Oh. My. This dessert. Raw Vegan Chocolate Almond Cheesecake.
I have 2 exciting things to share with you today! First, I was absolutely honored and thrilled when I was contacted by Rawguru and Raw Food Recipes to create some recipes featuring their Rawmio and Dastony products. Raw Food Recipes is a large site with the best source of vegan, vegetarian and raw recipes and is truly a beautiful site, that I’m thrilled to be a part of.
Most of you who follow my blog and know me in real life, know I’m huge on all natural products. I don’t like to use products with weird additives or artificial ingredients. So, getting the opportunity to create some delicious vegan cheesecake using their products with all unprocessed ingredients was like a dream come true. I was like a little kid when the products arrived. A vegan cheesecake was the only thing I could think about. Dairy-free and oil-free, of course.
Their products are raw, organic, vegan, gluten-free, oil-free and stone ground!!
Today’s dessert is highlighting their original chocolate almond butter. It only has 3 ingredients: raw almonds, cocoa nibs and coconut sugar. I immediately opened it and tasted it….so delicious and so pure. I was immediately inspired to create a recipe that highlighted it.
So, to make it a raw healthy dessert, I decided to make a vegan chocolate almond cheesecake with a gluten-free crust. I added some almonds to my cheesecake base to further bring out some almond flavor. To keep the ingredient list low, I repeat the sliced almonds and agave in the crust, so no need for any additional ingredients. By topping it with cocoa nibs and more almonds, it makes the perfect dessert for you guys that love chocolate and almond.
FYI: Cocoa nibs aren’t very sweet at all, so use chocolate chips on the topping if you prefer. My hubby didn’t like the cocoa nibs as much as I did.
It’s super easy to make. Prepare the chocolate crust. Then just add all the filling ingredients to your blender. Decorate and freeze, that’s it! No need to fool with eggs or heating up the oven like a typical cheesecake.
I added almonds and cocoa nibs to decorate the top, but feel free to use shaved chocolate, chocolate chips or leave it plain! Yum. If you are however in the mood for full-on chocolate, then you must try my Raw Vegan Luscious Chocolate Cheesecake. It is to-die-for.
Be sure to leave me feedback below after you make this Raw Vegan Chocolate Almond Cheesecake! I love hearing it!
Disclaimer: I was not paid or under any obligation for this product review. I was humbled to be contacted by them and all opinions expressed are 100% my own.
Raw Vegan Chocolate Almond Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Filling
- 2 heaping cups raw whole cashews 10 oz, 280g
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds or 2 heaping tablespoons almond butter
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/2 cup raw agave nectar or maple syrup, 120 mL
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup water 236 mL
- For the swirl: 6 oz jar Rawmio Chocolate Almond Butter a 1/2 cup mixed with 3 tablespoons water (or you can eliminate or use another chocolate spread
Chocolate crust
- 3 heaping cups sliced almonds not whole (11 oz, 310 g)
- 3 tablespoons raw cacao 18 g
- 4 1/2 tablespoons raw agave nectar
- pinch fine sea salt
Please note that weight measurements are also listed for accuracy in the result. Also, if you do not have the Dastony chocolate almond butter, you can just melt some chocolate chips mixed with some almond butter. Just make sure it is a thick consistency and then swirl that into the cheesecake.
Instructions
Chocolate crust
- Add almonds and cacao to a food processor and pulse into fine crumbs. Add the agave and pulse again until mixture clumps together and holds it's shape when pressed together between your fingers. Take an 8x8 square pan, spray with nonstick spray and line with plastic wrap hanging over the sides for easy removal later. The spray helps the plastic wrap from moving. Press the mixture evenly around with your fingers, not forgetting about the corners. You can add a little cacao powder to your fingers to help it not stick.
Filling
- If you do not have a high powered blender such as a Vitamix or Blendtec, simply soak the cashews for 5 hours in a bowl covered with room temperature water. Drain, rinse and then proceed with the recipe.
- Add all filling ingredients (except the chocolate almond butter) to a high powered blender and blend until smooth and creamy, a couple of minutes.
- Pour over the prepared crust.
- Mix the chocolate almond butter with 3 tablespoons water until smooth. Drop spoonfuls all over the cheesecake and pull with a knife to make swirls. Do not overdo it or you will lose the swirl effect.
