Stocking the Freezer: Blueberry Cheezecake

Stocking the Freezer: Blueberry Cheezecake

Blueberry Un-Blues Part II of III

Don't you like my academic-style headings of late? The formula is "Gerund Phrase COLON Nouns Nouns Nouns." Or something like that. Add an "OF" phrase and you have it made.

"Gothic Granola: Deconstructing and Rebuilding the Nature of Reality" since 2011.

This recipe represents another must-do, like every vegan food blogger out there, to make raw cheezecake at some point, primarily using cashews and fresh fruit. Done and done.

Behold frozen goodness for your summer dessert pleasure. My recipe is adapted for entirely Vitamix assembly; you won’t need to soak the dates if you use a food processor. Cashew soaking is still necessary. I imagine this recipe would taste just as good with soaked almonds for the filling instead. While normally I list my inspiration, I read several recipes and didn’t have the exact ingredients. Rather than try to duplicate someone else’s creation, I used what I had on hand to inform the recipe and method. I learned a valuable lesson: use liquid coconut oil, not water, to make the blades go. Coconut oil will stay solid at room temperature; water will make the dessert melt!

Raw Blueberry Cheezecake

6 dates, soaked overnight

2 cups walnuts

dash sea salt

2 cups cashew pieces, soaked overnight

1/4 cup coconut oil, warmed to liquid

zest of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lemon

1 pint blueberries

8 dates, soaked overnight

Have ready an 8*8-inch square or 9-inch round freezer-safe container with a lid.  In a food processor or blender, blitz the walnuts to make a flour. Scatter a little walnut flour across the bottom of the pan. Add the dates and salt and pulse until chunks form and the mixture coheres.  Scrape it into the pan and press it in a flat layer.

In the same machine, process the drained cashews to break them up a little before the other chunky ingredients. Add the rest of the filling ingredients and process until smooth. Add more coconut oil or a tiny bit of water if the blades stick. Pour into the prepared crust. 

Cover and freeze four hours or overnight before serving. Remove from the freezer and bring to room temperature on the counter for 30 minutes before cutting (or use a hot knife).

I cut mine into 9 pieces and froze them individually for ease of serving and packing. This does not travel far!

Yesterday, after I went to Costco, I had an insight about health coaching and life in general. It’s appropriate for this recipe because cashews, coconut oil, and dates ain’t cheap (luckily blueberries are because they’re in-season, but I digress). I believe I am worth the investment in quality food. Appropriate nutrition, hydration, rest, and activity helps me perform the best I can in this play we call life. 

So why not invest in me? What else would I do?

I seem to have discussed my possessions in recent posts; I’m the same way with my car. My car can take both regular and mid-grade gasoline. I choose to budget so that I can put in mid-grade from certain brands. Why? Because it gets better MPG (29 MPG on long highway driving trips!) and in the long run, I save money since I have to fill it less often. When I had to get tires replaced recently, I went to the dealer, the source, for the right model, even though it was expensive, because I want my car to drive correctly and efficiently (when handled correctly--!).

As we progressively stop treating ourselves like shit, we stop treating our possesions, our pets, our homes, our environments, and our loved ones like shit. We learn how to treat ourselves. Well. Once we know that, we extend that knowledge and behavior to all aspects of our lives.

Profane insights, Gothic Granola/Quelle Well-style.

May you be free of suffering and the cause of suffering—

Q