This raw strawberry cheesecake is a gorgeous 3-layer healthy dessert that tastes like heaven! Vegan, raw and gluten free.
The first time I made a raw cheesecake, I think I swooned. I was recently reading about how ridiculous it is to ever write the word ‘swoon’ in reference to food. And I guess I sort of agree, but in this case, I think I did swoon. At least a little bit. Let’s call it a mini swoon.
Because that first raw cheesecake (much the same recipe as this cheesecake by the way), was so darn good it deserved a swoon.
It’s just swoon-worthy really that you can take some nuts, dates and maple syrup and end up with a dessert that tastes like this! 
This raw strawberry cheesecake is 3 layers of pure heaven. It’s ridiculously rich, but in a seriously good way, in the ‘I can’t believe how good this is’ sort of way.
Every layer is pure decadent delight. Smooth, creamy, sweet with just enough tartness and kick from fresh lemons blended with cashews to give it that fabulous cheesecake flavor.
Check out our other fabulous cheesecake recipes like our vegan cheesecake with salted caramel fudge topping (also raw) our mini vegan chocolate oreo cheesecakes, and our caramel swirl cheesecake ice cream is also not to be missed.
How To Make Raw Strawberry Cheesecake
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Add macadamias, cashews and pitted dates to the food processor and process until it forms into a sticky dough.
- Press down into a greased 8-inch springform pan and press down until smooth.
- Place into the freezer while you work on the next layer.
- Add soaked and drained cashews, lemon juice, vanilla extract and maple syrup to the blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour this out over the crust and smooth it down.
- Return to the freezer and allow to set before you do the next layer.
- When you’re ready to make the topping, add soaked and drained cashews, fresh strawberries, lemon juice and maple syrup to the blender and blend until smooth. Taste test and add more maple syrup if needed.
- Pour this out over the cheesecake layer and smooth it down.
- Return to the freezer to set solidly.
- When the cheesecake has completely set in the freezer, let it thaw on the counter for 30 minutes, slice up fresh strawberries and serve.
Recipes Notes & Tips
Coconut oil. Coconut oil is great for raw desserts because it helps them to set more firmly. But in this particular raw cheesecake, I left it out. I decided there was enough good fat in this cheesecake to last a week, and since it has to be kept cold anyway, it sets pretty well even without the coconut oil.
But should you feel inspired to, then just add in ¼ cup of coconut oil to the ‘cheese’ part of the recipe, and 2 tablespoons to the topping. It will result in a slightly firmer set to the cheesecake.
Let it set in the freezer. The best way to get it to set is to put it in the freezer until it has set completely, but thereafter you can keep it in the coldest part of your refrigerator where it keeps perfectly well for a few days.
Alternatively if you want it to keep even longer than that, then slice it up and return to the freezer. You’ll need to thaw out your slice every time before you can eat it, but it’ll keep for weeks this way.
More Delicious Raw Vegan Desserts
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Raw Strawberry Cheesecake
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1 cup Raw Macadamias (134g)
- 1 cup Raw Cashews (150g)
- 1 cup Pitted Dates (145g)
For the Filling (Cheesecake):
- 2 cups Raw Cashews (300g) soaked for at least 1 hour
- ¼ cup Lemon Juice Freshly squeezed
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- ½ cup Maple Syrup (120ml)
For the Topping:
- 1 cup Raw Cashews (150g) soaked for at least an hour
- 1 ½ cups Fresh Strawberries (200g)
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice Freshly squeezed
- 2-4 Tablespoons Maple Syrup
For the Decoration:
- Sliced Strawberries
Instructions
- Add the macadamias, cashews and pitted dates to the food processor and process on the S blade until a sticky dough has formed.
- Scoop out into a greased 8 inch springform pan and pat down until smooth.
- Place into the freezer to set while you make the filling.
- Place the 2 cups of pre-soaked (at least an hour) cashews along with the lemon juice, vanilla and maple syrup and blend until smooth.
- Pour this over the crust, smooth out with a spatula and return to the freezer.
- Allow this to set fairly firmly before you prepare your topping.
- When you're ready to make the topping, add the soaked cashews, fresh strawberries, lemon juice and 2 Tablespoons maple syrup to the blender and blend until smooth. Taste test to see if it's reached the desired sweetness (the sweetness will depend on the sweetness of the strawberries), if not, then add more maple syrup and blend again.
- Pour this over the cheesecake layer and return to the freezer to set solidly.
- When completely set, let it thaw on the countertop for 30 minutes then slice up fresh strawberries for the top and serve.
Notes
- Prep time. This is only for hands on time. It does not include the time spent chilling in the freezer between layers or the time for the whole cheesecake to set.
- Storing. If you’re going to consume it within a few days, you can keep it in the coldest part of your refrigerator, but if you would like to keep it longer, then slice it and keep it in the freezer in a freezer safe container, and thaw out only as much as you wish to eat, when you’re ready to eat it.
- Freezing. It will keep for weeks in the freezer.
How’s the texture? Is it firm like cheesecake? This is our 7th month vegan and I really wanna WOW everyone with this!
