How do you like the look of this raw, vegan mango, coconut & lime cheesecake?

If you are not used to raw, vegan cheesecakes, be warned. It is nothing like your usual cake! First of all, there’s no cheese in it. And the only ingredients in this number are foods that many people eat for breakfast — fresh fruit, nuts, coconut and dates. And last, but not least, it is divine!

When you’re into whole, unprocessed foods, and don’t eat much sugar, you’ll find that many of your deserts will border the breakfast territory.

While this cake is super wholesome, it is also high in energy (with all those nuts and coconut) — so one slice will go a long way, even if you do decide to have it for breakfast (on the odd occasion).

So who wants a slice of mango, coconut & lime cheesecake?

Recipe

Base (crust)

• 1½ cups almonds, ground into a coarse meal (or 2 cups almond meal)
• 7 dates, pitted and chopped
• 1 tbsp coconut oil, extra for greasing tin
• pinch of sea salt

Line a 22cm round springform tin with baking paper and grease the sides with coconut oil.

Pulse all the ingredients in a food processor until combined. Tip into prepared tin and press the base evenly across the bottom and up the sides. Refrigerate while preparing the filling.

Filling

• flesh of 4 ripe mangoes, chopped
• 1½ cups raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours
• 1 cup coconut butter*
• juice of 2 limes
• 2 tbsp maple syrup, or to taste (this is optional. I didn’t use any, as the cake was sweet enough for me)

*Notes: Be careful, some brands call their coconut oil, butter. You don’t want to use that. Coconut butter is desiccated coconut flesh that has been turned into butter. You can make your own coconut butter by processing desiccated coconut in a high-powered processor. Instructions here. Or you can buy it. If you have a high-powered processor, the other option is to sub the coconut butter in this recipe for 2 cups desiccated coconut — however, I haven’t tried this.

Instructions

Except for the maple syrup, process together all ingredients on high speed, until you have a silky, smooth texture. (You will need a high-powered processor.)

Taste for sweetness. If you’d like it sweeter, add the maple syrup and process until it’s mixed through.

Pour filling into the chilled base. Refrigerate overnight before serving. It will have a slightly mousse like texture. For a firmer texture, freeze for about 3 hours of hours, and then let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.