The best way to celebrate the weekend is with a healthy indulgence of this delicious vegan Sweet Lime & Ginger Cheesecake!

This recipe is vegan, gluten-free and refined sugar-free, and makes 6 to 8 small cupcakes or one larger cake.

Ingredients:

For The Base:

90g (1/2 packed cup) pitted dates

50g (1/4 cup) almonds, pistachios or walnuts (as per preference)

50g (1/4 cup) sunflower seeds (or any seeds of your choice)

2 tbsp desiccated coconut

1 tsp ground ginger powder

1/2 tsp salt

For The Filling:

170g cashews

3 tbsp sweet line juice

5 tbsp coconut oil

100ml coconut milk

2 tbsp ginger, finely chopped

80ml liquid jaggery (or honey if you’re not vegan)

For The Garnish:

Zest of 1 sweet lime

Toasted desiccated coconut

Instructions:

Prep: Soak the cashews in filtered water overnight or pour boiling hot water and leave to cool for 1 hours. They should become plump and soft, and should increase the weight of the cashews to about 220g.

Toast the almonds and/or other nuts in a dry pan for 2 minutes until golden, then add the seeds and toast further for 1 minute. Add the desiccated coconut and cook for another 20 minutes until lightly golden. Keep a close eye on the pan as these ingredients tend to burn quickly, resulting in a bitter taste. Transfer to a plate and set aside to cool.

Add the cooled nuts, seeds and desiccated coconut mixture into a blender and pulse until broken up into chunky pieces. Don’t over blend as you need a rough crumble texture, not a paste or butter. Remove from the blender and set aside.

Add the dates to the blender and pulse until it forms a rough crumble.

Add the nut, seed and coconut mixture back into the blender, along with ginger powder and salt. Mix until well combine.

Lightly grease your muffin or cake mould with a little coconut oil. Add the base mixture and press down into a 1/2 inch layer at the bottom. Let this firm in the freezer while you make the filling. If there is any left over base mixture, roll into bite-sized “energy” balls that you can store in the freezer for weeks and eat pre or post workout!

Drain the soaked cashews and discard the water. Add to a fresh blender jar along with other filling ingredients and mix together until perfectly smooth for about 5 minutes. Add a splash of water if required. The mixture should be a silky smooth pourable consistency.

Remove the muffin or cake mould from the freezer and pour the filling almost all the way to the top. Garnish with sweet lime zest and toasted coconut and freeze for up to 4 hours.

Remove from the freezer 15 minutes before you are ready to serve so it softens and thaws slightly. It should take about 5 minutes before you’re able to remove the cheesecake from the mould. Serve partially defrosted, and soft enough to eat with a fork, but not melted.

This vegan cheesecake can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 weeks.