Raw mini cheesecakes with spiced raspberry & cherry sauce

These mini cheesecakes are delightful! So cute, fun to make, and perfectly delicious. They are raw, vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free. Notes of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom infuse them with a holiday spirit and they're a great dessert to add to your friendsgiving and thanksgiving spread. The recipe was inspired by Elenore Bendel Zahn of the Earthsprout blog.

Raw Mini Cheesecakes

makes seven minis

Fig Crust:

• scant cup of dried figs
• 1/2 C. pepitas, preferably soaked and dried
• 1/4 C. sunflower seeds, preferably soaked and dried
• 1 Tb. ground flax seed
• pinch good quality salt
• 1-3 ts. water, as needed

Remove the tough stems from the dried figs and give them a rough chop. Place in a food processor and grind into a paste. Add the pepitas, sunflower seeds, flax, and salt and pulse until a dough forms, adding water only as necessary. Place dough between two sheets of parchment paper and roll out in to a square of 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into seven long strips. Roll them up, pressing the ends together to form cylinders. Refrigerate while making the filling and sauce.

Lemon Cardamom filling:

• 2 small ripe bananas
• juice + zest of half a lemon
• 1/8 C. coconut oil, melted
• 1/8 C. coconut butter, softened
• 1 ts. ground cardamom

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until well combined. Put the filling in the freezer to firm up while making the sauce.

Spiced Raspberry & Cherry Sauce :

• 1/8 C. dried tart cherries, soaked in water for 10 minutes 
• 3/4 C. raspberries (thawed if using frozen)
• 3 medjool dates
• juice of 1 orange + 1 Tb zest
• 1/2 ts. ground cinnamon
• pinch nutmeg, freshly grated
• 2 Tb. ground flax
• 2 ts. psyllium husk

 Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until well combined. Let sit for a few minutes to allow the flax and psyllium to thicken the sauce, adding more if it is still too runny.  

Assembly:

Spoon some of the lemon cardamom cream into each of the little cheesecake crusts. Top with a dollop of the raspberry sauce and drizzle a bit on the side. Garnish with more dried cherries and a few goji berries for color. Enjoy!