How to make a Delicious Tofu Cheesecake

How to Make a Delicious Tofu Cheesecake

Tofu is a great way to get more fiber and protein in your diet. This versatile food can easily be turned into everything from great desserts to incredible stir fry. A tofu cheesecake is an excellent way to have a great dessert while not ruining your diet. In fact, each slice has a good dose of fiber and around six grams of protein. There’s one tenth of the fat of a regular cheesecake, and there is even less sugar, so this is an excellent dessert for everyone from diabetics to kids.

What You Need:

• A 9-inch springform pan, large cake pan at least 3 inches deep, or other baking dish that will hold a cheesecake

For the Crust:

• 2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
• ½ cup of melted butter

For the Filling:

• 3 packages of silken tofu (you must use silken)
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 6 oz of cream cheese
• 6 Tbsp sour cream
• ½ tsp salt
• Juice and zest of 1 whole lemon (optional)
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 6 Tbsp cornstarch
• 6 Tbsp milk

Important: Press the tofu for 20 minutes prior to using it in your cheesecake. To do this, simply lay two paper towels down on a plate, place the tofu on top, two more paper towels, another plate, and weigh it down with a couple cans of soup or something similarly heavy. You can adapt how you press the tofu depending on how much you’re using. A cookie sheet with two plates side by side is excellent for three packs of tofu.

1. Heat oven to 350º F (180º C.)

2. Grease the bottom and sides of the pan you will use to bake the cheesecake. Use butter, shortening, or whatever else you like to use.

3. Blend the graham crackers and melted butter together and and press firmly into pan. Bake for five minutes then set aside to cool.

4. Blend all the filling ingredients together in a food processor or blender until smooth. If you are using 3 packages of tofu, then you may want to blend one package of tofu separately and place it in a bowl once liquidity so that your food processor or blender will be able to handle everything. Some appliances aren’t big enough to blend all the filling ingredients at the same time. It will only take a few seconds to blend everything together. Make sure the filling is absolutely smooth. You can also use a hand mixer, as long as the filling is smooth.

5. Pour the filling on top of the cooled crust and spread it evenly.

6. Bake for about 35 minutes. If you’re making a nice thick cheesecake using three packs of tofu, it may be closer to an hour of cooking time. Bake until the top of the cheesecake just starts to brown.

7. Remove from oven and let the cheesecake cool. Once cooled, refrigerate it for at least two hours before serving. It’s best if it’s chilled overnight.

Adjust this basic recipe however you like. Cut the filling down to just 1 package of silken tofu in order to make a small cheesecake. Use sugar substitutes, reduced fat or no fat cream cheese or sour cream, and make this recipe all your own. You can also add almond extract, chocolate, raspberries, or anything else that you can add to a regular cheesecake to make it even more delicious. Add a garnish of lemon slices or sliced almonds, berries, or even small pieces of chocolate. Serve and enjoy!