Learn how to make the best vegan cheesecake ever! No, really! This cheesecake is light, creamy and smooth with no dairy or nuts. Plus, it’s easy to make and you don’t need a high powered blender!
With over 150 5-star ratings, this has become one of my most popular recipes. Since creating this recipe, I have also made a Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake and Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake that I think you’ll love!
Meet the vegan cheesecake of your dreams. Seriously, I was blown away by how delicious this turned out! No one would guess this cheesecake is vegan. It’s smooth, rich and creamy but also light in texture.
It took me SEVERAL attempts to get this recipe exactly like I wanted, and I finally achieved success! It reminds me of New York style cheesecake, and no one ever guesses it’s vegan.
What makes this vegan cheesecake the best?
- The texture and flavor is incredible – Truly. This is the cheesecake that tastes like the original, but better. Often when I buy a slice of cheesecake, it’s disappointing, but not this one!
- Nut free – A win if you have nut allergies! Many recipes call for nuts, but this vegan cheesecake is nut free.
- Easy to make – Putting this cheesecake together could not be easier. The hardest part is waiting for it to chill before you can dig in!
- No high powered blender needed – That’s right, unlike cashew based cheesecake recipes, you only need an electric hand mixer (or stand mixer). No fancy blender needed.
What’s in vegan cheesecake?
- Graham crackers – For the crust. To keep it vegan, use honey free graham crackers. You can also use Oreo cookies.
- Melted vegan butter or coconut oil – Also for the crust.
- Sugar – For the crust and the cheesecake filling.
- Vegan Cream Cheese – This is the key ingredient! I ONLY recommend using Tofutti cream cheese, as it provides consistent results. Other brands may work, but definitely not Violife or Trader Joe’s. Luckily Tofutti brand tends to be the least expensive and easiest to find.
- Coconut Cream– For the cheesecake filling. You need canned coconut cream, or you can use canned full fat coconut milk and only use the thick white part (you will need a few cans to get enough cream).
- Cornstarch – This helps thicken the cheesecake and makes it set up properly. Do not omit. Arrowroot or tapioca starch might work, but I haven’t tried it.
- Vanilla Extract – For flavor.
- Lemon Juice – Fresh is best, this adds to the tangy flavor.
How to make vegan cheesecake
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Prepare a 9-inch springform pan by wrapping the bottom and sides with aluminum foil. Make the crust with vegan graham crackers, melted butter or coconut oil and sugar. Simply mix them together in a bowl.
Press the crust mixture into the pan, firmly and evenly, coming up the sides just a little. Most graham crackers have honey, but Nabisco graham crackers do not. If you can’t find those, you can use vegan gingersnap cookies, Oreos or another similar vegan cookie/biscuit.
Make the cheesecake filling. First, beat the vegan cream cheese until smooth. Then, add the rest of the filling ingredients (coconut cream, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and lemon juice), and beat until very smooth.
Pour the smooth filling over the crust and spread it evenly.
Yes, I know it’s a LOT of vegan cream cheese, but this makes a large cheesecake! You will have 12 good sized slices. It’s perfect for holiday get togethers or birthday parties. If you’d like, you can cut the cheesecake filling ingredients in half, and bake it in a regular 9 inch pie pan instead.
Bake for 50 minutes, turn off the heat and let sit in the oven without opening the door for another 10 minutes. It will look jiggly and undercooked in the middle, but don’t worry. It will firm up perfectly after cooling.
Chill in the fridge for at least 8 hours, preferably overnight. It will be soft if you try to serve it too soon. The texture is the most firm and perfect after about 24 hours, so plan ahead if you can.
Frequently Asked Questions
Run a large, sharp knife under hot water, wipe dry with a clean towel, and then slice. Repeat with each slice for very clean cut pieces of cheesecake.
No, cheesecake is not usually vegan because it’s made with dairy and often eggs. My recipe is 100% vegan and dairy free, of course!
This recipe cannot be made without vegan cream cheese, and homemade versions do not usually work. I do have a version without cream cheese here: Baked Cashew Cheesecake.
You can, yes! Simply cut all the ingredients in half, use a 9 inch pie pan and bake for 40 minutes instead of 50.
