Poached Pear Cashew Cheesecake

Poached Pear Cashew Cheesecake

No bake, gluten free, egg free, dairy free, wheat free, chemical free and free of refined sugar dessert. What is there not to love?

I made this for Thanksgiving dinner from organic pears that were graciously given to me by a good friend. She has numerous fruit trees on her property that aren’t sprayed. Yum yum, just my style. I wanted to do something with all of the pears and I’m not a baker. It’s too much of precise science for a creative heart like mine, so this raw cheesecake was the end result. It was de-lish! It might not be your typical cheesecake, but I’m not your typical girl.

 

Poached Pear Cashew CheesecakeCrust

1 c Walnuts
3/4 c Medjool dates, pitted
pinch Himalayan Salt

Filling

3 c Cashews, soaked for 1 or more hour in 3 cups filtered water
2 Organic pears, cored, peel on
1/4 c Fresh squeezed orange juice
1 tsp Orange zest
1/4 c Maple syrup
1/2 c Coconut oil (melted or softened)
Water to help blending (up to 1 C) if necessary

Topping

2 Organic pears
4 c Water
1/2 Coconut sugar
1 inch Fresh ginger, sliced
1 Cinnamon stick
1 Vanilla bean

What you do:

For the crust

    • In a food processor, process walnuts in to large pieces, then add dates & salt to continue to process until a sticky mixture is formed. Press mixture into 8” pie plate or springform pan to form crust. (I used a small spring form pan for mine)

 

For the filling

      • Combine all filling ingredients (including the soaking water for the cashews) together and process in blender or food processor until creamy & smooth. Add small amounts of water gradually, if necessary to get a creamy consistency
      • Pour cheese cake mixture over crust and place in freezer for 4 hours before serving

 

For the topping

      • You can use plain sliced pears for the topping if you don’t want to poach the pears. I took the time to poach mine and I think it was worth it
      • Peel the pears and remove cores then cut them into quarters to speed up the cooking
      • Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a large sauce pan until the sugar is well dissolved, then reduce heat to simmer to a level where the water maintains a low boil
      • Add remaining flavourings to the water, along with pears
      • Ensure there is enough liquid to cover the pears so they are submerged completely. You may need to occasionally press the pears down into the water to ensure they cook evenly
      • Poach the pears in the liquid for about 30 minutes or until pears are soft enough to cut though effortlessly with a fork. Allow the pears to cool in their poaching liquid for as long as possible, then remove from the pan and store them in their poaching juice until you’re ready to use them. Refrigerate the pears and their liquid if necessary (depending how far in advance you are preparing them)

 

Before serving

      • Remove the cheesecake from the freezer 1 hour before serving
      • Top with sliced poached pears

 

ENJOY!!

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