This vegan pumpkin cheesecake is rich, creamy and loaded with pumpkin spice flavor! You'd never guess this decadent dessert was dairy-free.
When it comes to desserts, any kind of cheesecake is pretty much my ultimate favorite. As long as it's vegan!
You might think pie or cake is a safer bet when it comes to vegan desserts. I mean, how good can a cheesecake without actual cheese be, after all? The answer is that it can be pretty amazing!
The taste and texture of dairy-based cheesecake is actually super easy to replicate with one magic ingredient: cashews!
With that in mind, I decided we needed a good vegan pumpkin cheesecake recipe around here for Thanksgiving and the year-end holidays. I adapted this one from both my classic vegan cheesecake recipe, as well as these mini vegan pumpkin cheesecakes. And frankly, of all the vegan cheesecake recipes I've shared on this site over the years (I've got a few), I think I love this one the most. A big slice of this is absolute heaven! It would make a great alternative to vegan pumpkin pie at this year's holiday table.
Jump to:
Ingredients You'll Need
- Graham crackers. Check the ingredients to ensure that the graham crackers you use are vegan, and be careful because many brands are made with honey. This guide to vegan graham cracker brands might help!
- Vegan butter. Look for this near where the regular butter is sold at the grocery store. Earth Balance and Miyoko's are a couple popular brands to try.
- Organic sugar.
- Cinnamon.
- Raw cashews. Don't substitute with roasted cashews. They need to be raw in order to give your cheesecake the best flavor and texture.
- Canned pumpkin puree. Not to be confused with pumpkin pie filling!
- Coconut oil. Use refined coconut oil if you'd prefer to avoid any coconut flavor in your cheesecake.
- Maple syrup.
- Pumpkin pie spice. Also known as pumpkin spice!
- Lemon juice.
- Vanilla extract.
- Salt.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
- Start by crushing your graham crackers into crumbs. You can do this by blending them in a food processor, or placing them in a bag and crushing them with a rolling pin.
- Combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted vegan butter, sugar and cinnamon in a mixing bowl, then press the mixture into the bottom and slightly up the sides of a springform pan. My trick for this is to use a measuring cup to flatten and smooth out the crumbs!
- Bake the graham cracker crust until it's darkened slightly.
- While the crust cools, place all of your vegan pumpkin cheesecake filling ingredients into a blender or food processor bowl: soaked raw cashews, pumpkin puree, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice, lemon juice, and salt.
- Blend the mixture until it's smooth and creamy.
Tip: Be patient, as blending can take a few minutes, especially if your blending device isn't high-powered.
- Pour the filling to the crust and smooth out the top with a spatula.
- Pop the whole cheesecake in the fridge and chill it until it sets. This can take up to 4 hours.
Tip: You can cut down on the chill time by placing the cheesecake in the freezer. Just be sure to keep a close eye on it so it doesn't freeze solid.
- Once your vegan pumpkin cheesecake is set you can slice and serve it! I topped mine with some dairy-free whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Vegan caramel sauce would also be excellent!
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover vegan pumpkin cheesecake will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about 4 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months.
More Vegan Pumpkin Desserts
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
Equipment
- 1 8-inch springform pan
Ingredients
For the Graham Cracker Crust
- 2 cups vegan graham cracker crumbs (Note 1)
- ½ cup melted vegan butter
- ¼ cup organic granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the Batter
- 2 cups raw cashews, soaked in water 4 to 8 hours, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- â…” cup melted refined coconut oil (Note 2)
- â…” cup maple syrup
- 1 ½ tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Stir the graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugar and cinnamon together in a large mixing bowl.
- Press the mixture into the bottom and about 1 inch up the sides of an 8-inch springform pan. (Note 3)
- Place the pan into the oven and bake the crust until it darkens slightly, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Remove the crust from the oven and place it on a cooling rack.
- While the crust cools, place all of the batter ingredients into a high powered blender or the bowl of a food processor fitted with an s-blade. Blend until smooth.
- Transfer the batter to the crust (it's okay if it hasn't completely cooled) and smooth out the top with a spatula.
- Place the cheesecake into the fridge and allow it to chill until set. (Note 4)
- Once the cheesecake has set, you can slice and serve it, or transfer it to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
- You can crush your graham crackers by blending them in a food processor, or placing them in a sealed bag and rolling them with a rolling pin.
- Unrefined coconut oil will work fine, but will give your vegan pumpkin cheesecake a slight coconut flavor.
- A slightly larger springform pan (such as 9 inches) can be used and will give you a slightly shorter cheesecake. If you use a smaller pan you won't have quite enough space for all of the batter. (Find something creative to do with any extra. Try using it as a dip for fresh fruit!)
- You can speed up the setting process by placing the cheesecake in the freezer, just be careful and check on it frequently to prevent it from freezing solid.
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Sorry, but I think I've noticed a mistake on the metric conversion. Assuming that one can of pumpkin is a regular 15 oz can, then it should convert to 425 grams. But the recipe says 245 grams, which might be a typo.
Regardless, I made the recipe with a 15 oz can and it was really good!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! The recipe actually calls for 1 cup of pumpkin purée, which comes out to about 245 grams. Sounds like yours had a little extra pumpkin flavor — never a bad thing! 🎃
Because I am allergic to cocoa, I was wondering whether there is a different oil one can substitute in place of the coconut oil, please.
You'd need something solid at room temperature. I think palm or palm kernel oil would work, but I haven't tried either myself.