Yes, it can be frozen. Let it chill for at least 8 hours in the refrigerator before wrapping well and moving to the freezer. Or simply freeze slices to easy grab and go desserts.
It will keep for up to 7 days in the refrigerator.
Gluten free vegan cheesecake
Substitute gluten free graham crackers or Oreos to make the cheesecake both gluten free and vegan.
Optional cheesecake toppings
Serve plain, with fresh berries or one of these:
- Vegan Caramel Sauce
- Vegan Lemon Curd
- Vegan Salted Caramel
- Vegan Chocolate Ganache
- Strawberry Sauce (recipe included below)
- Vegan Whipped Cream
More vegan cheesecake recipes
- Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake
- Vegan Oreo Cheesecake
- No Bake Mini Cheesecakes
- No Bake Layered Vegan Raspberry Cheesecake
- Oreo Mug Cheesecake
The Best Vegan Cheesecake
Ingredients
For the crust
- 1 1/2 cups vegan graham cracker crumbs*
- 5 tablespoons melted vegan butter or coconut oil
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
For the filling
- 32 ounces (4 8-ounce packages) Tofutti vegan cream cheese See notes, do NOT use Trader Joe's!
- (1) 13.5 ounce can coconut cream
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice, from about 2 small lemons
Optional fresh strawberry sauce
- 1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest, from 1 small lemon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Wrap a 9 inch springform pan with 1-2 layers of aluminum foil, covering the bottom and the sides. Cut a circle of parchment paper for the bottom of the pan, and spray lightly with oil.
For the crust
- In a medium bowl, add the cookie crumbs, melted vegan butter and sugar. Stir well to combine, then press down into the bottom of the prepared pan. Press down firmly and evenly, going up the sides a little. Set aside.
For the filling
- In the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, or using a handheld mixer, beat the vegan cream cheese until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Now add the rest of the filling ingredients and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Once it’s completely smooth, pour into prepared pan over the crust and spread evenly.
To bake
- Place in the oven and bake for 50 minutes. Do not open the oven door during this time. Turn off the heat, and let it sit in the oven for 10 more minutes. The cheesecake will be slightly jiggly, and not look very done in the middle. That is correct, it will firm up when it cools.
- Remove from the oven, and let it cool for about 15 minutes at room temperature before moving to the refrigerator to cool for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, before slicing and serving. When ready to serve, slice and serve with any optional toppings.
Optional fresh strawberry sauce
- In a food processor, add 1 1/4 cups of the sliced strawberries (reserving 1/4 cup), sugar and lemon zest. Process until smooth. Toss with the sliced strawberries in a small bowl and chill for at least an hour before serving.
- Storing: Leftover cheesecake will keep for up to 7 days in the refrigerator. It can also be frozen.
Video
Notes
- Graham Crackers – Most graham crackers have honey, but Nabisco brand is vegan if you can find it or order it online. If not, you can also use vegan gingersnap cookies, Oreos or another similar cookie. Just simply add them to a blender/food processor and then measure 1 1/2 cups crumbs.
- Cream Cheese – I prefer Tofutti brand vegan cream cheese here, it’s the only brand I’ve had consistent results with. Trader Joe’s brand no longer works either, as they changed the formula. I would not recommend Daiya brand as it doesn’t turn out well for some reason. Violife also does NOT work here, so don’t try it! Some people have reported success with Kite Hill brand.
- If you can not find canned coconut cream, you can use 1 can of full fat coconut milk, just don’t use the light coconut milk. Plant based yogurt also works pretty well for a coconut free option.
- If you don’t have a springform pan, or want a smaller cheesecake, you can cut the cheesecake filling ingredients in half and use a regular 9-inch pie pan instead. It will still need about 40 minutes to bake.
- Additional toppings/flavors: Vegan Caramel Sauce, Vegan Chocolate Ganache or Vegan Whipped Cream.
Nutrition
*This recipe was originally posted October 2018 and has been republished with new photos and simplified recipe process. I’m always working on improving my recipes and website. Thank you!
This recipe is AWESOME!!!! I had to go dairy-free/vegan after developing a milk allergy and cheesecake was one of the things I haven’t found a replacement for- but not anymore!
