Vegan Zebra Pistachio Cheesecake
Have you ever tried making a vegan zebra pistachio cheesecake?
This is a very straight-forward, easy to make, baked vegan cheesecake, that is so rich and creamy. It has a cookie crust bottom, and the cheesecake filling is made of home-made vegan cream cheese and home-made vegan yogurt. Both are made of soy beans, and I teach how to make them in my baking classes.
If you are using storebought vegan cream cheese and vegan yogurt- make sure you are using a brand that is to your taste, as it heavily impacts the texture, and more importantly – the flavor.
In any case, this cheesecake base is divided into 2 batters, and I add some raw pistachio butter to one of them, which adds a lovely green hue that’s also maintained after baking. As flour doesn’t play a major role in baking cheesecakes, this recipe can be easily made gluten free, and I’ll include such substitutions below.
First published:
Last modified:
Vegan Zebra Pistachio Cheesecake:
Equipment:
- Springform pan, or a push pan, sized 18cm (d) x 6 -8 cm (h). It’s important to ensure the pan is well sealed as it will sit inside a water bath. The sides and bottom of the pan need to be lined with parchment paper, and the entire pan then needs to be coated well with a large piece of aluminum foil.
- A strong blender, or immersion blender
- Two large, 1L measuring cups (this helps with creating the zebra pattern)
- A deep dish that can be used as water bath
Recipe: One Cake
For the Cookie Crust:
| Ingredient | Amount (g / units) |
| Cookies of your choice (with or without gluten) | 120g |
| Melted Vegan Butter | 60g |
For cheesecake batter:
| Ingredient | Amount (g / units) |
| Vegan Cream Cheese | 450g |
| Vegan Whipping Cream | 225g |
| Vegan Yogurt | 150g |
| Raw Pistachio Butter | 110g |
| White Granulated Sugar | 140g (May be decreased to 120g if you prefer less sweetness) |
| Vanilla Paste | 12g |
| Silken Tofu (Drained) | 200g |
| Salt | 1/4 tsp |
| Cornstarch | 30g |
| All Purpose Flour (or All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour Blend) | 30g |
| Lemon Zest (Do not skip) | Zest of 1 whole lemon |
Preparation instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 160C (fan mode off), placing a baking rack at the lowest level inside the oven.
- On top of the baking rack, place a deep dish and fill it with boiling water.
For the cookie crust:
- Finely grind the cookies and transfer to a medium sized bow.
- Add in the melted butter, and mix well until the crumbs are moistened.
- Transfer the cookie crumbs into the prepared pan, and using the back of a spoon, spread and press them down to create an even layer at the bottom.
- Refrigerate the pan until ready to assemble.
For the milk chocolate ganache:
- Into a large bowl, or a large blender, add all of the cheesecake batter ingredients (except the pistachio butter): Cream cheese, yogurt, vegan whipping cream, sugar, vanilla paste, salt, flour, cornstarch, silken tofu and lemon zest.
- Blend everything together to a smooth consistency.
- Transfer 575g (just under half) of the cheesecake batter, into a separate measuring cup, add in the pistachio butter and blend it in.
- The remaining cheesecake batter should be transferred into the second measuring cup.
- Pour the mixtures, alternating between the pistachio batter, and the plain cheesecake batter, into the prepared pan. You can eyeball the quantities, or do it by weight of your choice (for example 50 to 70g of each color at a time), to get a more accurate internal visual.
- Put the pan directly inside the water bath and bake for 20 minutes. Then, lower the temperature to 120C, and continue baking for 30 more minutes (total baking time: 50 minutes).
- The cake is done once the edges have set and the center slightly jiggles.
- Once baking is done, turn off the oven. Leave the oven’s door slightly cracked open to allow the steam to escape, and allow the cheesecake to cool down inside the turned off oven for 30 minutes.
- Then, take the cheesecake out onto a cooling rack, and let it cool down 3-4 hours to room temperature. Then, cover the pan with a large piece of aluminum foil, and refrigerate overnight.
- The next day unmold from the pan, decorate and serve.
Store refrigerated inside an airtight container for up to 5 days.
