Nuts, Enzymes, and Cheesecake, Oh My!

Another common question I've gotten lately is "Don't you miss cooked food?" The answer is Hell Yeah! Yesterday was a perfect example. I'm a bit stressed. My oldest son is waiting to hear if he's been accepted to a college prep. school, my cycle is quickly approaching, I miss my husband (he's been traveling for work so much lately), and all I want to do is eat a big cheeseburger! What I already knew, and what I am reminded of constantly, is that I am an emotional eater! So, in order to get passed the stress, I decided to pick a new raw recipe, something decadent and seemingly sinful, and uncook it! So last night, I bypassed Wendy's, and went straight home to get to work!

The recipe comes from a great Raw cook book for beginners, How We All Went Raw.
The key to this cheesecake is lots of nuts. Only, when you are going raw, the nuts and seeds you use must be raw, not roasted or toasted, or pasteurized. You can find raw nuts and seeds in the bulk aisle of good groceries and health food stores. 


Further, even raw nuts and seeds need a bit of work because most have natural enzyme inhibitors. The purpose of enzyme inhibitors is to protect the nuts and seeds by keeping them in a hibernation state until the right conditions for life begin to occur, like a heavy rain storm. Soaking nuts and seeds in a bowl of water is one way of "tricking" the enzyme inhibitors into thinking that it's time to let the seeds "wake up" and start to grow. Here is a chart that tells you how long to soak various nuts, seeds, raw grains, and legumes.


This recipe helped me to curbed my desire for fast food. Did I mention that I got so much enjoyment from just making it, that I didn't even have a slice until this morning! And folks, there's nothing more rewarding than having a slice of cheesecake for breakfast, and not feeling guilty about it!


Strawberry Cheesecake
For Crust:
In a food processor with an s blade, add:


2 cups pecans or walnuts (these do not need to be soaked). Blend into small pieces
Then add the following:
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 cup of dates, pitted and soaked in water for 5 min. to soften
1/4 cup of flax seed meal


Blend until it turns into a ball, but don't over blend. Place crust into a spring form pan, or a deep dish pie pan.

Cheese filling:
3 cups of cashew, soaked for several hours
1/2 cup lemon juice
3/4 cup agave
1/4 cup coconut butter ( the creamy butter that seperates from the water in a can of coconut milk) This ingredient is optional
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp sea salt

Blend in a food processor. You may add a tiny bit of water to the mixture to help incorporate the ingredients, but try to get by without it. Blend until extremely smooth, then pour mixture on top of the crust. Tap to pan to remove air bubbles.

Strawberry topping:

2 cups frozen strawberries

1 cup of pitted dates, soaked in water for 10 minutes

1/4 cup almond milk (may need a bit more to help incorporate all of the ingredients).

Blend all ingredients in food processor until smooth. Pour topping over cheesecake filling.

Freeze for several hours or until firm. Remove the whole cheesecake from the pan and serve while slightly frozen.