Name: Easy Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake {Gluten-Free}
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 15 min
Yield: 12
Ingredients: 1 cup dates (soaked for 4-6 hours, pits removed); 2 cups gluten free rolled oats; 3/4 cup cacao powder; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1/4 tsp sea salt; 1/3 cup coconut milk, nut milk or water; 2 cup cashews (soaked for 3+ hours); 1 16 oz can coconut milk; 1 cup cacao powder; 1/3 cup maple syrup; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1/4 tsp sea salt; 1/2-1 large lemon (squeezed)

Jump to Recipe

vegan chocolate cheesecake with blueberries

This no bake vegan chocolate cheesecake is a creamy chocolate custard dream! Completely gluten free and refined sugar free, this vegan cheesecake is easy yet elegant, and perfect for a decadent healthier treat!

I’m quite obsessed with this raw vegan chocolate cheesecake, mainly because it’s the ultimate chocolate lover’s dessert! This vegan cheesecake really takes little effort at all yet looks elegant, and it’s absolutely delicious and sweet, just like your traditional cheesecake!

Judging by how popular this is on Pinterest and Instagram for you guys, I know you feel the same way about this recipe 😉

All it takes is 15 minutes to put together, chill it in the freezer, and you have the most decadent no bake chocolate cheesecake ready for any occasion!

The Ultimate No Bake Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake

Now, I firmly believe that dessert needs to be first and foremost sweet. So that’s what I decided to do!

This cheesecake is rich and decadent, yet just sweet enough that you won’t be overpowered by chocolate nor sweetness. Plus the texture is smooth and velvety yet requires no oven whatsoever.

Basically, we’ve got the Goldilocks complex going on here 😉

With a dark chocolate oat crust and the smoothest vegan cheesecake filling, this raw vegan chocolate cheesecake is almost too good to be true. Plus it’s completely gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, and soy free!

But again, the really cool part is how easy this cheesecake is; anyone can do it, and come out with the most decadent tasting dessert!

Ingredients for a Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake

Okay, okay, so before we get to making the best chocolate cheesecake, vegan or not, let’s go over the ingredients real fast!

For this cheesecake, you’ll need:

Soaked dates: I recommend soaking the dates overnight in the fridge, but you can do this 4-6 hours ahead of making the crust.
Oats (made into oat flour): to make the crust, I actually just blended my own oat flour. I actually think this works better texture-wise, because you want a few oat-y pieces in there.
Cacao Powder: You’ll need this for both the crust and the filling of this vegan chocolate cheesecake! I always say go for quality on the cacao powder because it will reflect in the taste and nutrients. There’s definitely a difference between cocoa and cacao, so go with cacao, as the taste will be so much better!
Maple Syrup: my handy-dandy refined sugar free sweetener that reminds me of childhood (raise your hand if you were one of the kids who ate those maple syrup hard candies! Nope, just me? Alright, hands down).
Cashews: you’ll need to soak the cashews for at least 3-4 hours at least prior to pureeing them (so start soaking them along with the dates!). This is basically the key to making this vegan chocolate cheesecake so thick and custard-like.
Coconut Milk: for the coconut milk, I recommend using the coconut milk from the can; this is because the cheesecake needs to be sort of custard-like from the coconut fat, and that just won’t happen if there’s not enough coconut cream. No one wants a watered-down cheesecake- that’s just no fun!
Lemon: only a little! I know a few people ask for a full lemon in their raw vegan cheesecake recipes, but I say, stick with half. If you want a little extra tanginess, go for 3/4 of the lemon!

slice of gluten free chocolate cheesecake

Not too bad, right? The cool part is that there’s no baking required for this cheesecake, so take these ingredients, turn them into a no bake chocolate cheesecake, and you never have to worry about the cheesecake cracking, burning the crust, or any other baking mishaps!

How to make a vegan cheesecake

Get ready to break out my absolute favorite kitchen machine. The food processor. I am quite literally in love with mine. Use it multiple times a week. It’s my favorite.

slice of chocolate cheesecake with whipped cream

So basically, what makes this healthy chocolate cheesecake so easy is that there’s no mixing on your part. Only pressing the puree button and pouring it into the cake pan!

A note before you begin: I highly recommend lining your cake pan (that has removable sides- SO KEY HERE!) with a little coconut oil and parchment paper. This will help you get the cheesecake out a lot easier!

First, let’s make the crust:

Pulse the oats in the food processor until it’s almost a flour.
Then add in the dates, cacao powder, and remaining crust ingredients to the food processor, and puree again until it’s a thick dough.
Press the dough into the cake pan bottom evenly, and you can even work it up the sides, like I did.

Set the crust aside, and let’s move on to making the vegan chocolate cheesecake filling:

Add the cashews to the food processor, and blend until it starts to become smooth.
Add in the remaining filling ingredients, and blend again until it’s a thick and smooth batter (you don’t want to see any clumps of cashew in there!).
Pour the batter into the middle of the cheesecake crust, and place the crust into the freezer to chill for at least 3 hours, or until solid.

slice of whipped cream with chocolate cheesecake

That’s it! When you’re ready to serve, just allow the cheesecake to come to room temperature for 15 minutes before slicing in.

Pouring chocolate onto the vegan chocolate cheesecake

I love to top my no bake chocolate cheesecake with melted 100% chocolate (I recommend Pasha Organics) or chocolate shavings! You can also top with fresh fruit, like I did here, serve with a scoop of coconut milk ice cream, top with coconut whipped cream, or anything you want!

I hope you love this vegan chocolate cheesecake as much as I do! If you get to making this recipe, let me know in the comments section below and be sure to give it a rating!

As always, I love to see your beautiful creations on Pinterest and Instagram, so be sure to tag me there!

Happy no-baking!

slice of vegan chocolate cheesecake with coconut whipped cream

More healthy vegan desserts:

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

Paleo Vegan Chocolate Cream Pie

Vegan Red Velvet Cake

Vegan Nutella Star Bread

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!

pinterest image for healthy chocolate cheesecake

If you make something from The Banana Diaries, I would love to see your creations! Make sure to leave a review in comments section, as well as giving it a rating so that others may find the recipe. Also, follow along with me on Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and Facebook for more vegan recipe inspiration!