Ultra-rich and creamy baked Vegan New York Cheesecake made with no cream cheese or tofu! It's sweet but not too sweet, tastes amazing, and can be served with your choice of topping. I love it with some berry compote!
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FEATURED COMMENT
"Not even joking, this cake is amazing! I am a huge cheesecake fan and this consistency is right on the money...Amazing. Great flavor, and fantastic texture...you can’t even tell it’s vegan, it just tastes like a homemade cheesecake. I’m in love."
- Al ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
It doesn't get better than this Vegan New York Style Cheesecake! It is just like a "real" baked cheesecake in texture. Dense, rich, super creamy, very satisfying, but completely dairy-free, and unlike most vegan cheesecake recipes you don't need any vegan cream cheese or tofu.
To get the perfect baked cheesecake texture I tested and retested with many different ingredients and methods and found that the unlikely combination of chickpeas and cashew nuts gave amazing results.
Please don't let that scare you off though. You would NEVER know! The cashews give the filling its creaminess and the chickpeas give the denseness, which means you don't need to use vegan cream cheese or tofu.
Prefer a no-bake cheesecake? Give my very popular Vegan Biscoff Cheesecake or Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake a try, or if you're really pushed for time I have a single-serve Emergency Strawberry Cheesecake Bowl recipe!
Mel x
Let's Make Vegan New York Cheesecake!
Can't wait to make it? Here's a quick summary of how it's done:
- Make the crust- For this, you need some cookies. Either digestive biscuits or graham crackers. Store-bought or homemade. I have recipes for both. To make the crust blend the cookies with some vegan butter or coconut oil in a food processor then press into a loose bottom pan and refrigerate.
- Make the filling - Blend all of the filling ingredients together. I recommend soaking the cashew nuts in boiling water before blending even if you have a high-powered blender.
- Bake the cheesecake - Pour the filling mixture over the crust then bake. No water bath is required.
- Refrigerate - After baking the cheesecake needs to be refrigerated for at least a few hours before serving.
Do not try to make this cheesecake in a cake pan without a removable bottom. You need to use either a spring-form cake pan or a loose-bottomed cake pan or you will never get it out in on piece.
Serving Suggestions
Here's the cheesecake in all its naked glory:
It is delicious on its own. That BISCUIT BASE is so good! A topping or sauce of some kind is highly recommended though. Not only does it make the cheesecake look beautiful, but it also adds flavor and contrast.
The topping can be as simple as a pile of fresh berries or some vegan caramelized bananas, or you can get creative with any of these:
I love a lemon curd and fresh raspberry combo, or a berry compote and fresh mixed berry combo like in the pictures.
Readers have had so much fun with this recipe over the years. One very popular riff, which I haven't yet tried myself but sounds amazing, is to use Oreo cookies for the base, with chunks of broken Oreo stirred through the batter and lots of chocolate syrup or sauce to drizzle.
Recipe FAQs
I have never tried freezing it so can't be sure how it will hold up. I think it should be ok though as long as it is wrapped very well.
To make this recipe gluten-free you'll need to find some gluten-free digestive biscuits or graham crackers. The filling is naturally gluten-free.
Recipe
Vegan New York Cheesecake
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
FOR THE BASE
- 23 (350 grams / 12 oz) digestive biscuits , or graham crackers
- 4 tablespoons melted vegan butter , or coconut oil
FOR THE FILLING
- 2 cups (300 grams) raw cashews ,soaked in boiling water for 15 mins then drained (measured before soaking)
- 1 cup (175 grams) canned chickpeas , drained & rinsed well
- 1 lemon zest and juice
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot or cornstarch
- ½ cup (120 ml) maple syrup , (real maple, not pancake syrup!)
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 1 x 14oz (400ml) can full fat coconut milk , it must be full fat not light (if your can is only 398 ml that's fine).
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 320F (160°C) and line a 9 or 10 inch spring form pan that is at least 3 inches deep. First grease it with vegan butter or a little oil so the paper sticks. Then draw around the bottom of the cake pan on parchment paper, cut it out and put that in the bottom of the pan. Line the sides of the pan with a long rectangular strip of baking parchment.
- Put the digestive biscuits (or graham crackers) into a food processor with the butter/coconut oil and blend until well combined and in clumpy, fine crumbs. Then press into the bottom of the cake pan. Refrigerate while you make the filling.
