I not only have a passion for nutrition, but love to develop my own recipes. While completing my Bachelor of Science degree, I took a course on food product development where I developed a couple of different recipes for Matcha Cheesecake Bites and Dark Chocolate Matcha Cheesecake Truffles. I’m not a huge fan of matcha tea, so I thought I would replace it with fruit, which created this irresistible cheesecake. I think almost any fruit would be good, but I decided to start with raspberries. The next one will definitely be strawberries, as strawberry season has just begun!

This is not your typical cheesecake. It doesn’t contain graham wafers and it contains minimal cream cheese. Don’t let the different ingredients stop you from trying it though, because I promise your taste buds won’t be disappointed. You just might regret not trying it sooner. A bonus is it reminds me of Neapolitan ice cream with the three layers!

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake

 

Ingredients  (Makes 41 servings (1.5”square; 40 g each))

Base:

• 1 1/2 cup                    (180 g)                         ground almonds
• 12                                (73 g)                           pitted dates
• 3 tbsp                         (45 ml)                        1% milk

Brownie:

• 2 tbsp                          (18 g)                           large flake oats
• 1/3 cup                        (45 g)                           hemp seeds
• 3 tbsp                          (20 g)                           cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp             (14 g)                           coconut sugar
• 1/2 tsp                         (2 g)                             baking powder
• 2 tbsp                          (16 g)                           flaxseed meal
• 3/4 cup                        (132 g)                         canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 tsp                         (2.5 ml)                       vanilla extract
• 24                                 (150 g)                         pitted dates
• 1/2 cup                        (125 ml)                       1% milk
• 1 tsp                             (5 ml)                           vanilla extract

Cheesecake:

• 1 tbsp                          (9 g)                             unflavoured gelatin powder
• ¼ cup                         (44 g)                          coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup                        (125 ml)                      1% milk
• 1 1/2 cup                     (357 ml)                      1% cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup                        (125 g)                         light cream cheese
• 3/4 cup                        (108 g)                        fresh raspberries
• 1/2 cup                        (163 g)                         2% vanilla Greek yogurt

Directions

Base:

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F.
2. Measure ground almonds into medium mixing bowl.
3. In a blender, combine dates and milk and blend until forms a paste and no pieces of date larger than minced size pieces remain.
4. Add to almonds and fold until thoroughly mixed.
5. Lightly grease a 7 x 11” pan with pam cooking spray.
6. Pat mixture into greased pan and bake at 350˚F for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Let cool while prepare the next layer.

Brownie:

8. Preheat oven to 325˚F.
9. In a food processor or blender grind oats and hemp seeds until flour like texture. Place in a large mixing bowl.
10. Add cocoa powder, coconut sugar, baking powder, and flaxseed meal to the oat mixture and combine.
11. Place well-rinsed black beans in a blender or food processor and blend until all beans are crushed. Add to dry ingredient mixture. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla extract.
12. In a blender, combine dates, milk and vanilla extract and blend to make a date paste. Blend until relatively smooth and no larger than minced size pieces remain.
13. Add date paste to rest of ingredients and beat with an electric mixture until well combined.
14. Spread evenly over cooled base and bake for 20-25 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
15. Let brownie cool, before prepare the cheesecake layer.

Cheesecake:

16. In a medium saucepan, combine gelatin and coconut sugar together. Place over low heat and slowly add milk, continuously stirring until gelatin dissolves.
17. Remove pot from heat and place in cold water to help cool the mixture slightly.
18. Meanwhile, puree the cottage cheese in a blender until smooth. Add cream cheese and slightly cooled gelatin mixture and blend until thoroughly mixed together. Mixture will be quite runny.
19. Pour into large mixing bowl and fold in Greek yogurt, mixing just until everything is combined.
20. Pour over cooled brownie layer.
21. Puree raspberries and pour onto cheese layer. Use a knife to swirl it through the top layer. Garnish with additional whole berries if you wish.
22. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours to set. Enjoy!