Citrus "Cheese"cake

For some reason I have always been in love with vegan desserts. Not because of the fact that they have no animal products but because personally I think taste even better than their non-vegan counterparts. And they usually use healthier fats and nutritious substitutes of some ingredients so it's less of a dessert and more of a healthful food. I had to prepare this dish in front of my class as a cooking demonstration assignment and actually am considering possibly doing cooking videos for my blog at some point in the future since it went so well!

This is my first time making a fully vegan dessert and let me tell you, it's pretty damn good.  This citrus vegan dessert is guaranteed turn you into a believer of all sweet vegan things. 

I adapted this recipe from blogilates no bake raw cheesecake 

Citrus  "Cheese"cake

(shoutout to Bilal aka my husband for being my newphotography assistant!)

• There are so many health benefits to the ingredients used in this recipe. Some are outline in the card that I made for a class handout below but here are a few more:
• Cashews & Pecans have high levels of oleic acid which can help you lose weight, strengthen the cardiovascular system, can lower cholesterol and have many antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Use raw organic, and if not organic then definitely raw! Roasted/salted nuts are not as nutritious.
• Soaking nuts gets rid of the phytic acid which can prevent the absorption of certain minerals in our body as well as removes the enzyme inhibitors which protect the nut when it's growing. It also makes them much easier to grind down
• Did you know studies showed that people who eat raw nuts as a part of their diet actually lose more weight than people who don't?
• Dates can help with regularity and digestive issues due to do the high levels of fiber. The sugar in dates will not cause spikes in blood sugar, but rather balances out blood sugar really well so it is a great sugar alternative.
• Dates can also help you lose wight!
• Coconut oil as I had outlined in my previous blog entry can also boost your metabolism and help with weight loss
• Maple syrup is low on the glycemic index and will not cause a spike in blood sugar levels and the taste is just amazing. Alternatives such as agave, brown rice syrup, etc can be used
• When zesting the orange and lemon, make sure just to scrape off the colored part not the white pith of the fruit, use the smallest side of a grater to do so. The essential oils released from zesting the citrus actually has revitalizing and energizing properties when inhaled
• These fats are all healthy! This doesn't mean you should eat the whole dish but it is highly nutritious and can even be eaten as a snack rather than dessert  

(click on the image to enlarge)

 I really urge you all to try it out! It's so great to have a healthy dessert around when those cravings hit - for some people, like me, these cravings hit often so it's great to be prepared. This is great for people with gluten and dairy allergies and for people trying to watch their 

waistline!

Have a great and healthy weekend!

-Sara