- Add all of the filling ingredients to a blender and blend until completely smooth. Pour over the crust then sit the pan on a baking tray.
- Bake for about 50 minutes or until set well around the edges with a tiny bit of a wobble in the middle. Time will vary depending on your oven and the pan you use.
- Allow to cool completely, then refrigerate for at least 4 to 5 hours or overnight. Don't put it in the fridge while hot/warm.
NOTES
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Anaïs says
Hi, thank you for your recipe! Is there a way to replace the coconut milk with something else? (I’m allergic to coconut...)
Thank you in advance!
Sue says
Has anyone tried making the base the day before and storing in fridge? I want to do some prep ahead of the day
A Virtual Vegan says
The base will be absolutely fine in the fridge overnight.
Rachel says
Wow, great recipe! I tried it this weekend for a pre-Christmas family gathering. The non-vegans liked it as much as me! I'll definitely be making this again, thanks!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm so pleased you all enjoyed it!
Lisa Heckman says
Ps. I just went back to TheTastyK and am THRILLED they give you props for this recipe! Yay!!
Lisa Heckman says
Hi Mel,
I just wanted to let you know I got the same recipe off of TheTastyK.com I agree it's a winner! Thanks for all your recipes and Happy Holidays.
Cheers!
Mark says
As an unapologetic carnivore and not a vegan myself, I was extremely sceptical of this recipe but nonetheless gave it a go to try and impress my vegan sister. Absolutely amazed with the results, one of the nicest cheesecakes I've ever had and I would not have had a clue that this wasn't a real cheesecake if it was served to me in secret. Deliciously luscious and creamy, I added some frozen blueberries and raspberries in to the mix before baking just as I would with a regular recipe, tasted like heaven. I may be converted to Veganism yet.
A Virtual Vegan says
Wow Mark that's great! Winning over non-vegans always makes me happy. I pride myself on only ever publishing recipes that are as good, or better, than their non-vegan versions. People think vegans go without but it couldn't be further from the truth! Thank you for taking the time to leave feedback. I really appreciate it!
Angie says
I made mini cheesecakes with a gingersnap crumb crust and they came out amazing! The texture is creamy and flavor has the perfect amount of tang that you would get from diary cream cheese. Thanks for this recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Angie. I'm so pleased you enjoyed them. The gingersnap crust sounds delicious!
Janine says
Such a simple recipe! I am currently watching my cheesecake through the oven door and so while the mixture tasted delicious (nothing like raw cake mix...) the success of the cheesecake is yet to be seen! Fingers crossed as it is for a colleague's birthday tomorrow!
Thanks so much for sharing this :)
A Virtual Vegan says
Fingers crossed it goes down well! Have a good day tomorrow!
Jake says
Made it with my 10 year old son, it came out great! Very tasty!
Jennifer says
Can this cheesecake be frozen after baking?
A Virtual Vegan says
I have never tried freezing it and have never had any feedback from anyone who has, so I can't say. Sorry.
Kim says
So creamy and delicious! I just subbed some gf flour to keep the crust gf. Thanks for the recipe.
A Virtual Vegan says
So glad you enjoyed it Kim!
Sally says
Hello! This recipe looks lovely and I would like to try it soon! I just have a couple of questions.
Do you think I could use something else instead of maple syrup? Like if I just used simple syrup, would that be okay, or does it affect the flavour a lot?
Also, does the vinegar have to be apple cider? I only have rice vinegar, do you think that could work? I could go buy some apple vinegar if you think it makes a big difference, flavour-wise.
Thank you, and thanks for developing this recipe!
Sally
A Virtual Vegan says
Hi Sally, I don't think simple syrup would work. It's thinner and doesn't really have any flavour other than sweetness. Maple syrup is really the best option. Agave would be a close 2nd but the maple really works flavour-wise so I'd recommend you use it if you can. Plus if you use something with a different consistency it would affect how firm the cheesecake turns out.
As for vinegar, there isn't much in it at all, so it probably wouldn't make a huge difference if you used a different one, but apple cider vinegar is pretty unique in that it's quite sweet and not too sharp. It works well in desserts. I really wouldn't like to say how it would be as I haven't tried it. I'd hate for the whole thing to be ruined for the sake of a little vinegar so I'd say it's worth buying a bottle. It keeps for ages and you can use it up in lots of my recipes. It's in most of my baked goods and it makes a great salad dressing too!