- If desired, add almonds, cocoa nibs, shaved chocolate or chocolate chips on top. Note: cocoa nibs aren't very sweet, so taste them before placing them as a topping, to make sure you want to use them. Place in the freezer for several hours or overnight until firm. Let sit at room temperature about 10-15 minutes before trying to remove the cheesecake with the plastic wrap. You should be able to pull it out with the plastic wrap after it has sat out a bit. Then slice and serve. Cover with foil and return to the freezer to keep it firm.
This looks so simple and delicious! I am having a dinner party on Saturday – I may have to try making this. Only problem is that I live in Canada and have never come across “Rawmio” products. If available in Canada can you let me know who carries it?
Thanks
Cindy
Thank you so much Cindy! Oh, let me check on that real quick and let you know!
Hi Cindy! You can purchase Rawmio from several different online retailers in Canada: both Raw Elements and Truly Organic Foods.
http://www.rawelements.ca/
http://trulyorganicfoods.com/
Omg congrats Brandi!!! That’s so exciting!! And this cheesecake looks FABULOUS. Like seriously one of the most photogenic cheesecakes I’ve seen, raw or not 🙂 That swirl! I just die.
Aww thank you SO MUCH Erika!! You made my day! I was thinking the swirls looked like a mess while I was swirling, but after it froze, they looked much better, lol! 🙂
That’s the prettiest cheesecake I’ve ever seen! Congratulations on the Raw Food Recipes gig!
Wow, thank you Annie! You are too kind 🙂
Brandi, thank you SO much for creating such a special recipe with our Rawmio! @Cindy, I wanted to let you know you can purchase Rawmio from several different online retailers in Canada: both Raw Elements and Truly Organic Foods.
http://www.rawelements.ca/
http://trulyorganicfoods.com/
<3
Thank you so much Anna, it is MY honor!!
That chocolate-almond butter looks so rad, and this cheesecake is awesome! Cheesecake is my favorite food, so I love seeing it in action in any way possible!
Thank you so much Shikha!
Brandi, congratulations on the collaboration and on the feature. No one deserves this more than you. You work so tirelessly to bring us fabulous, decadent and healthy recipes that are all natural. My mouth dropped open at how gorgeous and luscious this cheesecake looks. It’s a work of art!
Thank you so much Nancy for your kind words, you made me smile big!! 🙂
Wow Brandi that is really impressive, it looks so beautiful, perfectly set. I bet it tastes just as delicious as it looks. I have friends that eat raw and desserts are well, less than appealing that I have seen, I had them here for dinner once and they asked if they could bring dessert, they said carrot cake I was thrilled to try it until I saw it. UGH, a pile of grated carrots with raisins and agave, the carrots were brown it was pretty gross looking, Your raw dessert looks incredible!!
Hahaha I literally am dying laughing Suzanne!!! That does sound gross…ewww. Yeah, I can’t imagine carrot cake raw tasting too good….especially brown carrots, lol! Well, I have had my cheesecake recipe tested on 8 different NON vegans and they all died over it and had seconds within 30 minutes, so it was a huge success. I wanted it tested before I posted it. It is a Cinnamon cheesecake recipe that I wrote a couple of months ago that I plan on posting next week, that is a similar cashew base and sets the same exact way as this one. So, this one is very similar, just emphasizing the chocolate and almond flavors. Thank you so much!
Your cheesecake is beautiful and looks so yummy Brandi! I’m a huge chocolate and cheesecake fan…yum! Congrats on becoming a featured chef too. Very cool and definitely well deserved!
Thank you so much Melanie! 🙂
This cheesecake bar looks too good to be true 😀
Delicious and almonds? Yum!
And a massive congratulations to you my friend, you deserve this opportunity!
Cheers
CCU
It was so good, thank you Uru!!
This is amazing….I’d never guess it to be first a no bake, and then raw! I’m very excited to try this out!!
Thank you Linda! Please let me know what you think 🙂
OH MY GOSH. I want this right now!!! 🙂 Looks absolutely amazing!
Haha! Thank you! 🙂
Oh My!!! Brandi, please adopt me:) This is sooo beautiful and congratulations, you deserve it.
Thank you so much Pavithra! You are too funny and sweet 🙂
The desserts look incredibly delicious and are beautiful.Congratulations on being a featured chef on the Raw Foods site.
Are you concerned with agave syrup?Is there a substitute expectant mothers,(or those expecting to be expecting), can use?
