Vegan cheesecake, one of my favorite desserts. It's delicious and creamy, and the contrast between topping and crust makes it so good!
![Photo of a vegan cheesecake](https://simpleveganblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/vegan-cheesecake-1.jpg)
I was finally able to make a vegan cheesecake! And let me tell you - I still can't believe how good it turned out. It's light and creamy, as well as sweet, and has a wonderfully satisfying flavor. Truly mouthwatering!
I made it with ingredients like coconut oil, soy milk, and vanilla extract, but it is customizable and you can replace the oil with vegan butter and use your favorite plant milk. I hope you enjoy!
Vegan cheesecake recipe - Short video
How to make vegan cheesecake - Step by step
For the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF or 180ºC. Wrap a 9 inch (23 cm) springform pan with 1 or 2 layers of aluminum foil, covering the bottom and the sides. Line the bottom of the pan with some parchment paper, and spray lightly with oil (photo 1). Set aside.
- To make the crumbs I used a food processor (photo 2).
- In a medium mixing bowl combine the crumbs together with melted coconut oil and sugar (photo 3) and stir (photo 4).
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and press it evenly (photo 5).
- Bake for 8 minutes (photo 6).
For the filling:
- Add all the filling ingredients to the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment (photo 7) and mix together until thoroughly combined (photo 8). You can also use a regular large bowl and a hand mixer.
- Pour the mixture over your crust (photo 9), and bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes (photo 10). Turn off the heat, and let the cake sit in the oven for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, let it cool completely at room temperature, then transfer to the fridge to let it cool overnight (the longer you refrigerate your vegan cheesecake, the firmer it will be).
- You can add the topping right before serving (see instructions below), but that's completely optional.
- Slice, serve, and enjoy!
For the topping:
- Put all the ingredients together in a saucepan (photo 11) and cook over medium heat until it boils (photo 12).
- After that, cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally (photo 13).
- Remove from the heat and let it cool completely at room temperature, then chill for at least 1 hour.
- Top the vegan cheesecake with the berry sauce right before serving (photo 14).
Ingredients and tips
- Vegan digestive cracker crumbs: vegan graham crackers are also a good choice. However, pretty much any vegan crackers or cookies will do.
- Coconut oil: it’s my favorite option, but vegan butter also works great, and any other type of oil will do as well.
- Granulated sugar: any type of sugar is okay.
- Soy milk: feel free to use any kind of unsweetened plant milk you have on hand.
- Lemon juice: you could also use white or apple cider vinegar instead.
- Vegan cream cheese: I used a store-bought version because it is more convenient, but feel free to make your own recipe, especially if you can’t find it at your local grocery store.
- Coconut cream: this recipe works best with coconut cream, but if you can’t find it, just use full-fat coconut milk.
- Cornstarch: feel free to use any other type of starch instead. You could also omit it, but your sauce won’t have the same texture, as it will be more watery.
- Vanilla extract: I always use homemade vanilla extract as it’s more affordable and extremely easy to make, but the store-bought version is also a good choice.
- Salt: I used iodized salt, but any type of salt will do.
- Fresh or frozen berries: both work just fine.
Looking for more vegan dessert recipes?
Did you make this vegan cheesecake recipe?
Please leave a comment below, share it, or rate it. You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, and PINTEREST. I’d love to see what you cook!
This post contains affiliate links so you can easily find some of the products that we used to make this recipe. If you buy any of them through the links provided (without any extra cost for you), we'll get a commission. We're so grateful for your support!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Cheesecake
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 and ½ cups vegan digestive cracker crumbs, see notes for alternatives
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- ¼ granulated sugar
For the filling:
- 1 cup soy milk
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 24 oz vegan cream cheese, softened, I used a store-bought one
- 1 cup coconut cream
- 1 and ¼ cups granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the topping (optional):
- 1 cup fresh or frozen berries
- 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
Instructions
For the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF or 180ºC. Wrap a 9 inch (23 cm) springform pan with 1 or 2 layers of aluminum foil, covering the bottom and the sides. Line the bottom of the pan with some parchment paper, and spray lightly with oil. Set aside.
- To make the crumbs I used a food processor, but a blender is also okay. If you don’t have any of them, place the crackers in a zip lock bag and crush them with a rolling pin.
- In a medium mixing bowl combine the crumbs together with melted coconut oil and sugar and stir until moistened.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and press it evenly.
- Bake for 8 minutes.
For the filling:
- Add all the filling ingredients to the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment and mix together until thoroughly combined. You can also use a large bowl and a hand mixer.
- Pour the mixture over your crust and bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Do not open the oven door for at least 50 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the cake sit in the oven for 10 minutes. The cheesecake will be slightly jiggly, and not look very done in the middle, but that's okay, it will firm up when it cools.
- Remove from the oven, let it cool completely at room temperature, then transfer to the fridge and let it cool overnight (the longer you refrigerate your vegan cheesecake, the firmer it will be). You can add the topping right before serving (see step-by-step instructions below), but that's completely optional.
- Slice, serve, and enjoy!
For the topping:
- Put all the ingredients together in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until it boils.
- After that, cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. You can mash the fruit with a fork or use an immersion blender if you prefer a smoother texture.
- Remove from the heat and let it cool completely at room temperature, then chill for at least 1 hour.
- Top the cheesecake with the berry sauce right before serving.
- Cover the leftovers and keep them in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Vegan graham crackers are also okay. You could also use pretty much any crackers or cookies.
- Coconut oil is the best choice for this recipe but can be replaced with vegan butter or any other kind of oil.
- Lemon juice can be replaced with white or apple cider vinegar.
- Feel free to use any type of sugar, starch, or salt you want.
- If you can’t find coconut cream, use full-fat coconut milk.
- Instead of soy milk, feel free to use any other kind of plant milk, such as oat milk, rice milk, almond milk, or cashew milk.
Leave a Reply