Chelsea says
I made a syrup replacement because I don't eat sugar. I used coconut milk mixed with monkfruit. I heated the coconut milk with the monkfruit in it, so the monkfruit would dissolve. It worked great! Granted, I don't know the difference, but it turned out great and everyone who tried it said it was a success. Some of the people eating it with me do eat sugar and I had maple syrup they could add on top, and that was a good way for them to get the flavor, which they all said they enjoyed and that it made it taste like flan. Other options for syrup replacement would be adding blending fruit into the coconut milk/monkfruit mix. I used a gluten-free crust. I'm so happy with this recipe and I will certainly try it again with some of the suggestions listed in the comments (blueberries and raspberries -- yes, please!) and more lemon because I love a lot of tang. No guilt having a second slice and I don't feel sick after eating it. Perfect amount of richness. Thank you!
Jerica says
Hello,
Love this recipe! Is the Tahini used as an egg replacer? If so, do you think Aquafaba will work from the chickpeas? If not is the Tahini used to improve the taste/texture? Just wondering if the cheesecake would be just as tasty if I have to omit using the Tahini.
Thanks!
A Virtual Vegan says
No it's not an egg replacer. It is just for flavour and richness. It adds a bit of tang and makes it a little smoother and creamier. You could omit it though. It doesn't make a huge difference.
Cecilia says
Are. You using roasted sesame tahini vs Raw Tahini ?
A Virtual Vegan says
For this it doesn't really matter. Just use whatever you have.
Bethany Lopusnak says
How "coconut-y" is the finished product? I'm dying to make it and I love coconut but it's such a divisive ingredient that people tend to either love or hate. I could use refined coconut oil in the base to tone it down but not sure how strong the flavor is with coconut cream in the actual cake? Thanks for sharing this recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
You can't taste the coconut at all. You might if you used virgin coconut oil in the crust, but vegan butter gives the best flavor there anyway or like you say you can use refined.
Bethany Lopusnak says
Hooray! Thanks so much for the reply - I can't wait to try this and I'm so glad I stumbled on your blog.
Brenda says
This is the best vegan "cheesecake" I have ever head. Well, it's the only one I've ever had since a tofu one I made in my twenties and I can't remember how it tasted.
I won't be making it again for a while because I live alone and it's taken me nearly 3 weeks to eat it but I enjoyed it!
The flavor was surprisingly closer than what I was expecting. Not exact buy very close and very good. Will have to try with one of your toppings in the future.
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm so pleased you enjoyed it Brenda. And wow, good going to finish it all on your own! You could easily half the recipe and make it in a smaller pan if you wanted to. Now you've made it once full size you'll know how to spot when it's cooked properly. Thank you for coming back to leave feedback. I really appreciate it.
Sean says
Can I substitute golden syrup instead of maple syrup?
A Virtual Vegan says
I haven't tried it so I don't know how that would work out. If you try it let me know how it goes!
Orliande GRAY says
Hi
Could the coco milk/cream be replaced by silken tofu or almond cream. Thanks
Amber says
This is honestly SO realistic and delicious. Its my second time making it and even my omnivore family likes it. This recipe is a life saver. The only thing I would change is using a vanilla pod instead of just the extract but thats just astetic wise really.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Amber. I'm so glad you are all enjoying it. It's certainly a favourite of mine!
Kaloyana says
Hello! This cheesecake looks amazing. I really want to try making it but I don't have arrowroot flour. I suppose it could be sustituted with cornstarch. But I don't have that either. What would be a good substitute? Flax eggs?
Thank you in advance! :)
A Virtual Vegan says
You need either cornstarch or arrowroot. Don't make it without them. Flax eggs wouldn't work and would ruin the appearance too. It's worth waiting for!
Soul says
It turned out lovely with the modifications above. I forgot to say I also did not realize I had only 1 and 1/2 cup of cashews when I started, so I used half a cup of pistachios to get to a full 2 cups. So that also worked out.
I am glad I did not add extra coconut milk to the erythritol as it would have been too moist I think. We ate some same day after 5 hours chill time in fridge and I found a bit too creamy. After letting it set overnight, it became the more dense new york texture we were hoping for with the recipe. Thank you again for a great recipe.