Raw vegan cheesecake, three ways

I'm quite excited about this post.

Part of this excitement is about sharing my experiments with raw vegan cheesecakes. It has been a lot of fun.

Part of it, too, is that today is the one year anniversary of Bite-Sized Thoughts starting.

A lot has happened in the year, and I have certainly learnt a huge amount. At the same time, it has gone quickly - I now can't imagine not blogging, but it doesn't feel as if I've been doing it for 12 months. I have truly come to love the blogging world and the process of organising my life and recipes (or some components thereof...) into blog form.

The three recipes I've chosen to post today capture so much of what I enjoy about cooking and food. They also capture a lot of what I enjoy about veganism. Of course, part of my enjoyment of vegan food stems from the are health and environmental benefits (as I see them anyway) and the ethical issues around animal produce. But it is also magical. That you can take natural, 100% plant-based foods and turn them into cheesecake - it is staggering. It captivates me and entertains me, and makes me very happy indeed.

I hope that these recipes might make you happy too.

All of them make 4 servings, so the quantities are small ones. I made mine in two individual, medium sized ramekins, and the pictures are of one of the resulting small cheesecakes. Doubling the ingredients would give a single larger cheesecake to serve 8 or so people.

All recipes can be found in streamlined version here.

For the non-streamlined version, let's start with chocolate.

Now the thing is, I don't actually like (regular) cheesecake. This is hardly surprising when you consider that I don't like creamy, cheesey, or milky dishes - cheesecake is like my horror dessert. The base I usually like; the filling is usually not my friend.

This does raise the question of why I have made three versions of vegan cheesecake.

Why? Well, I thought they might be different. Perhaps cheesecake without cream, without cheese and without milk would be cheesecake that I do like?

Despite this reasoning, it did seem safest to start with chocolate - that, I rarely dislike.

The inspiration for this first recipe, a chocolate raspberry cheesecake, came from various chocolate avocado desserts. I'm not sure what made me think I could convert 'dessert' into 'cheesecake', but this product did seem pretty cheesecakey to me (although, granted, I am a non-cheesecake eater...).

It was certainly creamy. Dense. Rich. Slightly but not very sweet. Most definitely chocolatey. In typically cheesecake form, the filling was also nearly too creamy and dense and rich. But - and here is the key! - it was nearly but not quite. Vegan won the day and small slices worked very well indeed, filling and all.

Chocolate berry cheesecake

Serves 4

Inspired by the chilled double chocolate torte on Oh She Glows; 
raw brownies with chocolate icing or pure amazingness on Wayfaring Chocolate; and 
raw carob cheesecake on Blissfully Vegan.

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Ingredients

Base

1/2 cup raw almonds

1/4 cup dates, pitted and roughly chopped

Water as needed (I used about 1 tsp)

Filling

1 medium avocado (mine was ~120g flesh)

1/2 cup frozen raspberries

1 tbsp agave or maple syrup (use 1 1/2 tbsp if you want a sweeter taste; this version was just sweet)

2 1/2 tbsp good-quality cocoa

Topping

1/2 - 1 cup frozen raspberries, thawed

Method

Line two individual ramekins or a small pie dish with cling wrap.

Process the base ingredients until finely processed and starting to clump together. Add water if needed to get a thick and sticky consistency. Press the mixture into the bottom of your ramekins / pie dish.

Process or beat all filling ingredients until smooth and well combined. Divide between the two ramekins and cover with cling wrap. 

Set in the freezer for 2 hours and then serve with the extra thawed raspberries.

or

If making in advance, this will keep in the freezer for at least 3 days (longer if stored in an airtight container). Before serving, allow the cheesecake to thaw slightly at room temperature (15 - 30 minutes), and then top with the extra thawed raspberries. 

I don't think you can go wrong with chocolate and berries. This was certainly not wrong and I liked it very, very much indeed. I suspect it will be featuring again.

For my second cheesecake, I wanted to make a version of the lavender and lemon cheesecake featured on This Rawsome Vegan Life. Lavender as a baking ingredient has intrigued me for some time, and this seemed like as good a time as any to jump into trying it.

