grease a loose-bottom cake tin approximately 23 cm (9 inches) in diameter and 7.5–10 cm (3 – 4 inches) deep.
2
First make the base. Blitz the Biscoff biscuits in a blender until they are a fine crumb. Keep blending and add the butter and coconut oil. Tip the biscuit mixture into the greased cake tin and use a spoon to press the mixture to form
an even biscuit layer in the base and up the sides. Pop the tin into the fridge until needed.
an even biscuit layer in the base and up the sides. Pop the tin into the fridge until needed.
3
Clean out the blender. Put the almond flour in the blender with the cream cheese and coconut milk. Blend until the mixture is super-smooth. Add the sugar, flour and cornflour and lightly blend until they are well incorporated.
Finally, add the vanilla extract to taste and pulse to mix.
Finally, add the vanilla extract to taste and pulse to mix.
4
Remove the base from the fridge, pour in the filling and smooth the top, making sure it’s level. Fill a deep baking tray with warm water around 2.5 cm (1 inch) high, then place the cake tin into it. NB If you are using a cake tin that
isn’t sealed you must wrap the bottom of the tin with foil to stop any water getting into the cake.
isn’t sealed you must wrap the bottom of the tin with foil to stop any water getting into the cake.
5
Carefully transfer the tray to the middle shelf of the oven to bake for 1 hour.
6
After 1 hour of cooking, carefully remove the tray from the oven and leave to cool for 1 hour before removing the cake from the tray. Wipe the bottom dry and chill in the fridge to set through for at least 3 hours.
7
Meanwhile, make the stewed rhubarb. Simply heat the chopped rhubarb in a saucepan with the rest of the ingredients and simmer over a low heat for 8–10 minutes, or until the rhubarb is tender.
8
Once the cake has chilled right through, carefully release it from the cake tin. Use a hot knife to cut slices and serve with the warm stewed rhubarb. Decorate with fresh mint.