It’s firm when very cold, but it does get soft at room temp. 🙂
Great, thanks!
Yum!!,turned out beautifully, the cheesecake was smooth and delicious the base was slightly chewy/nutty, delicious, cheesecake craving satisfied!
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I have a question if I want to make this multi-tiered, would I do the exact same recipe in an 8 inch and then apply to a smaller pan? Put them in the freezer on top of each other or separate then place on top. Thoughts? Thank you in advance!!!
Hi Kate, it’s not something I’ve tried, but I would probably make freeze them and then remove from the pans and only then place one on top of the other and then freeze again.
Excellent, delicious, decadent cake. Quick and easy to make. Tastes so creamy and so much like cheesecake. WOW. Just Wow. It is awesome and I will Definitely make it again!! Thanks so much Alison!
Recipe notes:
– Time saving quick soak method for cashews which worked great: bring cashews to a boil, stir in a splash of lemon juice, remove from heat and let sit for 15 minutes. Done.) Rinse them in cold water to fully cool before blending into the recipe to save time later solidifying in the freezer – I blended them in hot, which worked fine except that I had to wait longer to eat it!
– Walnuts in place of macadamias as I couldn’t find any at my store.
– Used frozen strawberries – I didn’t bother thawing them before blending for the top layer to save time and it worked out. While the cake was setting in freezer I thawed extra to garnish the top just before serving.
Thanks for sharing and the awesome review! 🙂
Oh sry. 8 inch 😀
How’s the size of ur cake tin?!
Super easy to make and tasted absolutely delishes!
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed it Matthew! 🙂
This looks and sounds delicious! But I shouldn’t eat cashews, what would you suggest for a substitute?
Hi Lori, I don’t know if there is a good substitute for cashews in this kind of cheesecake, if you’re not specifically looking for a raw cheesecake, then this cheesecake recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie doesn’t use any cashews. 🙂
I too am trying to avoid coconut oil for health reasons is how I found this. I have not tried this recipe yet but I wanted to share my technique for making raw cheesecakes. I use a silicone cake pan, round or square. I put the top layer in and let each layer freeze before adding the next layer and the crust. A few hours before the party I pop the cake out of the form, no need for grease and you have to do it while frozen. Then add any toppings. I normally let them thaw on the counter but I assume this one needs to stay in the fridge and thaw slowly overnight.
This looks so delicious – I have my birthday the next weekend, so this will be the dessert for me and my boyfriend 🙂
Is this cake really without coconut oil? (the filling/topping) I guess so? It’s great because I ended up on your website when I was looking for raw cake recipes without coconut oil/cream. For some strange reason I seem not to be able to tolerate coconut oil/cream so well (I have used organic always, but still..), nothing serious but it can make me little bit nauseous for a few hours, not always but sometimes. But I love raw cakes – and until now I didnt even know you can make one without coconut oil (it seems to be in all recipes).
Do you have more coconut-free raw cake recipes ? That salty caramel cheesecake looked awesome, but it has coconut…
Hi Gia, I was just having a look around my blog and I don’t think I actually do have any other recipes that don’t have either coconut cream or milk or coconut oil in them, unfortunately, I thought I did but seems all of them actually have it! Hope this cheesecake works out great for you! 🙂
It was my boyfriend’s birthday. I looked up all the different vegan strawberry cheesecake recipes online and decided on yours because it had the least (different) ingredients. I’m vegan, a virgin at making cakes and not a big fan of nuts but I must say this is really good! I probably added too much strawberries to make the top layer so it became a little mushy than creamy. My boyfriend thought the top layer wasn’t sweet enough but I thought it was good that way. My favourite is the middle layer, it’s surprisingly like cheesecake! If I were to make it again though, I would used crushed biscuits and vegan butter (yeah, not raw or gluten-free anymore) for the crust – because I’m not really a nuts person. Thanks for sharing the recipe – it was simple and easy to follow.
Awesome, so glad you liked the recipe! Yes, this would be delish with a biscuit/vegan butter base if that’s more up your street, check out our vegan banana cream pie for a nice crushed cookie base. 🙂 Thanks for posting and the great review! 🙂
Hello, I can’t wait to try this recipe. I only have roasted cashews… Can I still use them for the filling?
I haven’t ever tried roasted, but other than a slightly roasted flavor I can’t really imagine that there would be an issue. So I can’t be 100% sure, but I think you can, yes! 🙂
I have made this delicious cheesecake a number of times with frozen strawberries and coconut oil, it turned out perfect. Number 1 on my family’s favourite desserts.
That is too awesome! So glad to hear that. Thanks so much for sharing! 🙂
It looks like you used a total of 4-cups of cashews in this recipe. One cup of cashews (unsoaked) is used for the crust. Would this be correct? I’m new at this Plant-based diet and this recipe looks so simple and good! I’m about to try it and I want to follow your recipe just as you have it.
Unfortunately, I have to run and get more cashews while the other two cups are soaking.
Thanks, Cynthia
Yes, 4 cups of cashews is correct! Hope you enjoy it! 🙂