Except, I couldn't find any dried lavender. Frustratingly, I had seen it at a supermarket a few months back, but on re-visiting it they no longer stocked it. Neither did anywhere else I looked. In the end, I gave up.

I bought this instead, in an effort to console myself for the lavender-less trips:

Perhaps vanilla bean paste would be just the thing to make the perfect vegan cheesecake?

I changed my inspiration sources and settled on honey, vanilla and pistachio instead of lavender and lemon.

It seemed like a promising flavour combination, but the result wasn't quite as I had hoped...

'Honey', vanilla and pistachio cheesecake 
(use agave to make this vegan)

Serves 4

Inspired by this honey-pistachio cheesecake topping on Taste.com.au, and
the honey ingredient in the lavender lemon cheesecake on This Rawsome Vegan Life

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Ingredients

Base
1/4 cup pistachios

1/4 cup almonds

1/3 cup sesame seeds

1/4 cup dates

Filling

1 cup cashews, soaked in water for at least 4 hours

1/3 cup raw honey or agave (I used half of each, for no real reason other than wanting to conserve the more expensive agave but not wanting to finish off our honey) - I would use less than this in future

1 tsp coconut oil

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

2 tsp lemon juice

Topping

Extra pistachios, optional

Method

Line two individual ramekins or a small pie dish with cling wrap.

Process the base ingredients until finely processed and starting to clump together. Press the mixture into the bottom of your ramekins / pie dish.

Process or beat all filling ingredients until smooth and well combined. Divide between the two ramekins and cover with cling wrap. 

Set in the fridge or freezer for 2 - 4 hours and then serve with the extra pistachios

or

If making in advance, this will keep in the fridge or freezer for at least 3 days (longer if stored in an airtight container).

As alluded to above, I didn't like this at all. Perhaps it was my persisting fixation with lavender or perhaps it was that this was too close to a typical cheesecake - when it was set in the fridge, I didn't like the texture of the filling at all, being creamy and squishy and just not to my tastes.

Setting this in the freezer improved the consistency, and I found that it didn't turn solid even when frozen overnight. I still didn't enjoy the flavour though. It was too sweet, for a start - I would use much less honey / agave in future - and it was also vaguely nutty. I like nuts, but I didn't like the cashew undertones here.

Definitely a failure, at least for m7 tastes.

It did, though, provide the motivation for moving on to version three...

I still really wanted lavender and in the end I picked some from a neighbour's garden (!). I'm sure this isn't the approach one should take, but the lavender was already semi-dried by the summer sun; some time in a sunny spot in the kitchen dried it out further.

For this cheesecake, my challenge was in deciding what 'cream' base to use. Cashews seem to be a standard approach, but I was no longer keen on those after my negative experience with the version above. I had liked the result with avocado in the chocolate raspberry cheesecake, but I didn't really want a green lavender and lemon cheesecake.

In the end, though, that's exactly what I went for.

I could have made this lavender and lime, which would have made the colour appropriate, but I was keen on  lemon. I decided that retaining pistachios in the ingredient list would be my nod towards making the colour semi-appropriate, and so ended up with lavender, lemon and pistachio.

Lavender, lemon, and pistachio cheesecake

Serves 4
Adapted from lavender lemon cheesecake on This Rawsome Vegan Life

Print recipe

Ingredients

Base
1/4 cup pistachios

1/4 cup almonds
1/4 cup dates

Filling
1 small - medium avocado (mine was ~100g flesh)

1 tsp chia seeds

1/8 cup lemon juice

2 tbsp agave

1 tsp vanilla extract

Petals of 1 dried lavender stalk (~1 tsp), crushed

2 tsp dessicated coconut

Pinch salt

Topping
Extra pistachios, optional

Method

Line two individual ramekins or a small pie dish with cling wrap.

Process the base ingredients until finely processed and starting to clump together. Press the mixture into the bottom of your ramekins / pie dish.

Process or beat all filling ingredients until smooth and well combined. Divide between the two ramekins and cover with cling wrap. 

Set in the freezer for 2 hours and then serve with the extra pistachios

or

If making in advance, this will keep in the freezer for at least 3 days (longer if stored in an airtight container). Before serving, allow the cheesecake to thaw slightly at room temperature (15 - 30 minutes).

