Wholesome vegan grain-free cashew cheesecake with beautiful green nettle and wild blueberry layers.
The inspiration has been flowing to create all of these colorful cheesecakes and I hope you’re not bored yet! I promise this is the last one for a few weeks, I fancy baking now and have planned some yummy bakes for you next.
I wanted to bring this Blueberry Nettle Cheesecake recipe for you next because nettles are best picked in Spring before they flower. It’s a beautiful colored cheesecake with vibrant shades of green from nettles and purple from wild blueberries.
Although nettles are best picked at this time of the year and wild blueberries grow in Summer I really wanted to create a cake using both of these ingredients that I love! This little mystical cheesecake was inspired by a forest meditation & a beautiful oil created by my friend.
And here it is my vision brought to life. It tastes absolutely wonderful and I think you will surprise a few people with this special combination.
I often get asked what to use to replace coconut butter. The reason that I love to use coconut butter is first, it sets the raw cakes really well and second, it’s made from dried coconut. Often cheesecakes are set with coconut oil, you do need quite a bit to set them so I rather use the butter. If using coconut oil I like to use it in combination with coconut cream for more richness. With coconut butter, light plant milk or water is fine.
Coconut butter is also sold as a creamed coconut in a pouch which is cheaper than coconut butter in a jar. You can also make your own from desiccated/shredded coconut.
Enjoy the recipe and let me know how you like it :) And if nettle is not your thing then you can always make my Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake instead!
Blueberry Nettle Cheesecake (vegan & grain-free)
Wholesome vegan grain-free cashew cheesecake with beautiful green nettle and wild blueberry layers.
Ingredients
Crust layer:
- 1 cup walnuts (100 grams)
- 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (70 grams)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch sea salt
- 6 medjool dates, pitted
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
Nettle layer:
- 2 cups nettle leaves (30 grams)
- 1 cup cashews, soaked for 4 hours (120 grams)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (60 ml)
- 1/4 cup almond milk (60 ml)
- 1/2 lemon, zest
- 1/2 lemon, juice
- 1/2 cup coconut butter, melted (100 grams)
Blueberry layer:
- 1 cup frozen wild blueberries, slightly thawed (100 grams)
- 1 cup cashews, soaked for 4 hours (120 grams)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (60 ml)
- 2 tablespoons almond milk
- 1/2 lemon, zest
- 1/2 lemon, juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup coconut butter, melted (100 grams)
Instructions
- Prepare 7" square cake tin with removable base.
- Place walnuts and pumpkin seeds into a food processor and pulse few times until ground. Add pitted dates, cinnamon and salt and blend until the mixture comes together. Add maple syrup and blend again. You should have a sticky mix when pressed together.
- Spoon the crust mix into the tin, spread evenly onto the base and press tightly down. Place into a fridge.
- Carefully pick nettle leaves from the stems and wash thoroughly. Please use gloves if you're sensitive to nettle sting. In a medium pot bring water to a boil, add nettles and blanch for 30 seconds. Run under cold water, drain and set aside.
- Rinse the soaked cashews for the nettle layer under running water and place into high speed blender. Add blanched nettles, maple syrup, almond milk, lemon zest and juice and blend until smooth. Add melted coconut butter and blend until incorporated.
- Spoon the mixture onto the crust layer and smooth out the top. Cover the cake with a layer of baking paper and cling film on top and place into a freezer until set enough for blueberry layer.
- Rinse the soaked cashews for the blueberry layer under running water and place into high speed blender. Add blueberries, maple syrup, almond milk, lemon zest and juice and vanilla and blend until smooth. Add melted coconut butter and blend until incorporated.
- Spoon the mixture onto the nettle layer and smooth out the top. Cover the cake with a layer of baking paper and cling film on top to prevent frostbite and place into a freezer until completely set.
- Once set carefully remove from the tin and with a sharp knife cut into 16 bars.
- Leave to thaw before serving.
- Store in a fridge or freezer.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving:Calories: 288Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 112mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 5gSugar: 14gProtein: 5g
Silvia says
Waww ! It looks so yummy!! I am gonna give it a try!!
Hana says
Hi Silvia, I’m so happy you think so! Let me know how you like it :)
Laura says
This looks amazing. Would dried nettles work, too? Thank you!
Hana says
Thank you Laura! I think fresh nettles are the best in this recipe, but when not in season you could try using something like kale, mint or basil.
Lina says
Hi,
would dried nettles also work? This cake looks so amazing!
Thank you :)
Hana says
Hi Lina, I think fresh nettles are the best in this recipe, but when not in season you could try using something like kale, mint or basil.
LISA says
Hi Hana,
Would Creamed Coconut work instead of coconut butter?
Also could I use Coconut milk instead of Almond milk?
Thank you
It looks beautiful!