Vegan No-Bake Cherry Cheesecake Bars (GF)
Delicious dessert consisting of three layers - oat base sweetened with dates, vegan cheesecake layer made from cashews and coconut cream and cherry layer on top of that! These vegan cheesecake bars are not just pretty to look at but also amazing to eat!
We are moving soon and because of that I am trying to get rid of all the food we have in the freezer. And we had a bag of frozen cherries so I was thinking what can I do with that.. Ideally it would be something not baked because it is summer and it is actually quite hot so this is how these amazing vegan bars came to the world!
These vegan cherry cheesecake bars might not seem, but they are actually pretty easy to make - all you need is a good blender or food processor (and patience if your food processor is not that good and needs breaks when working). You don’t even need an oven and I’d say that’s always a plus when you are making a dessert during summer. These bars are gluten free (just be careful when you are picking up oats), they are refined sugar free (if you don’t want to use maple syrup, you can leave it completely out) but don’t mistaken it for sugar free - there are still dates.
How to make cheesecake bars?
Blend soaked dates (discard the water and squeeze dates) together with oats, add softened coconut oil and blend a bit more. Transfer to into a lined loaf tin and press it down with a spatula or a glass with flat bottom. Place into fridge.
Blend soaked cashews (discard the water) with coconut cream and maple syrup until smooth. Add softened coconut oil, blend for few more seconds and then pour in the loaf tin on top of the oat layer. Smooth it out with spatula and place into the fridge for about an hour.
Blend cherries until smooth. Dissolve agar agar powder in a 1/4 cup of water, pour it into a small saucepan, add blended cherries and bring to boil and simmer for 3 mins on medium heat. Pour it over cheesecake layer and quickly smooth it out - it sets fast so work quickly. Leave to set in the fridge for about 30 mins.
For more vegan recipes like this be sure to check out:
Vegan Eton Mess (with strawberries)
Vegan No Bake Cheesecake (with strawberries)
If you make these no-bake cheesecake bars, and take photos of them, be sure to tag me on instagram - @bigbakesmanifesto and use hashtag #bigbakesmanifesto too! I love to see people making my recipes. Or follow me on Pinterest, where you can comment and rate my recipes.
Ingredients
Base
80 g porridge oats
5 dates - pitted and soaked in water for few hours (or overnight)
1 tsp coconut oil - softened
Cheesecake Layer
110 g cashews - soaked in water for at least 4 hours (or overnight)
100 g coconut cream (or a tin of coconut milk*)
1 tbsp maple syrup (or agave syrup) - optional, you don’t have to add it
2 tsp coconut oil - softened
Cherry Layer
160 g cherries - pitted (you can use frozen cherries - but they should be thawed)
1 tsp agar agar powder*
1/4 cup water
Method
Line your loaf tin with baking parchment. (I used 2 lb loaf tin)*
Squeeze any excess water out of dates and place them into a food processor together with oats. Blitz for couple of minutes until all is combined, then add 1 tsp coconut oil and mix for another minute.
Transfer the mixture into the loaf tin and press it down well with a spatula or a glass so the surface is even. Place it in the fridge.
Place soaked cashews (discard the water), coconut cream and maple syrup into a food processor or blender and blitzed until it is creamy (how long it takes depends on your food processor). Once it is smooth, add 2 tsp soft coconut oil and mix again for few seconds.
Pour it over the oats base into the tin and place again into the fridge. Leave it to set for about an hour.
Place cherries in a food processor or a blender and blend until smooth.
Add agar agar powder into a cup with 1/4 cup water and mix until the powder is dissolved. Move it into a small saucepan, add blended cherries, bring to simmer and cook for 3 mins on a medium heat. Pour it over the cheesecake layer and quickly smooth it out - quickly because it sets fast. Leave to set in the fridge for about 30 mins.
Cut into slices/squares. Store it in air tight container and consume within 4 days.
Notes:
If you are using a tin of coconut milk, keep it in the fridge overnight and use only the thick cream on top.
Use either 1 tsp agar agar powder or 1 tbsp agar agar flakes - if you’re using flakes, follow instructions on the packet, they are a bit different.
My loaf tin is 23x13 cm. You can use a smaller one, all the layers will be higher though (which is not a problem).