New York Cheesecake Bars

Ingredients

Base:

• 3/4 cup oats + 3tb extra
• 1/2 cup roasted or raw cashews
• 1/2 cup roasted or raw almonds
• 1 tb coconut sugar
• 2 tb semi solid coconut oil
• pinch salt (if using unsalted nuts)

Filling:

• 1 cup cashews soaked in boiling water 2-30mins, and drained
• 1/2 cup chickpeas – cooked and drained
• 1/2 tb vanilla extract
• 1 tb cornflour
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 tb tahini or smooth nut butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup coconut cream
• zest of 1 lemon
• juice of 1 lemon – about 1/4 cup
• 1/2 tb apple cider vinegar

Topping:

• 2 cups fresh or frozen strawberries or other berries
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tb lemon juice
• 1 tb water
• 1/2 tb maple syrup – or more if berries are very tart
• 1 tb chia seeds

Method

For Base:

Blend together all base ingredients except 3tb extra oats (Blend the 3tb extra oats in roughly at the end for texture). Press blended mix into a loaf tin lined with baking paper and bake 180°C about 10mins. Remove and leave to cool while making filling and turn down oven to 150°C-160°C.

For Filling:

Blend all filling ingredients together till smooth and pour onto base. Bake 150°C-160°C about 45mins till it looks set on top – underneath will still look slightly undercooked but will firm up when cold. Cool several hours – ideally overnight in fridge.

For Topping:

Cook all ingredients except chia seeds in a pan on medium heat about 10mins, until broken down and syrupy. Sit in chia seeds and leave to cool and thicken. Once cheesecake is out of oven and topping is made, allow both to cool 5-10mins, then spread topping onto cheesecake and cool in fridge overnight before cutting. (You can also put cooled topping on top of cheesecake that has set in fridge already, then leave in fridge again till topping is cold). Remove from the tin – using paper to help pull it out. Cut into bars and serve. Store in fridge.

Top and serve with whipped coconut cream if liked and a sprinkle of freeze dried berries!

*Tip: to stop cheesecake drying out too much in oven, place a pan of water in over on the shelf below the cheesecake while it cooks*