Vegan Peanut Butter Cheesecake

This weekend, I had the honor of providing a dinner for 9 women as they celebrated and honored their friend. 

"So much better than going out to a restaurant!" (<-- this makes my night)

And I agree, friends! There are few things as wonderful as sharing a good meal in good company, right? I was told they stayed gathered around the table until 11:30 pm - the sign of a great night!

Since the birthday girl had some serious food intolerances and never gets to eat at gatherings or when they go out, this meal was all about her! The menu was free of gluten, dairy, soy, legumes, corn. It was no problem for me to accommodate!

---

Menu

Mezze Board with Roasted Red Pepper Walnut Dip, Almond Dill Cheese Spread,
and an assortment of fresh and dried fruits and veggies, crackers, and olives.

Massaged Kale Salad with Honey Lemon Dressing, Roasted Beets, Avocado Chunks, Hemp Seed Parmesan

Creamy Melted Leek Pasta Bake with Artichoke
​
Raw Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake with Pistachio Coconut Crust

---

I know, YUM right?!

ANYWAY, THE CHEESECAKE

Since I was so happy with it, I decided to make it again the next day, but for Bill and I. I was going to just make it "plain" vanilla bean, but swirled in some peanut butter at the last minute. Great choice on my part! It's delish, but you could use any flavors, fruit, etc. to switch things up!

Just a heads up: You'll need a food processor and a high-speed blender for this recipe, as well as (ideally) a spring form pan (I think mine is 9") or a square/rectangular dish lined with parchment paper.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Vegan Cheesecake (gf)

1 cup raw buckwheat 
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup almonds
1 cup pitted medjool dates
Pinch of sea salt
3 cups raw cashews, soaked (ideally 4+ hours) and rinsed
1 can coconut cream
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 TBSP melted coconut oil
2 TBSP lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla bean powder (or extract)
2 TBSP peanut butter

Prepare an 8-10 inch spring form pan by placing parchment paper over the flat bottom. Cut away the extra paper (this will make serving and cleanup easier). Alternatively, you can line a rectangular pan with parchment paper, which will make it easy to life out when frozen.

Place the buckwheat, shredded coconut, almond dates and salt in a food processor. Process until finely chopped and mixture is able to stick to itself when pinched. Spoon over base of prepared pan. Use hands to press down evenly across the pan. Place in the freezer to set.

In a high speed blender, combine the rinsed cashews, coconut cream, maple syrup, vanilla, coconut oil and lemon juice. Blend until smooth. Spread half the cashew mixture over the base in the pan. drizzle some peanut butter on top, and swirl it into the cheesecake with a fork or chopstick. Please in freezer until frozen (4+ hours)

When ready to serve, let the cheesecake thaw at room temperature for at least 20 minutes. Remove the spring form ring and cut into slices.