Chocolate 'Cheese'cake

Once again, I've neglected this poor little blog in favour of numerous school assignments threatening to squish me under their weight. Teachers don't care about Instagram, recipes or blogs. Teachers care about incomprehensible theorems, calculators and serving horrible non-vegan food. That's what they do. Plus the lighting this time of the year S-U-C-K-S so I obviously don't have a lot to post at the moment. This being said, I did find the time to do a little baking this weekend and I proudly present to you this Vegan Chocolate "Cheesecake"! The ones I made were miniature versions which means you can enjoy a slice whenever you want to. There's always room for a tiny slice of cake. As far as I'm concerned, there's always room for muh-assive wedges of decadent chocolate cakes of any kind, but mind you, I know everyone doesn't agree. So here we have it, small in size but big in flavour!

(Oh and I know I've been inconsistent with the measurements in this recipe, grams here and cups there. If you don't have access to a kitchen scale, just play it by ear, taste as you go, and I'm sure you'll do just fine!)

Chocolate Cheesecake (No-Bake!)

Filling:

About 15-18 medium sized dates (175g)

1 heaped cup raw cashews, soaked overnight (150 g unsoaked)

1 can full fat coconut milk, chilled overnight in the fridge

1 tbsp coconut oil

3 tbsp cacao or cocoa powder

A pinch of salt (to enhance the chocolate flavour)

Crust:

150 g dried figs

1/4 cup oats

1/4 cup dried mulberries

Chocolate topping:

2 tbsp coconut oil, melted

2 tbsp cacao or cocoa powder

1 tbsp liquid sweetener of your choice

How to:

1. Place the figs and oats in a food processor and blend on high until you have a sticky ball of fig-oat deliciousness.
2. Divide the dough in two parts and press each part out into a non-stick springform pan, about 10 cm/4 inches across. You could also use a bigger cake tin, about 15 cm/6 inches in diameter.
3. Open the can of coconut milk and spoon out the hard, creamy layer that has formed on top, into your food processor/high speed blender along with the rest of the filling ingredients. Save the leftover "water" for smoothies and such, it's packed full of wonderful coconut flavour.
4. Blend on high until silky smooth. Be patient- it takes time. But the more you blend the better your filling will be. Stop now and then to scrape down from the sides if necessary.
5. Once the filling is done, pour it into the springform pan(s) and leave for at least 7 hours to set in the freezer.
6. When the cheesecakes have set, mix the ingredients for the chocolate topping in a small bowl until they're well incorporated. Let the "sauce" cool down a bit before you pour it on top of the cheesecakes, that way you'll prevent a runny, chocolate-y mess from happening.

Let each slice thaw for a few minutes before serving!

Enjoy and have a wonderful day!
Tilda

Mint Chocolate Chip Nice Cream

Mint chocolate chip has always been one of my ice cream favourites so I was really happy when I realized that I could totally do a healthy take on this good old classic using bananananas instead of cream. Plus, ice cream making doesn't get any easier than this. Just chuck it all in the food processor and watch magic happen!

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream:

3-4 frozen bananas (~330g)

1/4 cup plant based milk

A few drops of peppermint oil or extract, adjust amount after strength

1 tsp matcha green tea powder

1/2 tsp wheatgrass (optional)

Chocolate sauce:

1 tsp liquid sweetener of choice

1 tsp cacao powder

1 tsp almond milk OR melted coconut oil

Optional:

Vegan chocolate chips/chopped dark chocolate/raw cacao nibs to serve as the chocolate chips

How to:

1. To make the ice cream, simply blend all ingredients in a food processor until completely smooth. I like to blitz everything until all the banana coins have been broken down by the blades before adding the milk. Do what works best for you though, and feel free to add more milk if it won't blend with 1/4 cup.

2. For the chocolate sauce, all you have to do is mix all the ingredients together with a fork. If you decide to use the coconut oil it will harden once you pour it onto the ice cream (provided it hasn't melted ofc) which is kind of cool. 

3. Spoon the nice cream up in a bowl or a tall glass, top with chocolate sauce and chocolate chips and serve immediately!

No-bake Vegan Chocolate Tart

This is one of my absolute favourite recipes; it’s super easy and quick to make and has the most wonderful, rich, chocolate-y taste, the perfect healthy alternative to satisfy those chocolate cravings!

No-bake Vegan Chocolate Tart

‘Crust’

 ½ cup cashew nuts

1/3 cup pitted dates

1 pinch of salt 

¼ tsp pure vanilla extract/powder

Chocolate Filling

1 can full fat coconut milk, chilled overnight in the fridge  
      

4 squares good quality dark chocolate

¼ cup pitted and peeled dates (soaked overnight to make them easier to peel if you’re not using fresh

1 tbsp. cacao powder

How to:
1. Start by blending all of the ingredients for your crust in a food processor until thick dough forms. 
2. Press the dough out in a lined pie dish (a small one, mine’s about 6” wide) and put it in the freezer while you prepare your filling.
3. Open the can of coconut milk and spoon out the thick, creamy layer that has formed on top of the ‘water’ and put it in the food processor along with the dates and cacao powder. Save the leftover coconut water to add in smoothies- it’s packed with beautiful coconut flavour, trust me. You could also save a tablespoon or two of the coconut cream to decorate with.
4. Blend the chocolate filling ingredients until they’re evenly combined- it might look like it has split but we’ll fix this in a moment. 
5. Melt the dark chocolate and pour into the chocolate filling while it’s still hot and blend again until you have a smooth mixture of chocolaty goodness.
6. With a spatula, pour the filling into the pie crust; decorate with coconut cream if you'd like and put it back in the freezer for a few hours (provided you can contain your inner chocolate monster for that long) to set. Eat frozen or let sit on the counter top for a few minutes for a creamier consistency!

Please let me know if you give these a try :)

Chocolate kisses, Tilda