I loved this.

Really, truly loved it.

It was definitely magical. The green colour almost made it more so. It looked like an pea-inspired dessert, or something equally odd, but tasted like a dream.

With flavours of lemon and just slight lavender, this had just the right sweetness and creaminess.

I made Mr Bite try this one. He was very perplexed by the colour and ate his trial mouthful with his eyes closed. However, even he gave it positive feedback - and green, raw, vegan cheesecake with lavender in it is certainly not something I would expect him to review positively!

He thought it tasted like lemon cheesecake, and that the texture was cheesecake-like - somewhat of a relief given that he does enjoy normal cheesecake and is a better judge of 'cheesecake-ness' than I am.

Interestingly, he couldn't detect the lavender flavour but stated he didn't like 'the aftertaste'. I found the lavender to hit after the initial lemon notes, so suspect this aftertaste was the lavender. If you're not sure about lavender, perhaps half a stalk would be a good starting amount...for myself, I really enjoyed the subtle flavour hit and will be experimenting with this again.

This is a very long post, and if you are still reading - thank you, and I hope some of the above was entertaining to you as well as to me. I had great fun with these creations and I hope to have many more experimenting sessions as this blog goes into year two...

What do you find magical in the kitchen? Have there been dishes you've really enjoyed playing with?

I am linking the chocolate raspberry cheesecake into Ricki's 2013 Valentine's Day Wellness Weekend (14th-18th February 2013)...because really, what more could you want on Valentine's Day?

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International Women's Day

It was yesterday. But we know that I can't be trusted to blog about events on the date on which they fall.

That would be asking far too much.

Besides which, International Women's Day is still on my mind. I have been pondering it intermittently over the week, wondering what the day means to me in a country that doesn't overtly discriminate against women, with my upbringing that never made me feel second best for being female.

The International Women's Day website notes that the day is to celebrate the economic, political and social achievements of women in the past, present and future. There is a particular focus on supporting women in developing countries, many of whom still have limited access to education, employment opportunities, and freedom outside of marriage. However, the day is also about recognising the positive changes that have occurred for women since the day was established in 1911.

We're having random photos today folks

Part of me wonders how we would feel if there was an International Men's Day and not an equivalent (edit - apparently there is an International Men's Day, on the 19th November each year from 2002), but of course I recognise the history of the occasion and the ongoing discrepancies between women and men in so many places and in so many domains - in opportunities, educational achievements, and employment progression and income, to name a few. I am grateful that we have a day to highlight these issues in their past and present form.

I have still been pondering though.

You see, I grew up with the belief that I could be anything I want to be. A doctor, a teacher, a mother, a writer (all things I seriously considered as careers)...whatever I wanted.

I also grew up with the expectation, even understanding, that I would go to university. My parents placed great value on education and I naively assumed that anyone and everyone could head there, irrespective of gender, class, colour, or other background.

As a teenager, my parents were perhaps more strict with me than they would have been if I was a boy (certainly they were more strict with me than they were with my brother) but I never thought I was inferior for being female. I went to an all girls' high school and the messages there were the same - girls can do anything. Science and Mathematics were promoted, challenging the stereotypes that we should stick to English or Art (although, of course, we could do those too).

I did go to university and I did pursue the career I wanted to pursue. I don't consider that I have ever been discriminated against due to my gender.

But.

My high school education included home economics - sewing and cooking. My brother's equivalent was woodwork.

I learnt at an early age that it matters how you look. Especially if you are female. High school popularity seemed to correlate with the right hair, the right face, the right clothes, and the right make-up.

My friends are now taking maternity leave and making decisions about how to balance motherhood with their careers. Some are opting out of careers to stay at home. Others are navigating the tricky balancing act between the too.

I iron Mr Bite's shirts. By choice. I also do most of the cooking, whereas I like to leave outdoor and/or DIY tasks to him.

I can't change a tyre on a car. Or at least, I am sure I could (I can do anything, remember?) but I have never learned and feel no desire to do so. And the idea of getting involved with my car's engine terrifies me.

