Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake

Today I am showing you how to make these no-bake Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake recipe!

This Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake is the creamiest vegan cheesecake I’ve ever made! And if you follow me, you know I’ve made a few (check here).

I love making vegan cheesecakes, they are my ultimate favorite dessert! I even picked a vegan cheesecake to make for my own birthday (Vegan Fudge Raspberry Cheesecake).

So, yes this Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake is made with cashews, which makes it totally dairy-free! And check out that texture! Have you ever seen anything creamier than this?

We start with hazelnuts.

You will need hazelnuts, dates, cocoa powder, and almond flour. Oh, and perhaps some water for binding, just as needed.

I blended all ingredients at high speed for about 45 seconds and then added a bit of water to bind. You want the ingredients to be clumping up together, forming a dough, when you pinch it between your fingers.

Then, divide it between 12 muffin cups, and press it down with your fingers to form a nice and compact base. Insert the pan in the freezer while you work on the cheesecake batter.

You can also make this into a larger cheesecake, by using a 8″ pan. You might have to make some more crust if that’s the case to cover the entire bottom of the pan, but the batter should be enough.

Speaking of batter, that’s what we will talk about next.

Here are the ingredients you will need. Please note that the cashews have to be soaked prior to making the recipe, either the night before or a few hours before, refer to recipe below for more specific instructions on how to do it.

Also, another note about the hazelnut spread. You can find vegan hazelnut spread easily at pretty much any store nowadays, however, you can also make your own. This is my favorite recipe for it from the Minimalist Baker, I’ve made it many times and it’s wonderful and also paleo.

Those are the ingredients you need. In the recipe below, I indicate that some of these need to be divided. And that’s only if you want to make the ombre batter like I did here. If you have no interest in the ombre, simply add all ingredients to your blender and then pour it over the crust.

However, if you would like to get fancy, come with me.

Start by adding the cashews, coconut oil, lemon juice, coconut cream, 1/2 cup of maple syrup, and vanilla to the blender.

Blend at high speed for a few minutes, or until creamy and smooth.

When the white batter is ready and smooth, remove 1/3 of it to a small bowl. I just eyeballed it.

This will be the base of the cheesecake to create the ombre effect.

Now, to the batter that’s left in the blender, add 1 tablespoon of maple syrup (for added sweetness, since we will be adding cocoa powder and hazelnut butter to the remaining batter), 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, and 2 tablespoons of hazelnut spread. We are making the light brown batter, which goes in the middle.

Blend ingredients together. Once the light brown batter is smooth and incorporated, remove half of it to a bowl and set aside.

Now, time to work on the final layer! The dark brown batter! Add the remaining cocoa powder (3 tablespoons), and the remaining 1/4 cup of hazelnut spread to the batter remaining in the blender.

After blending, batter should be dark brown, creamy, and smooth! I mean check out how smooth it is!!

Now that you have all of your 3 batters, it’s time to start assembling the cheesecake!

Remove the crust lined pan from the freezer. Start by pouring the white batter on the bottom, divide it between all the pans.

Then pour the light brown batter on top.

And last but not least, the dark brown batter.

Here’s a tip, if you feel like your batter is too runny (could be because you didn’t drain the cashews properly, or maybe use a bit too much of a liquid ingredient), you can pour the first layer, insert the pan in the freezer for 10 minutes. Remove, pour the second layer, then insert the pan in the freezer again. And then finish up with the last layer.

Place the cheesecakes in the freezer after you are done layering the batters and leave them there overnight or for 8 hours until they set.

Once the cheesecakes set, you can remove them from the freezer. If you used a silicone pan, it should be very easy to remove them from the pans, they should pop right up.

Once you remove the cheesecakes from the pan, you can spread some ganache on top, if desired.

Tips on how to make the Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake recipe

• Make sure to soak the cashews enough so they are tender, preferably overnight, or a few hours in hot water.
• Drain cashews really well, and squeeze them lightly with your fingers so they don’t make your cheesecake too runny and watery.
• Use coconut cream, not coconut milk, it makes a huge difference. Also place the coconut cream in the fridge the night before making this, so the water and the fat will separate. Drain the water (use it in smoothies if you want to), and use the creamy part that will have formed on the top of the can.
• You can use store-bought vegan hazelnut spread, there are many brands and options out there, or simply make your own. Minimalist baker has a fabulous recipe.
• If you don’t want to make the ombre effect, simply add all of the cheesecake batter ingredients to the blender and blend until smooth.
• Let cheesecake sit at room temperature for 20 minutes or so before serving, if storing in the freezer.

You can also store this cheesecake in the fridge, but it’s important to let it chill in the freezer right after making it, so it has a chance to set properly.

If you like this recipe, you may also like these ones:

• Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake
• Vegan Mango Bars
• Fig and Pistachio Vegan Cheesecake
• Almond Blueberry Vegan Cheesecake
• Vegan Beet Cheesecake
• Vegan Brownie Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

I really appreciate you being here and reading my post and my recipes! Let me know if you make this Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake for the holidays, tag me on instagram, I always love to see it when you make my recipes and I share it on my stories!

Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecake

Camila Hurst

This is a recipe for no-bake Vegan Hazelnut Cheesecakes, they are also paleo and refined sugar free, and super easy to make.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 0 minutes mins

Resting time 8 hours hrs

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12 mini cheesecakes

Calories 390 kcal

Ingredients

  

Crust

• 1/3 cup dates 2.4 oz, 68 grams
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts 2.25 oz, 63 grams
• 3/4 cup almond flour 2.4 oz, 68 grams
• 1-3 teaspoons water as needed

Hazelnut Cheesecake

• 2 cups raw cashews 10.58 oz, 300 grams
• 1/2 cup coconut oil melted (118 ml)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice from 2 lemons, 59 ml
• 1/2 cup coconut cream 118 ml
• 1/2 cup maple syrup + 1 tablespoon divided – 118 ml + 15 ml
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons + 1 tablespoon cocoa powder divided**
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons hazelnut spread divided***

Ganache

• 1/3 cup coconut cream 78 ml
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips 1.76 oz, 58 grams

Instructions

 

Crust

• To make the crust, place all ingredients except for the water in the bowl of a blender. Pulse on high for 1 minute or so, until all ingredients are combined. If you grab some of the dough between your hands, it should clump up nicely together. If it doesn’t, slowly add water and keep blending until incorporated. Start by adding 1 teaspoon of water, blend. Then add more water only if necessary.
• Once you have a dough that is coming together easily, divide the dough between 12 muffin cups or mini cheesecake pans, if using muffin pans, it really helps to use silicone pans, so you can easily remove the cheesecakes afterwards. You can also just spread the whole dough on the bottom of a 8” cheesecake pan.
• Place it in the freezer while you make the cheesecake batter.

Hazelnut Cheesecake

• Soak cashews the day before, or a few hours before making the cheesecake batter. The longer you soak them, the creamier and smoother the cheesecake will be.
• If you don’t have a lot of time, you can place the cashews in a small saucepan and cover with water. Then bring it to a boil and immediately turn off the heat, and let cashews soak in hot water for 1-2 hours, until they are very tender.
• In the blender, place the soaked and drained cashews, the coconut oil, the lemon juice, the coconut cream, 1/2 cup of maple syrup and the vanilla extract.
• Blend on high speed for a few minutes until very creamy and smooth. Scrape the sides of the blender in between.
• Time blending will depend on how powerful your blender or processor is.

To make the ombre cheesecake

• Once the white batter is ready, remove 1/3 of it to a small bowl and set aside.
• To the batter remaining in the blender, add 1 tablespoon of maple syrup (to sweeten it since we are adding cocoa powder and hazelnut spread), 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, 2 tablespoons of hazelnut spread.
• Blend until creamy, smooth, and incorporated. The batter will be a light brown.
• Remove half of the light brown batter to a bowl, and set aside. This is the batter that will go in the middle.
• To the light brown batter remaining in the blender, add 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder, and 1/4 cup of hazelnut spread.
• Blend until incorporated. The batter will be dark brown, rich and thick.

To assemble cheesecake

• Spread the white batter on top of the crust, dividing it evenly between the muffin cups.
• Then, divide the light brown batter between the cups, on top of the white batter.
• If you feel like the batters are too runny and are mixing as you add the layers, you can freeze the cheesecake pan for 10 minutes in between each layering, so the bottom layer has a chance to set.
• Once the light brown batter has been divided between all muffin cups, you can spread the dark brown batter right on top.
• Place tray in the freezer for 8 hours or overnight.

Ganache

• Heat cream on a small saucepan, or in a microwave bowl, until it almost comes to a boil.
• Pour it over chocolate.
• Whisk until the chocolate has melted completely.
• If the chocolate isn’t melting, place the bowl in the microwave and microwave it for a few seconds, stirring in between until the chocolate has melted entirely.
• Let ganache cool to room temperature for about 1 hour or so, before using.
• Spread ganache on top of cheesecakes. Top with chocolate pieces, and hazelnut pieces.

Storage

• Store cheesecakes in the freezer for up to 2 weeks, or in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Notes

*Please note that the cashews need to be soaked before making this recipe, either the night before or a few hours prior.

**The reason why the amounts are divided is because, in order to create the ombre effect with the cheesecake batters, you have to first make the white batter, adding the soaked cashews, coconut oil, lemon juice, coconut cream, maple syrup, and vanilla. And then, remove 1/3 of the batter and set aside. In the blender, add 1 tablespoon of maple syrup, along with 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, and 2 tablespoons of hazelnut spread, to make the light brown batter. Then, remove 1/2 of the light brown batter from the blender, and set aside. To the remaining batter from the blender, add 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder, and 1/4 cup of hazelnut spread, to make the dark brown batter. If you wish to make just one color batter, simply add all of the ingredients to the blender at the same time.

***Look for vegan hazelnut spread at the store, or make your own, here is a great recipe! 

Keyword cheesecake