Low-Calorie Vegan Cheesecake

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Enough with the cashews and coconut cream. I've officially had my fill :))

Sorry to be so blunt, but seriously. Enough!

Let's move on.

Skipping dairy shouldn't mean signing up for heartburn and loads of extra fat.

We can make a low-calorie vegan cheesecake without piling on the fat.

Sure, if we're eating cake, we should enjoy every bite and choose one we really love.

But that doesn't mean a slice needs to pack 1,000 calories. (Oh, you'd be surprised how easy it is to find cakes like that.)

Why not have a slice with just 200 calories?

This cheesecake comes in at just under 200 calories per generous slice when you cut it into 10 slices. Yes, that includes the crust.

And if you feel like treating yourself to another slice? Hey, the world will keep turning.

A Few Things About This Low-Calorie Vegan Cheesecake

• The crust uses plain old petit beurre cookies (the crisp, simple cookies popular in Israel). You can swap in an oat-and-date crust, of course.

But I figured, if we're having cake, let's have a little fun. Right? If you don't mind, I'll save my oats for breakfast.

Prefer a different cookie? Use Lotus Biscoff cookies, Oreos, or whatever cookies you have.

Want to skip the cookies altogether? Turn this into individual dessert cups.

Without a crust, the cheesecake won't hold together as a freestanding cake.

• The cheese substitute is a blend of soy milk, soy cream (I used Vitriz, but any soy cream, such as Alpro, will work), silken tofu, and flavorings: maple syrup, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.

I haven't tested substitutions for those ingredients, so I can't tell you how they'd turn out. What I can tell you is that this blend has a rich, heavy-cream-like texture that works beautifully in a cake.

• To help the cheesecake set in the refrigerator, I used agar-agar flakes. Agar is a plant-based alternative to gelatin, and its job here is to give the filling enough structure to slice.

There's no substitute for the agar here. If you have agar powder instead of flakes, use 1 teaspoon of powder for every 1 tablespoon of flakes.

Don't get carried away and add extra agar, or you'll end up with jelly. Too little, and the cheesecake will fall apart.

• I sweetened the cheesecake with maple syrup, which is less calorie-dense than granulated sugar because it contains more water.
• You can substitute sugar, silan (date syrup), or another sweetener you like.
• For that familiar cheesecake flavor, I added lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Want to leave them out? Proceed at your own risk.
• I decorated the cheesecake with a few sliced strawberries, then brushed them with a little jam thinned with water for some shine. Feel free to use any fruit you like.

Low-Calorie Vegan Cheesecake Nutrition

One slice, when the cake is cut into 10 slices, contains:

• 198 calories
• 4.6 g protein
• 4.1 g sugar
• 9.2 g fat
• 4.7 g saturated fat, included in the total fat
• 24.2 g carbohydrates

Want to learn how to make vegan cheese for bourekas (flaky Israeli pastries)?

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  Low-Calorie Vegan Cheesecake

  Prep Time 10 minutes

  Cook Time 2 minutes

  Yield 10 slices

  Calories 200 kcal

  Ingredients

  For the Crust

  • 1 sleeve petit beurre cookies 400 g (14 oz)
  • 3 tablespoons coconut oil 40 g (1.4 oz)
  • 2 tablespoons water

  For the Filling

  • 1 carton soy cream 200 ml (about 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon)
  • 1 cup unsweetened soy milk 220 ml (about 1 US cup minus 1 tablespoon)
  • 1 package silken tofu 340 g (12 oz)
  • 6 tablespoons maple syrup 80 ml (about 1/3 US cup)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 10 ml (about 2 US teaspoons)
  • 6 tablespoons agar-agar flakes 14.5 g (0.5 oz)

  For the Strawberry Glaze

  • 1 tablespoon strawberry jam
  • 1 tablespoon water

  Instructions

  Make the Crust

  1. Add the petit beurre cookies to a food processor and pulse for a few seconds until they form crumbs.

  2. Add the coconut oil and process until the mixture is evenly combined and sticks together.

  3. If the crumbs aren't sticking together, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water and continue processing until they do.

  4. Transfer the cookie mixture to a 22 cm (about 8 1/2-inch) springform pan.

  5. Use the bottom of a glass to press the crumbs into an even layer across the bottom of the pan.

  6. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to firm up.

  Make the Filling

  1. Add the soy cream, soy milk, silken tofu, lemon zest, lemon juice, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to a food processor. Blend until smooth.

  2. Taste and adjust the flavor with more lemon, a little maple syrup, or vanilla extract, as needed.

  3. Pour the mixture into a small saucepan and add the agar-agar flakes.

  4. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to very low and cook for 5 minutes.

  5. Remove the pan with the cookie crust from the refrigerator.

  6. Pour the hot filling over the cookie crust. Tap the pan on the counter to release any air bubbles.

  7. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to set.

  8. Once the cheesecake has set, release it from the pan and decorate with strawberries or other fruit.

  9. For the fruit glaze, mix a little jam with water and brush it over the fruit.