At the age of 28, with friends having babies at surprising frequency, I am also made aware of the very real nature of female biology. There will come a point where I either have children or I do not. Clearly, my life in 20 years time will be influenced quite considerably by which of those outcomes occurs.

I don't have any answers as to how strides towards gender equality should incorporate differences in male and female biology, childbearing and child raising roles included, or in how we should balance those biological differences against social gender stereotypes that shape us all from infancy onwards.

I suppose there are no definitive answers. For my part, though, here are the results of my ponderings, and the things I would hope for in 10 years time. I would love to hear your list if you have one.

• Comprehensive education for all children, of all sexes, everywhere in the world
• Taking appearance out of the self-worth equation. How you look does not define who you are, but too many children - especially girls - continue to learn that it does.
• More family friendly workplaces. Flexible employment options, for men as well as women, to support parents with young children.
• Ongoing efforts to make employment equitable and career choices free of gender stereotyping.
• Let girls be girls for as long as possible. The shift towards younger 'fashion' trends and make-up on 8-year-old children makes me sad. 

On other matters, and taking a complete side step, today is a significant day for another reason. Those deadlines I mentioned in my February recap post - the ones that were making work loom larger than life and my head spin with anxiety and too-much-to-do thoughts? - they are are done.

Submitted. Gone. As of 12pm today. I feel a bit dizzy with it all. I also did a work presentation today, so things have really been on the over-wrought side. So much so that I decided today would be an appropriate day to go home early.

I've been home since 2.15pm (!!) and the weekend is looking, frankly, beautiful.

I hope yours is too!

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Vegetable biryani, with lentils

One of life's minor mysteries is that I don't like Indian food. I like rice, I like lentils, I like vegetables and I like spice...but somehow when those things are combined Indian style, I'm not very fond of the result. I think the challenge lies in the nature of Indian spices, with my tastes being more aligned with Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese flavourings.

My lacklustre approach to Indian is frustrating because it is very easy to find. On holiday, it is often one of the easiest cuisines to locate, and one of the most reliable options for vegetarian choices. For this reason (and the fact that other people are fond of it, and sometimes one must go with the majority) I do eat Indian on occasion, but I am generally left feeling a bit, well, blah. 

When we were in Hobart, Tasmania, last year, we were keen to eat out for each of the four nights we were there. After self-catering for nearly a week, and having a few more self-catering days ahead (in smaller towns with few restaurant options), it seemed foolish not to take advantage of a city full of dinner options.

We had Italian, we had Thai, we had pizza, and then we got a bit stuck. The renowned vegetarian and vegan restaurant Siren's had closed. We had eaten fish earlier in the trip and didn't want it again. We also didn't want a meat-heavy restaurant. Indian kept re-entering our list of options, especially as Mr Bite is a fan.

So, Indian it was. Annapurna Indian in Salamanca Place to be specific.

Whilst pondering the menu, Mr Bite mentioned that his mother routinely ordered biryani at Indian restaurants. I'd never even heard of it prior to then, but the menu description sounded appealing. I thought I would give it a try. Thus, I ordered vegetarian biryani and a side of tandoori mushrooms.

It was the best Indian meal I have had.

It turns out I do like some Indian food - so long as it is biryani.

When pondering possible dinner options recently, I recalled this experience and thought I would try recreating biryani at home. There are plenty of recipes out there; my version ended up being an adaptation from Taste.com.au. To round things out, I also made a tomato-y lentil dish that is a variation of a dish I've made in a number of ways over the year.

Together, they worked rather well. And as Mr Bite and I both enjoyed the meal, I can see this featuring on our dinner rotation again.

Vegetable biryani

Adapted from this recipe at Taste.com.au

Serves 6 when paired with tomato lentils, or 4 as a main meal

(in other words, I made too much and half is now in the freezer!)

Print recipe

Ingredients

1 cup basmati rice

3 cups water, divided

1 vegetable stock cube

1 tsp olive oil

1 brown onion, diced

1 garlic clove, finely diced

1 1/2 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp tumeric

1/2 large or 1 small eggplant, chopped

1/2 head cauliflower, chopped into florets

1/4 zucchini, chopped (optional; I added this because I was using zucchini with the lentils)

1 stick celery, finely sliced

1/4 cup currants

2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped, plus extra to serve

Method

Heat 1 1/2 cups of the water and the stock cube in a medium saucepan. Add the basmati rice, bring to the boil, and then reduce to simmer, covered, for ~12 minutes.

