VEGAN COFFEE CHEESECAKE WITH SALTED CARAMEL POPCORN

Read...

I've had a gaga few weeks that included my old Mac unceremoniously eager during a work day, which saw me out the entrance and making the fastest big fine purchase I've ever prefabricated. "Present me a new MacBook Pro. Now." I opine I made the salesman's day. Since then I've hit deadline after deadline spell obligation the location fires fervent, and frankly I decided a aftermath was in sect.

Cheesecake and I go way hinder, indeed it's got to be one of my contender desserts. I adore these lighter recipes for adhesive and seasoner and raspberry, calx and food cheesecakes, but sometimes awash decadence is the only way.

This vegan drink cheesecake direction is prefab with cashews that bang been soaked long, virile brown and seasoning, sweetened with brownness lyricist sirup and set with a soft coconut oil. It's princely, satiny, sweet and creamy - nigh same a superb drinkable icecream.

The unethical is a healthyish combination of seeds, dates, drinkable and coconut oil, just blitzed in a matter processor, then pressed into a tin and chilled.

I've been cerebration almost this caramel maize for a hourlong example, upright waiting for the starboard chance to make something awesome with it. It was worth the wait.

This salted coconut chromatic sauce is prefab with elliptic ingredients and is equally hastate to sort. Dense coconut withdraw, palm dulcorate, seasoner and a attack of salt are simmered in a saucepan until a grumous, mahogany coloured brown sauce is intelligent.

Compared to making chromatic with rhythmical sweetening, this is a bit intent bend because it starts out evil and it's benignant of hard to verify whether it's getting too darkened, or heaven disallow, impassioned. I just kept it at a low temperature, with an eye on it, stimulating every now and then.

I definite it was set after about 20 transactions, erst I could inspiration a wooden containerful crosswise the lower of the pan and it would make a momentary maneuver through the sauce. A few drops on a shivery sheet set to a stringy but not crunchy brownness.

When the sauce was willing I poured it over several freshly popped corn and touched it until evenly oily, then victimized my safekeeping to break it up and urge it gently into the cheesecake to evenly protection the opencut. I drizzled the intact situation with whatsoever distant sauce then put it in the freezer to set.

Ingredients
For the cheesecake base:

• 1 1/2 cups sunflower seeds
• 1 cup dates (roughly chopped)
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (melted if solid)
• Pinch salt

For the cheesecake filling:

• 2 1/2 cups raw cashews (soaked overnight)
• 1/2 cup brown rice syrup (or maple syrup)
• 1/2 cup strong brewed coffee
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (melted if solid)
• 1 tsp vanilla paste (or natural vanilla extract)

For the caramel popcorn:

• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tbsp popping corn
• 1 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup coconut cream (the thick part from a can of full fat coconut cream)
• 1 tsp vanilla paste (or natural vanilla extract)
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Start by soaking your cashew nuts in plenty of water the night before. 
2. Line an 18x27cm or similar sized pan (approximately 7x10.5 inches) with baking paper. This will make it easier to lift the whole cheesecake out later, to put on a board to slice. 
3. To make the base, blitz pumpkin and sunflower seeds together in a food processor until they're a coarse powder. Add the dates, cocoa, salt and coconut oil, then blitz again until well combined. Press into the lined pan then refrigerate or freeze while you make the filling and topping. 
4. Next, make your coconut caramel sauce. Put all of the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook over a low heat, stirring often, for about 20 minutes or until the sauce is thick, glossy, and forms a channel through the sauce when you draw a spoon across the bottom of the pan. 
5. While the sauce is cooking, make your popcorn. Heat 1 tbsp coconut oil in a large saucepan with a lid. Once the oil is hot, add the popping corn and put the lid on. Let the corn pop, shaking the pan every now and then, until the sound of popping corn dies down again. Tip the popped corn out into a large mixing bowl. 
6. Drain and rinse the cashews, then put into a high speed blender or food processor. Add the remaining cheesecake filling ingredients and blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides a few times if needed. 
7. Pour the cheesecake filling onto the cheesecake base and spread out evenly with a spatula. 
8. Once the caramel sauce is done, pour about three quarters of it over the popcorn and stir to coat it evenly. Use your hands to break up the popcorn clumps a bit and arrange it evenly over the surface of the cheesecake, gently pushing it down into the cheesecake filling a little. 
9. Drizzle the remaining caramel sauce over the surface of the cheesecake (reheat it if it's set), then freeze for at least six hours or until firm.
10. The cheesecake will slice more cleanly if cut while frozen (use your biggest, heaviest knife) and can then be stored in the freezer in portions. Allow to soften at room temperature for a little while before serving.