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The Easiest Vegan Cheesecake – No Tofu, No
Cashews!
posted by B R I TT B ER L I N on F E B 2 3 , 2 0 2 3 (last updated A P R 1 9 , 2 0 2 4 ) // 42 CO MMENTS »
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This ultra creamy and rich vegan cheesecake tastes JUST like classic New
York baked cheesecake, and it only needs 7 ingredients (NO tofu, no
cashews though!). It’s so easy to make entirely in a food processor, and my
simple steps will ensure you get the creamiest and perfectly tangy vegan
cheesecake ever!
Save
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The only vegan cheesecake recipe you need:
Truly. This amazing baked vegan cheesecake tastes just like a slice of classic
lush cheesecake: super rich, ultra creamy, decadent, and just sweet with the
perfect tang. It’s not as dense as New York cheesecake, but just as rich and
decadent as your classic cheesecake.
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And you don’t need to soak any cashews beforehand nor prep any tofu. This
vegan cheesecake is made entirely without cashews, tofu, nor coconut
cream, and the result is ultra velvety, creamy, and lush.
In fact, this vegan cheesecake recipe is the base cheesecake recipe for all of
my vegan cheesecakes (including my no bake vegan cheesecake
bars!). It’s that good!
Like my vegan chocolate cheesecake and vegan pecan pie
cheesecake, this is a classic dessert that you can serve to all eaters, and
they’ll just LOVE it.
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That’s right. No soaking cashews, no using coconut cream nor coconut milk
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(if you don’t want to!), and no tofu. If you want a crowd pleasing vegan
dessert that’s fit for all eaters, then this baked vegan cheesecake is it.
I love this recipe so much, it’s been the base for some of my most popular
cheesecake recipes, including my cannoli cheesecake, tiramisu
cheesecake, pistachio cheesecake and carrot cake cheesecake!
I even swirled it with banana bread batter in my banana bread
cheesecake, and it was UNREAL!
Top your cheesecake slice with fresh strawberries, fresh raspberries,
blueberry jam, even vegan caramel sauce and homemade vegan whipped
cream for the ultimate slice of cheesecake, vegan or not!
Ingredients & substitutions:
Vegan cream cheese: Many vegan cream cheese do use nuts, I am
aware of this. That’s why I made my 3-ingredient homemade vegan
cream cheese that’s NUT FREE. For store bought, I personally love
Miyoko’s Creamery’s vegan cream cheese and it works wonderfully in
this recipe. However, for my nut-free readers, I have tried this
cheesecake with Violife and it is a DREAM! Violife cream cheese is
potato and coconut based.
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Dairy free yogurt: You can use your favorite here (mine is Forager
Project); whether it’s oat milk yogurt, cashew milk, coconut yogurt, soy
milk yogurt, or almond. Using dairy free yogurt also helps us to replace
the silken tofu found in other vegan cheesecake recipes, and lemon
juice.
Dairy free milk: You don’t need to use a heavy vegan milk here. Store
bought unsweetened almond milk or even homemade oat milk will
work great. If you can do cashews, you can also use cashew cream.
Sugar: I used organic granulated sugar here. Be sure that your sugar is
truly vegan. I always personally use Florida Crystals Sugar for that
reason. They’re also minimally processed!
Arrowroot starch: You can substitute cornstarch here if you’d prefer.
Vanilla extract: Sub in vanilla powder if you’d prefer!
Graham cracker crust: This homemade crust uses oat flour, a
teaspoon cinnamon, sugar, and vegan butter to achieve a deliciously
buttery vegan gluten free graham cracker crust! You could also sub in
melted coconut oil for the vegan butter if you’d prefer!
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The Easiest Baked Ve- Creamy No Bake Veg- Easy Homemade Veg- 3 Ingredient Quick
gan Chocolate Chees… an Chocolate Chees… an Tiramisu (No… Vegan Mascarpone-…
cake (NO Tofu, No cake • No Cashews, Cashews, No Tofu!) No Cashews, No Tofu!
Equipment you’ll need for this vegan cheesecake
We’re keeping this baked vegan cheesecake really simple, down to the
equipment needed.
Before beginning, make sure that you have:
8″ or 9″ springform pan 2 Deep baking sheet
Large food processor, a stand mixer, large bowl with a hand mixer
Overview: How to make a baked vegan
cheesecake (EASILY!)
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Now, traditionally, you’ll use a water bath for baked cheesecake. I’ve
experimented with both a water bath and no water bath, and the verdict is
in: use the water bath. If you want a super fluffy and soft cheesecake that
tastes just like the classic, then you’ll need to use a water bath.
