A vegan cheesecake with no cheese. Not even vegan cheese.

This creamy, slightly tart and awesome cheesecake is made of....yep...tofu.

Again the versatility of tofu actually amazes me. It's great stuff.

The base biscuit recipe here creates quite a thick base (which I like) but tone it down if you want to.

Serves 8

Special Equipment - Spring clip cake tin, Food processor

Ingredients:

Base:

280g vegan digestives, finely ground in a food processor or beaten with a rolling pin in a freezer bag)

3 tbsp white sugar

4 tbsp vegan spread, melted

1 tbsp soy milk

For the filling:

70g whole, unroasted cashews (soaked in water for 2-8 hours or until very soft)

2 medium bananas, mashed well

400g silken tofu, drained

200g granulated sugar, sifted

2 tbsp coconut oil

4 tsp cornflour

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp salt

100g vegan chocolate

Method:

For the base:

Preheat oven to 180c

Lightly spray a 9 inch springform tin with oil.

In a mixing crumbs combine the crumbs and the sugar. Drizzle in the melted spread.

Use a spoon to thoroughly blend the mix and moisten the crumbs, then drizzle in the soy milk and stir again to form a crumbly dough. Depending on the brand of biscuits you use you may nee a bit more milk so add it if you feel it's needed.

Pour the crumbs into the tin and press down to form a base, starting at the sides first and working your way to the middle.

Bake in the oven for 10 minutes until firm.

Let this cool before you fill with the cheesecake mixture.

For the filling:

Oven is already preheated so keep it 180c.

Drain the cashews and blend with the banana, tofu, sugar, coconut oil, cornflour, lemon juice, vanilla and almond extracts and salt until completely smooth and no bits of cashew remain.

Set aside 3 heaped tablespoons of the batter and pour the rest into the cake tin onto the crust.

Melt the chocolate on the stove over a water bath or in 30 second bursts in the microwave. When the chocolate is completely melted stir in the reserved batter.

Spoon dollops of the chocolate batter randomly on to the cheesecake. Poke the end of a cocktail stick into each blob and gently swirl to make a marbled effect.

Bake the cheesecake in the oven for 50 - 55 minutes until the top is lightly puffed and the edges of the cake are golden.

Remove the cake from the oven and pop on a cooling rack for 20 minutes then move it to the fridge to complete cooling for at least 3 hours (but better to leave overnight).

Tuck in and enjoy!