Thanks Tonette! No, I’m not concerned at all about agave…just like any sweetener, it’s only an issue if used in excess. With the exception of artificial sweeteners, which are chemicals and I don’t use. I have never heard anything about an expectant mother not being able to have agave, it’s just a natural liquid sweetener similar to maple syrup or coconut nectar, etc. If one doesn’t want to use agave, syrup is a perfect alternative, it’s just not “raw”, which is why I don’t use it here in this recipe. I normally use maple syrup in most of my baking, but use agave for raw desserts.
I NEVER consume artificial sweeteners,Brandi;I agree with you there. I know what agave is;(it is in my cabinet as I type this…maybe two ),,I have read that agave can cause miscarriages or onset of early labor. Natural or not, some foods contain chemicals with unhealthy effects..(hemlock comes to mind!)
I just try to be informed and careful, as you seem to ,also.
Continued success to you!
Thank you Tonette! I added alternate sweeteners in the recipe. 🙂 I’m sure, just like with any sweeteners or foods in general, usually these articles with these claims refer to situations of consuming too much of the particular ingredient. Who knows…..the media changes what’s good or bad constantly. Of all the thousands of raw food recipes out there that use agave, I’ve never once seen or heard a disclaimer about agave and pregnancy, so it must not be something very “proven”. When I think about what people, pregnant or not, consume on a day to day basis with eating out, fast food, packed foods, cokes, coffe, foods with loads of preservatives, chemicals and sodium, I think those daily choices are MUCH more of an issue rather than anything else. I see all the time people can get so hung up on one ingredient without realizing the sum of all their choices in general that has effects. Regardless, there are alternatives, simple as that. It’s a dessert, to be eaten every now and then with one slice. I believe whole heartedly in what I put in my recipes. I take it with a grain of salt what these articles say, because the very next one will “disprove” what the previous one says. 🙂
I just googled it and saw what you are referring to….seems like every month, it’s always a different article saying this sweetener, that sweetener is okay, the next day it’s bad, etc. Easy solution, just use syrup or preferred sweetener. It just won’t be considered a raw dessert, is all.
Oh yum.. I really like the drizzle topping. I have to try that out with my next dessert. Gorgeous photographs, as always. 🙂
I don’t know HOW I missed this post, but OH MY WORD! This looks absolutely GORGEOUS! What a stunningly decadent treat, I could not stop staring at your photos!
You are so sweet Brittany! Thank you so much! It was SO hard photographing them and not diving my face into the cheesecake! Haha!
The first time I saw this I thought I can’t meme this .. It’s so beautiful therefore it would be hard to make …. Not only was it easy to make it taste really good! I give this an A++ … I can’t wait to try more recipies here!!! Thank you Brandi!!
Thank you so much Johanna for the wonderful feedback! I’m so glad you loved the cheesecake and so glad you love how easy it is to make too. Delicious definitely shouldn’t have to involve painful, long steps or ingredients 🙂
It looks amazing!!! Can’t wait to taste it!!! Thank you for the recipe!!
In the filling ingredients is the 1 cup of water? I blend it with cashews and the other ingredients?
Thank you Dana! Yes, you first soak the cashews in a bowl covered with water and then drain it. Then the 1 cup of water is part of the filling ingredients, so yes you add it to the blender. Let me know when you make it! I’d love to hear! 🙂
It was divine!!! The best raw cheesecake I ever made and tasted!! I made my own chocolate almond butter, I prefer it!! Unfortunately I don’t have a powerful blender, yet, so first I roasted the almonds!! It’s easier to blend otherwise I will burn my blender!! The result was perfect!! It’s in the top of my list with my favorite deserts, raw of course!! I’ve bookmarked several recipes from your blog which I’m totally in love!!! You are genius!! Thanks again!!!
Dana, your feedback truly made me so happy! I’m thrilled it turned out so well for you and great idea to roast the cashews first! I almost always roast my nuts prior to using them, only time I don’t of course is to make it completely raw, but for blending, that is great. So happy you loved the cheesecake so much, thanks for the feedback!!
Looks absolutely amazing! Can’t wait to make this!
Don’t care for cashews, can I use almonds or other nuts?
Hi Shelly! Is it the flavor you don’t like? Because the lemon juice and sweetener do a really good job in disguising the actual cashew flavor. Cashews really do give the best texture in the cheesecake. Almonds definitely wouldn’t work. The only other nut that MIGHT work is macadamia nuts, but I have never been able to get them nearly as smooth (even with soaking) like cashews. I’ve been rather dissapointed with the results of them. They aren’t as creamy. My only other suggestion would be to use macadamia nut butter, which is already completely smooth. This is a slight guess, but I’m thinking you will need about 1 1/4 cups of the macadamia nut butter to equal what 2 cups of nuts would produce. Please let me know if you try it!