I personally used Kite Hill since Tofutti isn’t sold here- and this worked perfectly texture wise! Kite Hill is an almond milk base though, so it tastes a bit like almond milk which isn’t a big deal, but for a more true cheesecake taste, I assume Tofutti is better. I hope it shows up here sometime soon so I can try this again!
I also accidentally overbaked it by 10 minutes since this is my first time making cheesecake- still super good regardless! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Hi Mars. How fabulous you are able to enjoy cheesecake again! I’m glad it turned out wonderful for you with the ingredients that are available to you! Thank for sharing your glowing review and feedback! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
This sounds great! I’m looking to make it for a birthday party & want to do cupcake sized ones for a dessert table. How long would you recommend the baking considering the smaller sizes? TIA!
Hi Yvonne. Mini cheesecakes are going to take less time to cook and less time to chill. Though I have not tested this, muffin size will need about 20-25 minutes. The cheesecakes will look cooked, except for maybe the middle, but they won’t be totally firm until they chill. Hope that helps! Happy baking!
hi so i made this recipe yesterday and it came out awful 🙁 i think it’s because i mixed the liquid and solid for the coconut cream because I didnt see it in the printed version of the recipe. But your youtube video showed your coconut cream to be pretty viscous.
May I ask what brand you used and how much in ounces/grams?
The instructions feel unclear considering you’re blog tips say you may need more than one can but the recipe only calls for one
I’m so sorry to hear that, let me see if I can help! So what you are looking for is a can labeled “coconut cream”, not coconut milk. They usually come in a 13.5 ounce can, and it’s the thickened white cream, no or hardly any clear liquid at all. I use a variety of brands, usually a generic store brand. The only time you will need more than one can is if your coconut cream turns out to be mostly clear liquid (this should not happen, it should be almost all cream) OR if you have to use full fat coconut milk, you can use the thick white part only and then you may need more than one can to equal the 13.5 ounces. More importantly, is what brand of vegan cream cheese did you use? This is more likely the issue, as several brands just melt when they are heated, leading to a soupy cheesecake! I try to be very clear about this in the post and notes/recipe.
Hi Nora thank you for the quick response! I used the Thai Kitchen Coconut Cream and it was about 50-50 cream to liquid. And for the cream cheese i used the Tofutti brand.
the base mix before i bagged it looked and tasted great! but I think the amount of extra oil from the coconut cream really messed mine up.
I put it in the fridge after just to see what would happen and it solidified with a bunch of extra oil on top.
Hi Nora, Thank you so much for all your wonderfully thought out recipes. I always have confidence in a NoraCooks recipe, and they’ve all been winners. Honestly, you’ve made our little family so happy and well fed over the years. 😀
I have a question regarding a pineapple upside down cheesecake I’m trying to make for my sister. She loves the one at Cheesecake Factory. They put the cheesecake as the filling between two layers of pineapple upside down cake, so it’s cake, topped with cheesecake, topped with cake again. Lol I always have great success with your cheesecake, rave reviews. But given my current goal, I need this cheesecake to be crustless. So I tried omitting the crust, still using the spring form pan, and I added a third cup of pineapple juice when mixing. This did not work out as I think maybe the juice reacted and it became a big blackish/brown domed layer of skin when I removed it from the oven. I managed to scrape it off but sadly the rest of the cheesecake’s texture never came to be as I know it normally is. So I’m going to do it again, sans the pineapple juice, but still crustless, maybe in just a cake pan this time. Do you think this might work, or do you have a better suggestion- or should I just do it with the crust? I welcome any insights you might have. I’m creating this fusion using your apple upside down cake, but obviously using pineapple slices instead of apples, and as suggested, omitting the fall spices.
Sorry for the long question! My sister is coming tomorrow for a week visit from out of state, so I’m really hoping for a culinary win here. LOL
Thank you, Nora. I feel like it’s a question that requires your expertise, which is experience- tested and trustworthy. I’m not even sucking up. Haha!