Whilst the rice is cooking, heat the oil in a large non-stick pan and saute the onion and garlic over medium to high heat until golden. Reduce the heat and add the eggplant, garam masala and tumeric. Stir; cook for ~2 minutes.

Add the cauliflower, zucchini and celery and 1/2 cup of the remaining water to the non-stick pan. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally.

When the rice is just cooked, add it to the non-stick pan, along with the remaining 1 cup of water.

Add the currants and coriander and stir to combine. Leave over low heat for a further 5 minutes. 

Turn off the heat and cover with a tea towel (or a lid, if your pan has one) for a further 5 - 10 minutes. Re-heat before serving and serve with extra coriander.

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Tomato lentils

Serves 4 as a side dish 

Easily modified to taste and to suit what you have on hand

Print recipe

Ingredients

1 tin lentils (you could, of course, use dried lentils, soaked and cooked in advance)

1 tin crushed tomato

~2 cups vegetables of choice, diced (on this occasion, I used 3/4 zucchini and 1/2 large eggplant)

1 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp tumeric

~1 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

Method

Heat the lentils and tomato in a medium saucepan over medium to high heat until starting to bubble.

Reduce the heat to low and add the vegetables and spices. Cover. Allow to cook for at least 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, but preferably longer (to allow the flavours to develop).

All in all? I really, really enjoyed this meal. So much so that I could have eaten twice as much as it took to fill me up - the flavours were very more-ish. And that's not a bad thing, really, given the vegetable content.

I may be reconsidering my stance on Indian.

What are your thoughts on Indian food? Have there been any foods you once disliked but now enjoy?

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Sculptures by the sea

At Cottesloe beach (the same beach featured in my February recap) there is an annual event known as Sculptures by the Sea. For around 3 weeks in March, the beach features a variety of art works that sit in among sun bathers, picnickers, playing children, and bather-clad swimmers. Artists submit their work to the event and the creations vary considerably in style, size and materials.

The Sculpture by the Sea concept actually started in Sydney in 1997. It stemmed from the creator, David Handley, wanting to  provide a free public visual arts event. The Western Australian Cottesloe equivalent started in 2005.

Mr Bite and I went for the first time last year, and exploring the sculptures proved to be a very enjoyable experience. You can buy a guidebook, but we didn't, and deciphering the sculptures (or not, depending on how complex they are...) is really part of the fun.

On Saturday afternoon, we went to look at this year's display. I managed to take 120 photos over the course of the hour (how? why?!) so here are just some of the selection...

Footballer taking a mark

A sandbag lounge room, complete with bookshelves in the walls

These little yellow things popped up everywhere...

This was a favourite...

All in all, a lovely afternoon - helped by a relaxed atmosphere with lots of people looking at the sculptures (as reflected in the crowded pictures above) and others just going about their usual beach business.

Do you have many free art-related events? Have you ever been to a similar outdoor sculpture collection?

My last two posts have discussed weather-related matters but I have been watching the flooding in the Eastern states with some dismay, and wanted to send dry (and safe) thoughts to anyone affected.

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Apple, zucchini and sultana loaf

I was quite amazed, on reading the comments on my last post, to realise just how non-summery the Eastern states of Australia have been this year. With Western Australia welcoming autumn with some >35'C days, I'm left thinking that it would be rather nice if we could just average things out. This picture of the Australia Day forecast at the end of January seems to sum it up rather well (excuse the language...);

Source

I'm sure it didn't used to be like this!

Sadly, none of us have much direct control over the weather (unless you have a skill I don't know about, in which case I'd be delighted to hear from you). However, I'd like to think that this apple, zucchini and sultana loaf could suit most forecasts. A warm slice, with optional almond butter, a cup of tea and a good book, would be a nice match for rain peltering down outside.

A slice from the fridge, optionally crumbled into yoghurt, would be an enjoyable inside-out-of-the-heat snack.