Looks really good 🙂
Are you also a supporter of truly natural/organic food, beyond deceptive certifications? did u know the usda allows a huge list of synethetic chemicals to be used by those who are certified organic by them?
I’m not exactly sure what you are asking?? I love organic raw food brands but I’m not an expert or anything on the subject 🙂
What kind of raw cacao should I use for the crust? I have cacao nibs and powder, so hopefully it’s one of those 🙂 Thanks!
Hi Laura, so sorry for the delay! I somehow missed your comment! I just used regular unsweetened raw cacao powder, which is basically just the unprocessed version of regular cocoa powder. Feel free to use any cocoa powder you like, unsweetened.
This sounds like just about the BEST recipe EVER!! i
m going to add some coconut. Can’t wait to make it!!!!
Awesome, please let me know how it turns out!!
I wasn’t able to locate the RawGuru and so had to replace it with a vegan cacao coconut butter but this cheesecake was insane! I’m not vegan but was making lunch for some guests, one of whom was and so I wanted the desssert to be vegan for everyone. I’m a baker by trade and honestly, this was just fantastic and all the guests went….well…they went nuts over it! Thank you so much!
Thank you so much Anita! I’m so happy to hear this was such a hit, thank you so much for the feedback!!
I love a good raw cheesecake… and this one I’ll be dreaming about until I eat it. I’ve never tried that spread before, but it’s on the list now!! Beautiful, Brandi!
Thank you so much Alison, that is so kind of you to say! You could just mix almond butter with some melted chocolate and that would work too 🙂
Wow! I discovered your blog via We Heart Living! This looks uh—–mazing! Great blog!
Aww thank you so much!! So glad you found me!
Hi Brandi, Im new to making raw vegan recipes and was just wondering, could I soak & drain the cashews ahead of time and then fridge them until the next morning when I’d be making the cheesecake? Can’t wait to try your recipe! Thanks.
Absolutely Erin, that would definitely work! Please let me know how the cake turns out, I’d love to hear!
Hey Brandi, just saw that this dessert of yours and one of mine got featured side by side on We Heart Living and I HAD to take a peek immediately. This cheesecake looks incredible, as do all your things. And that Rawmio chocolate almond butter looks to die for. I’ll trade you a slice for a raw carrot cake? 😉
Awesome Audrey! Thank you so much! SO exciting to be featured next to you!! xx
Ok I totally messed up this recipe, I put all of the filling ingredients in the Vitamix as it said, the Rawmio is listed under the filling ingredients!! So low and behold when it is time to mix the chocolate almond butter with water, I realized I didn’t have any :/.. It’s in the freezer now, hope it’ll still have a great taste. I’ve never been good at desserts
Oh no! That’s never happened before…yeah the chocolate almond butter is for the swirl, like in the photos. I went ahead and added a little note in the directions just to be absolutely clear. But don’t worry, I don’t think it would mess up the actual cheesecake…it will just make it more sweeter probably, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing! 🙂
I agree that it should still be good. I’m looking forward to tasting it!
It is awesome, despite my mistake!
Yay! I am so glad to hear that, thank you so much for the feedback!
Can you substitute another nut for cashew? Have a cashew allergy in family.
Hi Dee! Unfortunately, the recipe is dependent on cashews and I haven’t tested it with another nut and cashews give the most creamy effect. I do have another cheesecake that you could always swirl some chocolate into and it is cashew-free. It is also kept in the fridge and doesn’t require to be frozen. Here it is: https://thevegan8.com/2014/05/14/cinnamon-vanilla-new-york-style-cheesecake/
Hi, your cake looks fantastic and I’m going to try it this weekend. As I live in Germany I hope that the ingredients I bought are equivalent to those you use. I just have one question: When you say cup, which size do you use? We usually take small cups for measuring baking ingredients when there are no further specifications but that doesn’t seem to be enough for that recipe.
I made this for my family and they LOVED IT! This recipe was easy to make! My husband said it is his favorite cheesecake! I love love love it myself! Absolutely fabulous recipe!
I’m so happy to hear that Michelle! Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback. So thrilled this is your husband’s favorite cheesecake!
This was amazing! I tweaked it a bit by adding about 1/2 a tsp of almond extract to the crust and cutting the agave nectar (in both the crust and filling) in half. It was still plenty sweet. I took your suggestion and used my homemade almond butter with melted chocolate chips for the swirl-in portion.
