Fresh strawberries blend with creamy cashews and a splash of lime to make this all time favorite margarita flavored dessert. So smooth you'll forget it's vegan.
Soak your cashews overnight making sure to fill bowl with plenty of water as cashews expand quite a bit. If you don’t have time, soak at least 2-3 hours. The longer you soak them, the smoother the consistency.
Place all crust ingredients in a food processor, blender or high speed blender and pulse until nuts and dates are chopped well.
Drop 3 spoonfuls of mixture in each section of a muffin tin, making sure to place mixture on top of parchment strips if using. Press down until mixture is firm and creates a crust like bottom layer.
Next, put all filling ingredients in a food processor, blender or high speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy. If you are not using a high speed blender, then you will have to blend for a while to get a smooth consistency but eventually you will. When I use my food processor it takes about 5-7 minutes.
Put 3 spoonfuls of filling on top of crust layer in muffin tins. You may need to add more, depending on your tins. You want the filling layer to be about ¼ to ½ inch from the top of the tin.
Freeze overnight for best results, or for at least 2 hours. Remove from freezer about 10 minutes before you are ready to serve, but not much longer or they may get too soft. Use tabs to pull up each cheesecake cup and place on a serving platter. Garnish with sliced fresh strawberries, limes, and/or Vanilla Coconut Cream Garnish. Enjoy!
Notes
Before I start, I cut strips of parchment paper (about ½ inch wide and 4-6 inches long) to put under each cheesecake cup.
This makes tab-like sides that you can pull up easily when removing them and so that they don’t fall apart.
The coconut oil is optional, but the consistency will be a little bit different if you leave it out. You can also sub another sweetener for the dates and date paste, but again consistency may be different.
You can use frozen strawberries if you do not have fresh, but make sure to let them thaw out before you use them. Also, frozen may be more watery so you may need to cut down on some of the almond milk.