In fact, it could work in a lot of ways, because this loaf is rather versatile.

Inspired by several of my existing recipes (namely, apple and zucchini muffins, ugly duckling muffins, and apricot and sultana bread), this reminds me most of the ugly duckling muffins that featured earlier this year with apple, zucchini and carrot. In this case, sultanas provide some added sweetness to the loaf, and allow it to stand alone as a plain-ish snack.

If you want something a little more decadent, honey, the aforementioned almond butter or yoghurt, or even some drizzled icing would be worthy serving companions.

Apple, zucchini and sultana loaf

Slightly sweet and easy to adapt to taste and occasion

Vegan, low in fat and with no added sugar

Makes 1 loaf - approximately 12 serves

Print recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups wholemeal flour

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup non-dairy milk (I actually used unsweetened plain coconut milk, but any would work)

1/3 cup apple sauce

1 tsp vanilla

1 zucchini, grated (leave the skin on)

2 medium apples, peeled and diced

Method

Preheat the oven to 180'C and prepare a non-stick loaf tin.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, milk, apple sauce and vanilla. Mix well to combine.

Add the grated zucchini and diced apples and mix through thoroughly. Pour into the loaf tin.

Bake for 25 minutes at 180'C, then turn the oven off and leave to cool in the oven for an additional 20 - 30 minutes. This should allow the middle to set without the top becoming crispy.

I don't think you can go wrong with a loaf that includes fruit and vegetables and is still enjoyable to eat. Chocolate it isn't...but it will leave room for some chocolate later.

What is your favourite vegetable to make baked goods with? I think zucchini has come to rival carrot as mine!

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A leap year, autumn and another birthday...or 3 things in that order

1. There are certain things that interest me more than they probably should. I get excited about census surveys, so you may not be surprised to hear that I like the concept of a bonus day in the year once every four years.

One of the reasons I like leap years is that they highlight how subjective our sense of time is. Our modern day calendar is the Gregorian calendar, which was adopted in 1582 (so not so very modern, really). It is very close to the solar year: the Gregorian calendar is 365.2425 days to the solar year's 365.242199 days. The difference sounds too small to worry about, but the yearly difference of 27 seconds is part of what underpins our leap years. When I really think about it, I find it amazing that the calendar and time keeping systems that I take for granted, and which I think of as 'correct', are actually a creation made by society to try and explain solar patterns.

I suspect not everyone feels the same though, and that is why we are only having one paragraph on leap years.

One of my favourite autumn photos; Dwellingup, Western Australia, April 2010

2. I imagine that not everyone gets excited about autumn either, but I do, and thus we are acknowledging that today as well. Interestingly, the fact that Australia marks the change of season on the 1st March whereas the Northern Hemisphere introduces spring on the spring equinox, usually around the 20th March, serves to highlight the subjective nature of time yet again.

But we are moving on from that.

I enjoy the changing of seasons in general terms, but really have a particular affection for autumn. It brings relief from hot days and the opportunity to wear jeans and long sleeves, without needing scarves or thick jackets. The air smells different and the feel of it on my skin is delicious. It makes me very happy.

Same forest in a different section and different year; April 2011

3. In addition to being the first day of Australian autumn, and the day after our once-in-4-years leap day, the 1st March is my Dad's birthday.

As you may recall, we have already had a number of bite-sized family birthdays so far this year. Mr Bite's family has also been well represented, so between the two of us we have birthdays coming thick and fast.

Also my Dad's birthday...but not this year.

I still like them though. As I have gotten older, I've come to enjoy other people's birthdays more than my own and be genuinely excited to celebrate with them. This is especially true in my Dad's case, because I have also realised, with age, how much I have taken from him in my approach to life and work. We all owe our parents a lot, and it has become a pleasure to celebrate my parents' birthdays and honour their latest year of life and experience.

Unusually, I have no baking contributions for this occasion. My Dad has a savoury rather than sweet tooth, and as my Mum is making his cake I am simply providing a potato salad and a green salad to complement dinner this evening.

4. And that is why there is no point 4.

What is your favourite season? Do you care about leap years?

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