Happy New Year to everyone! Even though last year was turbulent and different for all of us, I hope you were able to take something positive into the new year 2021 and had a good start.

To celebrate the day, I have a special cake for you today. A kind of cheesecake, but based on cashews & coconut milk – completely vegan, gluten- and sugar-free. It’s easy to make, you just need a little patience as it needs tobe cooled well to get a firmer consistency.

Cashews, by the way, provide a lot of high-quality plant proteins and are on second place after legumes. Their calorie content is lower than that of other nuts and they are not fattening, as many people always think. You’ll find more infos below.

Have fun baking!

VEGAN
GLUTEN-FREE
WITHOUT REFINED SUGAR

Cashew Blueberry Cheesecake

Natalie Lutz

Print recipe Pin recipe

prep time 4 30

Dish sweets

servings 1 round cake (Ø approx. 26 cm)

Equipment

1 springform pan (Ø approx. 26 cm)

ingredients

For the cake base:

180 g buckwheat flour
80 g rice flour
1,5 tbsp ground psyllium husks
100 g coconut blossom sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 pinch of salt

For the cashew filling:

400 g cashews
260 g coconut milk
50 g maple syrup
65 g coconut oil
1/2 tsp ground tonka bean (or vanilla powder)
1 pinch of salt
1 package of blueberries (125g) + 2 handful for topping

instructions

Soak the cashews for at least 4 hours or better overnight.
For the base, mix the buckwheat flour, rice flour, psyllium husks, coconut blossom sugar and cinnamonin a bowl and make a trough in the centre.
Heat the coconut oil until it is liquid and pour into the trough with the plant drink.
Mix with a wooden spoon from the inside to the outside until a homogeneous mass is formed. Then knead again briefly with dough hooks to form a smooth dough.
Place in the fridge for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, line the base of a round springform pan (Ø approx. 26cm) with baking paper and grease the edges with coconut oil.
Preheat the oven to180° convection. Take the dough out of the fridge, spread it evenly over the base and sides of the springform pan with your hands and join the two together well. Prick the base 2-3 times with a fork and place in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare the filling. Drain the soaked cashews in a sieve. Place in a blender and puree together with coconut oil, coconut milk, maple syrup, salt and tonka bean until creamy and smooth. Add the blueberries and blend well again until there are no lumps.
Remove the finished base from the oven, let it cool down briefly and pour in the filling. Place ina freezer for at least 3 hours.
Finally, remove the springform pan, garnish the cake with fresh blueberries and store in the fridge until serving.

This recipe is

vegan / gluten-free / without refined sugar

Keyword Eat Your Proteins

GOOD TO KNOW

Cashews – very good energy suppliers and no fatteners
They contain almost 50% fat and almost 20% protein. They are therefore a very high source of plant protein and are on second place after legumes. The protein in cashews is also a very high-quality protein. For example, they contain a particularly high amount of the valuable amino acid L-tryptophan, from which the body can produce the happiness hormone serotonin.
They also contain more carbohydrates than other nuts, as well as plenty of potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron, phosphorus, beta-carotene and almost all B vitamins. In addition, the calorie content of cashews is only 550 kcal per 100 grams, which is lower than that of other nuts.
They are therefore very good sources of energy and a study at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston has shown that regular consumption can even help prevent obesity and type 2 diabetes. This is due to their fibre content, as these increase the feeling of satiety. Cashews also do not lead to a sharp rise in blood sugar, and thus not to excessive insulin secretion.
In homeopathy, a remedy for ulcers in the stomach and intestines is prepared from cashew fruits. When highly diluted, it is also given for skin rashes, itchy eczema and shingles, but also for exhaustion and nervousness.
Like the mango and the pistachio, the cashew tree belongs to the sumac family. It is a deciduous tree that originally comes from Brazil. The cashew kernels are not – as is usually the case with seeds – in the middle of the fruit of the tree. Instead, the kernels grow outside, directly under the fruit. Although they are counted as nuts, in the botanical sense they are drupes.
However, what you should be aware of: Allergies to cashews are rare, but can lead to heavy symptoms, which is why there are also people who unfortunately aren’t allowed to eat the little power nuts. Experts advise all people to be careful if they are allergic to peanuts or hazelnuts, for example, as in this case the risk of not tolerating cashews is significantly increased.

Nice To Know:
The cashew tree got its peculiar name from the Tupi Indians. They called it “Acaju”, which means kidney tree and refers to the shape of its seeds. The Portuguese made it “Caju”, from which the term cashew was then derived.

Sources:

Course book healthy nutrition by Ingeborg Münzing-Ruef
https://www.zentrum-der-gesundheit.de/artikel/samen-nuesse-kerne/cashewkerne

Cashew Blueberry Cheesecake