"i Don't Believe It's...." Lemon Tofu Cheesecake!

Submitted by rsarahl

"It's good... no kidding! Vegan or not, this dessert is a great dairy free treat. This works for people with diabetic and/or heart disease diet guidelines. Prep time is really chill time... there are about 5 minutes of actual busy work for this recipe, 35 minutes of baking and 2 hours of chilling."

 

• Ready In: 2hrs 35mins
• Ingredients: 13
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• Crust

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1⁄4 cup maple syrup
• 1⁄2 teaspoon almond extract

• Filling

• 1 lb silken tofu
• 1⁄3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1⁄2 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons soymilk (rice milk is also ok)

• Topping

• 1⁄4 cup slivered almonds (optional)

directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a medium bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, maple syrup and almond extract.
3. Mix until the graham cracker crumbs are moistened.
4. Prep a 9 inch springform pan by spraying the bottom and sides with nonstick oil spray, or by oiling with a paper towel.
5. Tip crumb mixture into the prepped springform pan and press it evenly on the bottom.
6. Bake the crust for 5 minutes, then remove it from the oven and set it aside to cool while you prepare the filling.
7. Blend all the filling ingredients in a food processor (or blender) for about 30 seconds, or until smooth.
8. Pour filling into the springform pan over the cooled crust.
9. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the top of the cheesecake is lightly browned.
10. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow it to cool.
11. Place the cooled cheesecake in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours until it is thoroughly chilled and firm.
12. To serve, take a long knife and heat the blade in hot hot water.
13. Slide the blade of the knife along the edge of the cooled cheesecake to ensure that it will separate from the pan.
14. Release the springform ring, slice, sprinkle with slivered almonds if desired and serve cold.

Reviews

[Veg-Chef]

There are much better tofu cheesecake recipes out there. Growing up vegetarian (mostly vegan), I grew up eating tofu cheesecake. The almond extract, in the amount called for by this recipe, completely ruins the flavor. I can barely taste the lemon and I used a pre-made graham cracker crust that had no almond extract in it! I can't imagine how horrible it would have been if I had actually made the crust with another 1/2 tsp of almond extract. Yuck.

 

[sszz907]

This turned out to have the perfect texture and was so easy to make! I made it with about half as much tahini and substituted a lot of vanilla extract in place of the almond extract. The flavor was wonderful and very lemony (I used the juice from one full lemon). It was perfect served with raspberry jam on top.

 

[Adriana in Mexico C]

Instructions were easy to follow and the flavor was very good. I baked it for half an hour (as per instrucitons) but cake never got lightly browned so I kept baking for a full hour. The crust was a bit hard in some places and the cake had cracks, probably form the over baking, but the flavor was great. So just bake it for the 30 minutes it says, regardless of the color. I'd also double the amounts for the filling as in my cake the filling was as thick as the crust, and I'd like it better if the filling was thicker than the crust. A very nice and fresh alternative to an old time favorite. Thanks for sharing, Adriana

 

[GreenTreesVeg]

I used less than half of the almond extract, and loved it. Thanks Veg-Chef for warning about that, and thanks rsarahl for the awesome recipe!

 

[analog kid]

This was sooo good. It had the texture of cheesecake when I ate it the next day ((i recommend letting it sit overnight before eating). I doubled all the pie ingredients, but omitted tahini and added half a pack of gelatin because it looked a little too runny and I was scared it wasn't going to set. I also sprinkled the top with shredded coconut. Will definately make again, thanks so much!