RAW Vegan Cheesecake with Raspberry Sauce
Makes 1 pie tin
Crust:
2 cups raw walnuts
1/2 cup dates, pitted
Filling:
3 cups raw cashews (soaked overnight or a couple hours minimum)
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup coconut oil, melted (set in a warm bowl-do not heat if keeping it really RAW)
Raspberry Sauce:
1/2 bag frozen raspberries
4-6 dates to taste
1/4 cup agave or more to taste and thickness desired
Yoplait pulls Commercial said to be promoting Eating Disorders
Watch this commercial and tell me what you think.
NEDA, the National Eating Disorders Association said that the redheaded woman’s thoughts are exactly the thoughts of what goes through a girl’s mind with an ED. She labels food as good or bad and then over time, all foods just end up moving into the bad category so that there is nothing left to eat.
I see a few things happening here:
- I think that this will raise people’s awareness about eating disorders so that we can spot and prevent unhealthy behaviors…
- I think that the extra press that Yoplait has gotten from their ad is great for their business…
- I also think that those things go through my head too when I look at food!
Now listen here. I do not have an ED or know anyone that does (so please excuse me if I say anything that offends you) but when I first saw the commercial I didn’t really think much of it. After doing some research on the buzz around this Yoplait ad, I now understand the sensitivities of the matter. To the younger more easily influenced audience, there could be danger.
But as most of us in the healthy living and fitness community know, making smart food choices is more than 1/2 the battle to losing fat and getting fit. What’s going through that girl’s head is basically a food journal - something that a lot of trainers recommend. Write down what you ate, how much you worked out, and if you have a deficit of calories then you can pretty much be ensured that you’re on your way to weight loss. It’s a calculation in the simplest explanation. (I said “simplest explanation”. We can talk more about the whole cals in cals out complexity later!)
So to me, naturally, I related. It did not bother me. Also love strawberry cheesecake, so the commercial kept me fairly engaged. I think that pulling the ad was more of a way to “make a statement” for NEDA. I don’t object to it though because it brings light to possible symptoms of an anorexic or bulimic. However, I also don’t think the writers of the commercial studied ED behaviors for a couple of weeks to write the script for the scene. No bad intentions. Either way, Yoplait didn’t get jipped in my opinion. I think they won. FREE buzz.
This ad reminded me of the way a lot of us women look at food nowadays. Even me. As we become more educated with nutrition, healthy living, and fitness, we gain the knowledge AND power to make the right decisions for ourselves.
For some of us, it is a way to make healthier choices.
For others, a daily weight loss struggle.
And for the remaining, NEDA pulled the ad for you.
This is what mommy surprised me with when I got home in SF! Omg! Major berryliciousness on top of a New York cheesecake. I know it’s not diet friendly but let me tell you, it was soul friendly. My heart was happy. It felt good to indulge in the richness of cream cheese and buttery graham crackers. It’s been a while. So worth it :)
The vegan cheesecake I had last night inspired me to make some of my own cheesecake this evening. Of course, I had to find a recipe that would yield a very low fat and low calorie dessert. This meant I had to find a recipe that DID NOT USE CREAM CHEESE! And no crust!
Don’t be scared.
It tasted phenomenal.
I kid you not.
INGREDIENTS:
*3/4 Cup nonfat cottage cheese
*2/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt
* 1 TBS flour
* 2 TBS sugar
* 1/4 tsp salt
*4 egg whites
*Juice from 1/2 a lemon
*1/2 cup assorted fresh berries
DIRECTIONS:
1. Place all ingredients except for eggs in the blender or food processor and whip until the batter is smooth.
2. Now add the eggs and give it a few pulses.
3. Finally, add the fruits and gently mix them in with a spoon. Do NOT blend!
4. Spray the bottom of your pan with some cooking spray or lightly cover with oil.
5. Pour the batter in.
6. Place the pan into your oven which should be set at 350 degrees. The suggested time for cooking is around 30 minutes but check frequently to make sure the cheesecake does not brown or dry out.
7. When done, serve either super hot straight out of the oven or chilled in the fridge. Enjoy!
Here are my lovelies waiting to be put into the oven. OMG looks delightful!
The final product! I wish I could blog a smell because my kitchen was smelling heavenly!!!
THE TASTE?
I was very surprised, but the taste was delicious even though it did not have the same stickiness and density of a real cheesecake. I used nonfat everything so that also contributed to the texture a lot. I read that if you use lowfat cottage cheese and yogurt, the consistency will be less crumbly. I also think I could have left the cheesecakes in the oven a tiny bit longer so that they could hold better together. (My excited-ness made me take them out of the oven early.) Anyway, wonderful dessert and EVEN better nutrition facts! Each little square turned out to be only 33 calories!
NUTRITION FACTS:
Total recipe (391 g): 398 calories, 0g fat, 63g carbs, 1.7g fiber, 52g sugar, 38g protein.
Per square (391g/12 squares =33g): 33 calories, 0g fat, 5.3g carbs, 0.1g fiber, 4g sugar, 3.2g protein.
Recipe borrowed then modified from BakingBites.com
Vegan cheesecake. I’m not sure what was in it but it was GOOD. Consistency of a real cheesecake but not as sweet. Yummy!!!
I had this tonight at Grasshopper Asian Vegan Restaurant in Allston, MA. If you’re in the area, you must try! It was only $4!