A water bath is really quite simple, and we go over how to make
one.
Watch how to make a vegan cheesecake:
Please note that the recipe in the video is slightly different than the one
below. This is because the recipe below is the most up to date rather than
in the video. However, the method is still the same!
Step 1: The gluten free vegan cheesecake crust
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I could eat this crust by itself, it’s so good! Plus it’s so easy and really quick
to make:
1 Whisk: In a large bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients for the
crust.
2 Add in the vegan butter and water: Mix in the wet ingredients
until you achieve a sticky dough. You can add more water as needed by
the tablespoon.
3 Press: Press the dough into the parchment paper-lined springform
pan.
4 Bake: Bake the cheesecake crust.
Remove from the oven and set aside so we can prepare the creamy vegan
cheesecake filling!
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Step 2: The vegan cheesecake filling
Again, I could eat this filling with a spoon, and it’s just as simple as the
crust. No need to soak any cashews or anything. The only thing you need to
make sure you’ve done is allow both the cream cheese and sour cream to
come to room temperature so that they’re easy to cream.
1 Mix: You can add everything to a food processor or blender and blend
until smooth. Or you can use a hand mixer and a bowl or a stand mixer
and whisk attachment!
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2 Pour: Next, pour the cheesecake mixture over the crust.
3 Create the water bath:Pour boiling water into your baking sheet
with walls. Then immediately move onto the next step.
4 Bake: Place your vegan cheesecake onto the middle rack, and
carefully place the boiling water bath onto the bottom rack. Close your
oven quickly to prevent anymore heat from escaping.
5 Cool in the oven: Once baked, allow your vegan cheesecake to cool
in the oven to 10 minutes. Then remove the cheesecake to cool at room
temperature for 15 minutes.
6 Setting time: Place your room temperature vegan cheesecake into
the fridge to set for 4-6 hours, or until not wobbly anymore.
7 Serve and enjoy!
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You can check out Handle The Heat’s Water Bath tecnique article for
the classic way to make a water bath. However, my quick method has been
proven to be successful just the same!
Do I need a water bath for my cheesecake?
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Yes, you do need to use a water bath for a baked vegan cheesecake,
especially if you want the texture of a classic cheesecake. The reason being
is that cheesecakes love moisture, and a water bath helps to create a really
moist environment in the oven, which typically runs dry.
If you were to not use a water bath, your cheesecake would come out super
dry, like a block of cheese. Not fun, nor pleasant to eat.
However, my water bath trick is really easy for beginner bakers, and will
still ensure that you achieve a super moist vegan cheesecake.
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Recipe tips & tricks
While I want to emphasize that this vegan cheesecake is extraordinarily
easy, that doesn’t mean we can get sloppy with technique. Here are a few
tips to make sure that your vegan New York cheesecake comes out perfect
every time:
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Allow the cream cheese and dairy free yogurt to come to room
temperature. You will have a really hard time creaming together the
ingredients if you don’t do this! Give the ingredients a few hours to
soften. You should be able to indent a fingerprint into the cream cheese
easily.
Give your cheesecake time to cool at room temperature first. This will
ensure that everything cools evenly. It’s also good to not put something
piping hot into the fridge!
Let your cheesecake sit in the oven after baking: just for an hour. This
will help everything solidify!
How to slice your cheesecake: once your cheesecake is ready to be
sliced, you can run a butter knife along the edges of the pan to release
the cheesecake from the spring form pan. Then carefully undo the buckle
and place your cheesecake onto a serving platter!
Top with fresh fruit, jam, or amareno cherries: this is my all time
favorite way to serve cheesecake, especially because it’s such a rich and
decadent dessert, you need something slightly lighter to balance the
flavors, textures, and density. I recommend the Amareno Fabri cherries!
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Classic cheesecake topping ideas:
Fresh berries and whipped cream
Homemade strawberry sauce Vegan caramel sauce
Vegan Nutella No coconut vegan lemon curd
2 Ingredient vegan ganache
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You are just going to LOVE this baked vegan cheesecake as much as I do!
This vegan vanilla cheesecake is:
So easy to make One of the best vegan desserts, hands down
Perfectly soft and tangy, like a classic cheesecake
Creamy, yet light and refreshing
Perfect for graduations, birthday parties, summer holidays, and more!
An absolute crowd pleaser, whether you’re vegan (and gluten free!) or
not!
If you try it, make sure to leave a comment and a review
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so that others may find this recipe!
As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations
on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there!
Happy cheesecake baking!
Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite
recipe board on Pinterest!
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If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment
and a rating below. This helps others to find the
recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful
creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me
there as well!