Thanks for this wonderful recipe. Even my husband was delighted!
Hi Graham’s Mom!! I’m so thrilled you loved this cheesecake so much, that makes me really happy to read your feedback! SO glad my sub swirl suggestion worked perfect too, thank you so much for the awesome feedback! 🙂
Awesome recipe! Actually not that hard to make, quickly whipped it together. The hardest part is waiting for it it chill in the freezer! I did not use Raw Mio and instead subbed almond butter. Still amazing. I will definitely make this again. And usually I don’t love the taste of a raw crust, but this one did not bother me at all! Thanks so much for the recipe! My non-gluten free husband ate more of it than I did❤️
So happy to hear that Annemarie! Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback! I really am thrilled to hear it was a hit for everybody!
Pardon me if this has already been asked: do you think this would turn out if I soaked the nuts? We absolutely do not eat raw nuts due to the phylic acid.
Thanks!
Oh yes, absolutely! Soaking is completely fine and what I recommend if a high-powered blender isn’t available. Just make sure to drain and rinse them and then proceed. Let me know what you think!
This cheesecake looks wonderful! Is there any other nuts besides cashews that I could use as I’m allergic to them? Thank you so much😀
Hi Melissa! I have never tried macadamias in this, so I can’t say for sure, but that would be the best sub, as no other nut will be as creamy. Macadamias themselves are not as creamy as cashews. I’m not a big fan of their flavor either. Do you have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix? Macadamias are much harder to get smooth too, so you would need to soak them overnight, drain and then rinse. I’m assuming you are just allergic to cashews? I also have this cheesecake that is actually divine and sets up in the fridge really quickly and no nuts, just coconut. The texture is absolutely amazing and creamy. https://thevegan8.com/2014/05/14/cinnamon-vanilla-new-york-style-cheesecake/
As someone who has never liked cream cheese these desserts are perfect for me. I do have a question I’ve not been able to get an answer to. Maybe you know. All the vegan cheesecake recipes I have seen have lemon juice in them. I do like lemon but not in everything. Is the reason for it to give the tartness that cream cheese has? I’m wondering if it’s essential to the recipe or something I could leave out. This one looks delicious!
Hi Anna! Yes, the lemon is strictly to give it that tang that traditional cheesecake has. I promise, this does not taste “lemony”…I don’t add too much to where it tastes like lemon, it just gives it a tang. It’s been one of my biggest recipes to blow away dairy people, so I think you would really enjoy it. I definitely wouldn’t leave it out, as then it will be a little flat tasting and the cashews will taste too strong. The lemon hides the cashew flavor. Let me know if you try it!
Why is this called cheese cake? It has no cream cheese in it. What is the white part made of in this recipe. Have I missed something?
Yes, you missed the recipe posted above. It’s right above the comment section above here. That lists the recipe and how to make it. The “white part” comes from the cashews. It is called cheesecake to symbolize that it’s flavor is reminiscent of a traditional cheesecake. But since this is a vegan blog, dairy cream cheese is not used. But it tastes like one and all my non-dairy friends and readers eat it up! Lots of vegan blogs use titles like “cheesecake”, “meatballs”, and vegan cheese sauces are all over the internet so that readers know the flavor profile the recipe is recreating, but without the traditional ingredients since so many people avoid meat or dairy. Hope that helps!
One of my top 5 favorite recipes of all time right here! This recipe is such a delicious, healthy sweet treat and is always a crowd-pleaser. Vegans and non-vegans alike will want seconds…trust me!
Thank you SOOOO much for this! I’ve been looking for a vegan cheesecake without dates (I’m allergic) for ages !
Is it okay if I use my local brand of chocolate-almond butter?
Oh perfect!! Yes, definitely! Come back and rate the recipe after you make it! Hope you love it!
Help!!!
Can’t find the Rawmio chocolate almond butter on THIER site or on Amazon!!
Hi Louann, such a bummer they don’t sell it anymore! You can use another chocolate spread if you like or just make your own. I would mix almond butter with cocoa powder and maple syrup and mix until smooth and thick but smooth enough to swirl around in the cheesecake. There are other chocolate nut butter spreads on the market or recipes or just mix it up on your own to taste.
I would use this chocolate syrup on this recipe linked here on the waffles, but double the almond butter so it’s thicker.
https://thevegan8.com/2017/08/30/vegan-gluten-free-chocolate-waffles/
Hi Brandi! I am very excited to make this, but I was wondering: what is the reason for using sliced almonds vs. whole in the crust.
Thanks!