walnuts Archives - Glow Kitchen

Iâ€™ve always resisted making nut-based raw desserts, because I firmly believe they defeat the purpose of eating healthy, since nuts are extremely heavy and it takes a lot to make just one slice of cake. Just because something has a raw or vegan label does not mean itâ€™s going to do your body good. I mean, sugar is vegan and uncooked meat is raw. In fact, youâ€™re probably better off eating the real deal rather than a supposed â€œhealthierâ€ alternative if itâ€™s really just a massive bag of nuts, albeit presented quite nicely, youâ€™ll have consumed. So, yes, itâ€™s important to pick and choose under the umbrella of a raw or vegan diet, and it helps to look at things in terms of density rather than labels. The denser the food is, the more difficult it will be to digest.

However, raw nut-based desserts are absolutely rich and yummy, and if few bites are all youâ€™re having, then you can rest assured itâ€™s a wholesome option â€“ much like snacking on a handful of almonds (rather than pouring an entire bag of cashews into your mouth in one sitting). Instead of making a traditional-sized cheesecake, Iâ€™ve made mini cakes that keep the portion guessing at bay.

Mini Raw Cheesecakes

by Aylin @ Glow Kitchen

Keywords: no-cook no-bake vegan raw cashew walnuts raisins cheesecake

Ingredients (Makes 1 pie)

For the Crust

1.5 cups walnuts
1 Â½ cups raisins
Dash of sea salt

For the Filling

2 cups cashews, soaked overnight, drained and rinsed
Juice of half a lemon
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup honey (or maple syrup or agave nectar)
Dash of sea salt

Instructions

For the crust, food process the raisins and walnuts until the mixture resembles chunky crumbs.

Press the crust against the bottom and sides of small glass ramekins (or any size base you desire).

For the filling, use cashews that have soaked overnight in room temperature water. Rinse before use.

This is an important step. Soaking helps to remove the enzyme inhibitors that the cashew carries around to prevent it from sprouting in nature. Birds are too small to deal with the effects of live enzymes in their tiny bellies, so the inhibitors are ideal for them, but not so much for humans. Getting rid of the enzyme inhibitors through soaking helps us to more easily digest nuts! All nuts have to be soaked to get rid of these enzyme inhibitors, save for pistachios and walnuts.