RAW Cheese Cake

Now Really! RAW CHEESECAKE? How good could that be? I perused Russell Jame's recipe with a jaded eye. Now the crust looked interesting.

CRUST

1 Cup Cashews

1 Cup Pecans

1 Cup Agave (Raw sugar substitute)

1 Tbsp Coconut Oil

1 tsp Vanilla

Pinch Salt

2 tsp Lemon Juice.

Process the cashews to flour, then add pecans to make more flour then add and process the remaining ingredients until it comes together and press into bottom of a fluted cake pan - one with a bottom that pushed up and out (And line it with plastic wrap). It takes a littel pressing and smoothing to get it all in place - but overall an easy process. Then pop it in the freezer. I must confess, the raw crust was tasty and it only took a few minutes to make - far easier than graham cracker crust.

Now the filling:

3 Cups Cashews soaked (a couple hours -they swell up)

1 cup coconut oil (this is a pricy item)

1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups fresh pinapple (or mango or peach or a selected mix)

1/ tsp salt

1/2 cup Agave Nectar

Blend together until smooth.
I added coconut to the mix and on top.

Pour it into the base and pop back into the freezer until firm.

When ready to eat this Pina Collada Cheesecake, I thawed it for 30 minutes and returned it to the fridge. So how was it? HOW WAS IT?

Pretty darn good!

I served it to my godchild and husband and they both liked it. I served some to my neighbor and she liked it - as did her son, who is the most picky eater on the planet. I shared some with my raw food contingent of ladies and the vote came back THUMBS UP. It was tasty with good texture and easy to make - and then there is that RAW thing - unique to the RAW eating experience. A small sliver is incredibly filling.

I first cut 1/12 of a slice but it was too much - too filling. That's the wierd science behind RAW food. Because it's made with dense, nutritious food (nuts, coconut oil, fruit) it's incredibly fast filling. I began having a small slice for breakfast (1/24 size) and I'd be good til lunch. I don't know of any other foods that have that effect! Most curious - and great for portion control!

So there you have it - delicious cake with a bonus of goodness.

Next up: my first week of a RAW cooking experiment which resulted in 4 days of -- oh my god, I'm sorry, just thinking about it makes me have to go to bed now - It was exhausting - but good. Be back soon.