When I was a kid my favourite dessert of all time was cheesecake, but as I grew older I developed an allergy to dairy, which meant that cheesecake and pretty much any other dessert in existence became my kryptonite. Not being able to eat dessert or packaged foods is totally normal for me, so when started following the paleo diet just over three years ago, it wasn’t that big of an adjustment.
Back then it was much harder to find suitable meals on a menu or source ingredients for recipes, but now it seems like every second person can’t eat dairy or gluten. I can now get everything I need from my local supermarket, which makes recipes like this delicious raw paleo cheesecake a breeze.
There are no words that can describe the deliciousness of this cake – it legit tastes like a dairy-laden cheesecake, but it’s made with fruit, nuts and a sprinkling of cinnamon. The only thing that’s close to bad is a teeny bit of maple syrup, which you could leave out if you really wanted to. If you use the good stuff from Canada though, maple syrup is actually lower in sugar than honey and agave, and is packed with zinc and manganese.
This raw paleo cheesecake is super easy to make, and requires zero cooking – you simply pop it into the freezer to set between each layer. You also don’t need to feel guilty licking the spoon as each layer is basically just an extra thick smoothie that’s dairy free and gluten free. And you know what that means – you can justify eating it for breakfast and pretty much anytime of the day.
I hope you love this raw paleo cheesecake as much as I do! If you like the look of this recipe, check out my recipe for how to make paleo pancakes 🙂
Ingredients
For the base:
1 1/2 cups of almonds
2 1/2 cups of medjool dates
For the middle:
2 cups of soaked cashew nuts
2 frozen over-ripe bananas
1/3 of a cup of maple syrup
1/3 of a cup of freshly juiced apple juice
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
For the top:
1 cup of freshly frozen blueberries (make sure you freeze fresh blueberries and don’t use packaged frozen berries – they have a high water content and will make the mix too runny).
1 cup of strawberries
1 frozen banana
4 medjool dates
1 tablespoon of maple syrup
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Method
Fruit and nut prep:
Before making this delicious raw paleo cheesecake, you’ll need to slice the three bananas and freeze them for at least three hours along with the blueberries. You’ll also need to soak the cashew nuts for at least four hours.
For the base:
Pop the almonds into a food processor or blender and blend for around one minute or until the nuts are completely crushed. Add the pitted medjool dates and blend again until a sticky mix forms. Press this into the base of a cake tin and place in the freezer.
For the middle:
Put all the ingredients into the food processor or blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Take the base layer out of the freezer and pour three quarters of the middle layer mixture over it before putting the cake back into the freezer – keep the final quarter of the mix in the processor as it’s needed for the top layer. Wait about twenty minutes for the middle layer to set in the freezer before making the third layer.
For the top:
Simply add the remaining ingredients into you food processor or blender combined with the mix from the middle, blend until smooth and then pour over the middle layer. Place the cake back into the freezer to set for two hours before serving.
To serve:
Top with your favourite berries – blueberries are my favourite, but this cake also looks great with some fresh strawberries and mint thrown on top. Store the cake in the freezer and don’t forget take it out and allow it to warm up for a few minutes before you serve it.
