It’s confession time. This may seem like complete blasphemy, but we’ve never had a piece of real New York cheesecake. It’s one of those things we just haven’t gotten around to. Because of that, we’re probably not qualified to make comparisons between New York cheesecake and our cheesecake. But we’re going to anyway.

This cheesecake is creamy, rich, and decadent, yet light and summery thanks to the fresh, tart lemon. It tastes just as delicious as regular cheesecake and it’s better because it’s not loaded with all of the bad stuff. That’s not to say this dessert is light on the calories by any means. The difference is that most of the calories come from nuts and dates instead of butter, flour, sugar, cream cheese, etc. That’s a pretty fair trade.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Recipe Time: 3 1/2 hours
You’ll Need: a 7″ springform pan or another type of round 7″ pan

INGREDIENTS for cheesecake filling[MAKES 12 - 2" slices]

3 c. raw cashews
3/4 c. freshly squeeze lemon juice
3/4 c. raw honey [or raw agave for vegan]
3/4 c. coconut oil
1 Tbsp. vanilla
~1/2 c. sliced strawberries [optional for layer]

INGREDIENTS for crust

1 1/2 c. raw macadamia nuts
1/2 c. pitted dates
1 Tbsp. dried coconut
pinch of sea salt

INGREDIENTS FOR Blueberry topping

1 c. fresh blueberries
1/4 c. pitted dates