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.
Heya!
Sooo strawberry prices are disgusting at the moment…..
Could frozen raspberries work?
Thankyou!
Sure, let them thaw and drain them well before using so there isn’t excess water and should be fine.
Can the date honey or maple syrup be replaced with agave nectar?
Sure!
It worked very well with agave nectar! It was for my baby’s 1st birthday, as her smash cake. We also added a layer of strawberry sauce to the top. Yum! Thank you!
Oh cute!!! That must have been great! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Just wandering could I make these in little cupcake tins? I’m wanting to do individual ones. Also I’ve never made or eaten vegan food. I’m making these to accommodate another fellow uni student in our tute class
Sure, I don’t see why not. I’ve done some chocolate cheesecakes that way, so you could take a look at those to get some tips. 🙂
I made this cake yesterday for my partner’s birthday. It was just perfect. I didn’t expect nor believe it would be such a Success. So creamy and wonderful texture. Thank you for such a great recipe.
That is wonderful! So good to hear it was a success! Thanks for posting! 🙂
Can I replace the dates for anything? I want to make this for my husband, he is allergic to almost EVERYTHING and dates are one of them.
He also is allergic to macadamias, can I use all cashews?
Something like walnuts or almonds can replace the macadamias in the crust perfectly.
I’m not sure about that one – the dates are sticky so help the crust stay together, you’d have to experiment, it’s possible raisins could work fine, but I’m not sure. All the best!
I did use walnuts instead of macadamia. I used raisins instead of dates and to make them a bit more sticky, I stirred in a teaspoon of honey to coat the raisins before I put it in the food processor and it worked great!
Thanks!
Fantastic! That’s great to hear and very helpful! Thanks for posting! 🙂
Hello. Wondering if there are other nuts I can replace cashew with. I can’t eat it.
Thanks
Macadamias could work too! ?
Hey Alison
I just stumbled upon this recipe and am so excited to try this weekend for a mothers day treat. I am wondering based on the comments I have read about it melting if the use of agar powder would help it set? Any ideas on this? I did read the comment about using coconut oil but I was trying to think of a way that didn’t add extra fat to the recipe. Whats your take on agar agar powder and how one might add to the recipe?
Thank you so much!
Hi Felicia, my only experience using agar agar is in a jello and it needed to be boiled first. So I don’t know how it would exactly work here. As long as you serve this straight out of the fridge, you shouldn’t have any issues with it melting. It should be exactly like mine, which as you can see isn’t all that melty. A little bit, but it’s hot as heck where I live! All the best!
I made this for some guest we had over or dinner. This is an amazing tasting desert.
Re only changes I made, I added more strawberries as well as a addition of coconut milk to strawberry layer. I wanted Strawberry layer more tart than the vanilla layer. I also made some raw chocolate and drizzled over the whole top.
Amazing!
Sounds fantastic Tiffany! Thanks for posting!
Hiii can i use frozen strawberries?
Fresh is best in this case as when you’re blending with the cashews you need the water from the strawberries to create enough liquid, if the strawberries are frozen that won’t happen, which means you would need to add extra liquid and that would affect the outcome.
Do you think it would work it you let the frozen strawberries thaw out before blending? I wanted to make the cheesecake, but only have frozen strawberries at the moment!
I think it should be okay! Just drain them well, so there isn’t any excess water.
Weird question…do you drain the cashews and then put just the cashews into the food processor or do you put the water mix in as well… I am new to cooking and just wanted to clarify
Hi Donna, definitely throw out the water. So soak them, then drain and rinse the cashews and only put the cashews into the blender, none of the water.
Hi,
I love this cake! I made it a couple times, and it looks amazing, but unfortunately, it starts melting very quickly, and the beautiful cake turns into a mess on a plate… What am I doing wrong?
Hi Mira! Are you keeping it in the fridge inbetween serving? It definitely does melt, which is why it has to stay in the fridge or freezer. If you are already doing that and it’s still melting, then I would recommend adding in some coconut oil, the recipe stays the same, just add in 1/4 cup coconut oil to the ‘cheese’ part of the cheesecake and 2 Tbsp to the topping. This helps it stay firm but it will still need to live in the fridge inbetween servings. All the best and let me know if this sorts out the problem! 🙂
Thank you so much, Alison! I will try the coconut oil!
I made this in a high-speed blender, and the crust turned into a nut butter. It also got cooked because the blender was working so hard. I think next time I need to try and find a food processor. I think I’ll cut the crust in half, though. It came out really thick, and the filings went over the top. I wonder if maybe I used a smaller pie tin. I used parchment paper instead of greasing it. Came out very tasty, though
Hi Amber, the crust definitely would work better in a food processor. But if doing it in the blender, you could just pulse blend, and watch it carefully so that it doesn’t start turning into nut butter. And then maybe you have a 7 inch pie tin. The spring form pan I used for this recipe is 8 inches. So glad it was tasty though! Thanks so much for posting! 🙂
Hi! What did you “grease” the pan with?
Hi Michelle! I used coconut oil. Pretty much always use coconut oil for greasing. 🙂
Awesome! Just bought my pans buying my ingredients now! Thank you!
Great! Hope it turns out fabulously! 🙂
Looks as good as your gluten free chocolate cake. I bet it tastes as good too
I wish someone would make this for me at least once a month!