Healthier-For-You Dessert Recipe: Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake

|Updated Dec 7, 2020

@the_bananadiaries

If you love this sinful and fudgy recipe, made with better-for-you ingredients, The Beet offers you a FREE brand new plan: 'Healthier-for-You' Dessert of the Day. When you sign up, starting December 7th, you will get 12 days of delicious plant-based, low-sugar dessert recipes made with mostly whole foods, totally dairy-free ingredients straight to your inbox every morning. In addition, we provide you with meals that compliment the desserts: Breakfast, Sides, Mains, and More! Each decadent dessert is made by the talented plant-based baker, Britt Berlin, known as @the_bananadiaries on IG.

With our recipes, you can have your cake and eat healthy too.

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During the holiday season, we spend the most energy on giving gifts, gathering with loved ones, traveling to family, and cooking up festive feasts. And then, time slips away and we are left with no energy to make desserts and we revert to store-bought treats, which can be hard to find when you're eating plant-based.

So this holiday, The Beet shares healthier desserts that are easy to make, taste delicious, are better for you than the real thing and cater to allergies like dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, oil-free, and plant-based like this raw chocolate peppermint cheesecake.

You'll get recipes like this raw, vegan, plant-based, gluten-free, oil-free "cheesecake."

Indulge in "cheesecake" that's actually good for you without feeling guilty. This no-sugar-added recipe calls for Medjool dates, cacao powder, and vanilla extract for natural sweetness with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to add acid, the perfect combination of sweet and savory. Instead of using dairy, you will use coconut milk, your favorite nut milk, or even water, the alternatives have the same consistency and texture as the real thing, you can't go wrong. The cheesecake filling is creamy, without the cream. Soaked, raw cashews blended thin to act as a cheese-like texture, create a smooth layer of sinful chocolate and when it's chilled, the filling becomes a mousse texture.

We know it's hard to believe that raw, whole-food, natural, plant-based ingredients create such a beautiful, tasty, masterpiece, so we filmed a step-by-step video of the process, that's easy to follow and re-create. Get your apron!

Raw Vegan Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake

Serves 10

Prep time: 15 minutes
Chill time: 120 minutes

Ingredients

Crust

1 cup pitted Medjool dates (soaked for 4–6 hours)
2 cups gluten-free rolled oats
3/4 cup cacao powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/3 cup coconut milk, nut milk, or water

Cheesecake Filling

2 cup raw cashews (soaked for 3+ hours)
1 cup coconut cream
1 cup cacao powder
½ cup vegan peppermint candies
1/2–1 large lemon (squeezed)

Instructions

Line an 8″ springform pan with parchment paper (trick: to get the parchment paper to stick, grease the cake pan first with coconut oil and then place the parchment paper on top).
In a large food processor, add in all of the crust ingredients and blend until it forms a sticky dough.
Press the dough into the bottom of the cake pan evenly. Set aside.
In a large food processor, pulse the cashews and coconut cream until smooth.
Add in cacao powder, peppermint candies, and lemon juice. Blend until smooth and creamy (there shouldn’t be any clumps of cashews).
Pour cheesecake batter into the pan and place on an even surface in your freezer.
Freeze for at least 2 hours, or until set.
When removing from the freezer to slice, allow the vegan chocolate cheesecake to come to room temperature for 15-20 minutes. Use a knife to wedge between the crust and the sides of the pan, then remove the springform pan sides.
Serve with more crushed vegan peppermint candies and enjoy!