Paleo Chocolate Cheesecake

As a child I had a ridiculous sweet tooth. I could power through chocolate cake like nobody's business. It's hard to say no when your dad is famous for his homemade chocolate icing (friends still ask about it). Let's face it, it wasn't the healthiest thing, plus my metabolism is nowhere near that of my teenage self.

For Valentine's Day we stuck with a pure paleo meal. Just because we were eating healthy didn't mean I wanted to skip our usual indulgence in a giant steak and dessert! I made this amazing raw cashew cheesecake. When I first stumbled upon the recipe I was totally intimidated. The thought of making cheesecake made me nervous, but healthy cheesecake?! However, if you have the right supplies, it's not hard at all. It was amazing, but after having a bit of a chocolate craving I decided to try a chocolate version. Our gym was having a paleo potluck so I also knew that if I had to take it there, I wouldn't end up eating the entire thing by myself.

I'll go ahead and apologize for the quality of photos. As someone who loves photography, it's a bit embarrassing to post horrible cell phone photos! I recently sold my DSLR with plans to upgrade, but hasn't happened yet. Cell phones pics will have to suffice for the time being.

Onto the recipe!!

Prep
They key is a round spring form pan. Mine is a 9" and it worked perfectly for these measurements. An 8' pan works just as well! Having a blender AND a food processor also made it much easier. Also, this is a recipe you have to plan in advance. If you read the post I linked to, you'll see how important to soak your cashews! I soaked mine overnight, but you can get away with 4 hours if necessary.

I promise I have no paid endorsement (Trader Joe's feel free to do so!), but I love this cocoa powder. It's a good size, good price, and comes in a super cute container that I end up reusing for other things in the kitchen!

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 1 1/2 cups of walnuts (you can sub pecans or other nuts as well!) 
• 3 1/2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder (if you don't want a chocolate crust, coconut flakes add to a great authentic crust texture. Use 1/4 cup) 
• 1/2 cup of pitted dates (you can be a little liberal on this) 
• Pinch of sea salt

For the filling:

• 2 cups of cashews (remember to soak!!) 
• 1/2 cup maple syrup (honey would likely also work. I try to avoid agave nectar)
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup of coconut oil (I like to melt mine)
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup of almond milk (I used chocolate almond milk for overkill. You can also use water!)

For the ganache:

• 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract 
• 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup of coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of maple syrup
• Pinch of seasalt

Steps:

1. In the food processor add the walnuts. I like to blend them first so they are more fine. After you've chopped them to your satisfaction, add the dates, cocoa powder, and salt. Make sure it sticks together, but not too soft and gooey. Remember, it is still the crust!
2. Spoon everything from your food processor onto the bottom of your spring form pan. Make sure to not go above the bottom lip. I put everything in there without the side around it so I can make sure it is even and doesn't overflow! 
3. Add all of your filling ingredients into a blender. It will go for a while, but it will start to look creamy like a milkshake! After it looks done? Blend for another 20 seconds!
4. If you are like me and took of the pan side, make sure to snap it back on. (Triple check to make sure it is on properly and snapped tight. Nothing worse than perfectly good chocolate cheesecake all over your kitchen!) Pour out your blender into the pan and smooth it out. I'm sure many of you can make your cheesecake much much prettier than mine is. I'll get there eventually! 
5. Put the cheesecake in the freezer. A minimum of 4 hours, but because of timing I did mine overnight. 
6. After the four hours or overnight freezing you are ready for the grand finale. The topping! For the ganache a double boiler would be great. I used to have one, but of course with our latest move it was nowhere to be found. I used a big pot and a little pot (make sure they have lips so the small one can rest on top) and made a useable makeshift one. Boil the water in the bigger pot. Once it's ready at all the ingredients to the smaller one and stir. Place the small put so it's just in the water. Can you just microwave it? Probably, but you do risk having that "burnt chocolate" taste. There are a few options here. Go with whatever is easiest for you and your kitchen!
7. After boiling for a few minutes it shouldn't be a thing sauce, but more of a frosting texture. Take your cheesecake out of the freezer and pour on! I just poured a bit on the center and spread it around, I was a bit nervous about how overpowering it could be. However, you can cover the whole thing and it will be fantastic! 
8. I put it in the fridge for about 30 minutes (for the ganache to form a little better and it gave the cheesecake time to defrost) Just remember all the liquids that went into this! If you it is too warm or our too long they will melt and change the entire texture! 
9. ENJOY! It's super rich so make sure to share. Any leftovers should be stored in the freezer. 

At our potluck it went pretty fast so I forgot to get a photo of the finished product, but I did remember to snap one picture! Again not pretty, but tastes oh so amazing!