Hi there! Thanks for loving my recipes. 🙂 This is a hard one to answer! I’ve never tried anything like this. Are you trying to bake the layers of cake and cheesecake at the same time in the oven? I’m just not sure this will work. I might try to bake the cake separately, then layer it with a no bake cheesecake filling? Such as in this vegan oreo cheesecake (without the oreos of course!). Other than that, I’m really not sure it will work or not! Let me know if you try something that works, I’d love to hear. 🙂
Oh my gosh, thank YOU for sharing your recipes! 😁 Yes, I was trying to make the cake separate from the cheesecake because I didn’t think combining the two was a good idea either, during the baking phase. And then trying to move the cheesecake (sans crust) was highly comical. LOL I think a no-bake cheesecake is a great idea and now I’m excited to try yours. That might work, yay! I will definitely let you know how it turns out. Do I still include the coconut oil in the filling? Asking as the last step making the filling, is to add the Oreos and coconut oil, so I wasn’t sure since I’ll be omitting the cookies. I am thinking the coconut oil helps it set/firm, so I’m assuming keep it in?
Thank you again, Nora, for taking the time to reply! It means the world to me and my sister. 💖
Yes, the coconut oil helps the no-bake filling firm up – so I’d leave out the oreos but add the coconut oil, then chill in the fridge for a few hours at least and it will firm up quite a bit. Hopefully then you can layer it in between cake layers. 🙂 I hope it turns out fabulous and I’m excited to hear! 🙂
What happens if Violife cream cheese is used in this recipe? Would it work in a no-bake vegan cheese cake? I bought 5 packs of Violife thinking it would work until reading your comments.
Unfortunately, Violife just melts when it gets warm. I absolutely love the taste of it and it’s perfect for no-bake recipes. But no, it won’t work here. Sorry to disappoint!
I used Oatly in a puff pastry recently and it melted and oozed out of the puff pastry. Anyone try Miyokos yet?
I am looking forward to trying out this recipe once I get my hands on some tofutti cream cheese. I have one question though…. what is the purpose of putting tinfoil at the bottom andup sides of the sprinform pan?
Hi Josée! The aluminum foil is quite crucial. If you do not wrap the bottom of the springform pan, your oven will smoke as little bits of oil leak out. Not good or safe. I hope this helps!
I live in Europe and I could only find Philadelphia. So i spent like €30 on those and baked it as instructed. Lo and behold, i hit the 50 minute mark and it was still soupy. I saw the comments too late not to use the Philadelphia. Any suggestions as to how I can still use this soupy cheesecake? I don’t wanna throw it away.
Hi Nora, thanks for all the great recipes over the years! I found myself a bit short on cheese and added soyafe blueberry uoghurts i had at hand
…in the end the filling was a bit less creamy than your in the picture when put in the pan. I am hoping it will still firm up! Should I bake it longer?
Also, my crust was much more butterry and oily thank in your picture even though i used the same amounts :/ still, hoping for good results! Thanks again!
Hi there, I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying my recipes over the years! So, if you didn’t use the correct amount of vegan cream cheese, the cheesecake filling won’t turn out the same. It will probably not be as firm or creamy. I’m not sure about the crust really, mine is not super oily. Hope you still were able to enjoy it!
This is the best vegan cheesecake recipe I have come across. A huge plus that it can be made allergy friendly without sacrificing taste. Perfect consistency. Instead of the graham crackers for the crust, I used the Kinnikinnick Gluten Free (along with soy, nuts, and dairy free) Graham Style Crumbs and it works perfectly. This recipe is a keeper for sure.
I made this for my birthday and it’s absolutely delicious. I think I should have baked longer as the center didn’t quite set up. I’ll make it again, for sure but I’ll bake it a little longer.
Hi Vicky. Happy birthday to you! I’m glad you loved the cheesecake! Good birthday choice! Thanks for your awesome review and feedback!
Is this baked in a water bath?
Hi Bob. No, a water bath isn’t necessary (but you can still try it if you want)! Enjoy!
Can you give suggestions for how to turn this into individual cupcake portions?
Hi! What’s the purpose of the lemon juice? Thank you
It adds a tart flavor that will be missed, but you can leave it out if you want.
can i freeze this to eat later?
Yes you can.
Can you use other sweeteners other the an granulated sugar?
Hi Krysty. Maybe coconut sugar but the cheesecake will be brown. Liquid sweeteners won’t work well here.
Great recipe! Thank you! I used Oatly brand oat milk cheese and it worked amazingly 🙂 I also used almond yoghurt along with coconut cream for the extra creaminess.
HI Jasmine. I’m glad the cheesecake turned out wonderful for you! Thanks for sharing your great review and feedback!