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The Easiest Vegan
Cheesecake – No Tofu, No
Cashews!
4.9 from 15 reviews
author: B R I T T B E R L I N prep time: 1 5
chill time: 2 4 0 cook time: 6 5
total time: 5 H O U R S 2 0 M I N U T E S
yield: 1 6 1X category: C H E E S E C A K E
method: B A K I N G cuisine: A M E R I C A N
diet: V E G A N
PIN RECIPE
Description
This ultra creamy and rich vegan cheesecake tastes JUST like classic New
York baked cheesecake, and it only needs 7 ingredients (NO tofu, no
cashews though!). It’s so easy to make entirely in a food processor, and
my simple steps will ensure you get the creamiest and perfectly tangy
vegan cheesecake ever!
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Ingredients
SCALE 1x 2x 3x
Vegan Graham Cracker Crust:
1 package (250 g) vegan graham crackers or Lotus Biscoff Cookies
1/3 cup (87 g) melted vegan butter
Vegan Cheesecake Filling:
4 8-ounce containers (32 ounces) vegan cream cheese, room
temperature
1 cup (240 g) dairy free yogurt or dairy free sour cream, room
temperature
1 cup (240 mL) vegan heavy cream*
1 cup (200 g) organic granulated sugar
8 tbsp (80 g) cornstarch or arrowroot starch
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3–4 cups boiling water, for water bath
1 batch vegan caramel, for topping
Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark
Instructions
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1 Prep: Line an 8 or 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper.
Grease the edges of the pan with a bit of cooking or coconut oil as
well, and line with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 400F.
2 Make the crust: Add the graham crackers or cookies to a food
processor, and pulse until you reach a fine crumb. Then add in the
melted vegan butter, and pulse again until you get a wet crumb.
Press the cookie crumbs into the bottom of your cheesecake pan,
working up the sides of the pan as well. Place the pan into the oven
to bake for 10-12 minutes to par-bake. While the crust is baking,
make the filling.
3 Make the cheesecake filling: In a large food processor, stand
mixer with whisk attachment, or large bowl with hand mixer, cream
together the cream cheese and dairy free yogurt until smooth. Add in
the sugar, dairy free milk, vanilla, and cornstarch. Cream together
again until smooth. Pour the cheesecake filling into the springform
pan, and smooth the top. Place the cheesecake pan onto a baking
sheet (SEPARATE from the baking sheet used for the water bath-
this cheesecake baking sheet just helps to transport the cheesecake
to and from the oven).
4 Reduce the heat of the oven: Reduce the heat to 350F.
5 Create the water bath: Be ready to move to the next step
immediately after finishing this step. Make sure that you boil
the 3-4 cups water prior to pouring the water into the pan. Pour the
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boiling water into the pan.
6 Bake the cheesecake: Carefully place the water bath baking
sheet into the oven on the low rack. Then place the cheesecake
baking sheet onto the middle rack and quickly close the oven to
bake for 55-65 minutes, or until the the top of the cheesecake lightly
golden. The center is set but still wiggly. Turn off the oven, and allow
the cheesecake to sit in the oven for 1 hour with the door slightly
cracked. The water should also be completely dissolved. Please see
the video tutorial. The cheesecake should still be wiggly. This is
completely fine and should be that way. This cheesecake will not
seem cooked at all when you first turn off the oven.
7 Chill the cheesecake: Remove the cheesecake from the oven and
allow the cheesecake to cool at room temperature for 15 minutes.
Then cover and place the cheesecake into the fridge to chill for 4
hours, or overnight.
8 Serve and enjoy! When ready to serve, top with fresh berries,
cherries, or jam, and enjoy! Store any leftover cheesecake in an
airtight container and in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Unbelievably Silky Baked Vegan Cheesecake Recipe
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Equipment
cookie sheet
Buy Now →
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Notes
Arrowroot Starch: make sure that your arrowroot starch (also called
powder) is stored properly and is still active. Improperly stored or
expired arrowroot will not work. You can also swap in an equal amount
of cornstarch.
Vegan heavy cream: If you can do cashews, you can use cashew
cream.
Water bath: Using a water bath is extremely important for a moist
cheesecake! Please see blog post for all tips.
Gluten free: Swap in gluten free vegan graham crackers or gluten free
homemade biscoff cookies!
Please read the above blog post for all tips & tricks on how to
make this baked vegan cheesecake, as well as watch the quick
YouTube tutorial! Thank you!
Did you make this recipe?
Be sure to leave a rating and a review in the section below, and
tag @the_bananadiaries on Instagram and hashtag it #thebananadiaries so we can
see!
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