Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake

Step 1

You need to start the day before you want to serve the cheesecake as it is best if it is refrigerated overnight. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.

Step 2

Place the crushed biscuits in a bowl and mix in the melted vegan butter. It should resemble wet sand. Tip this mixture into a good, non-stick 20cm/8 inch round springform cake tin, spread it out evenly and pack down firmly with the base of a glass.

Step 3

Bake the base in the preheated oven for 10 minutes then remove and set aside to cool.

Step 4

To make the filling, place the soaked and drained cashews in a blender along with the silken tofu, coconut cream, lemon zest and juice, sugar, flour, cornflour, vanilla extract and salt and blend until the mixture is perfectly smooth. Let it settle for 5 minutes to allow some of the air bubbles to pop.

Step 5

Meanwhile, wrap the bottom of the springform tin in a double layer of tin foil; the tin is going to be sitting in water so make sure that the top of the tin foil is high enough that no water is going to come over the top. Put the kettle on.

Step 6

Pour the cheesecake mixture over the baked base then bash the tin on the worktop a couple of times to burst any remaining air bubbles. Place the tin in a roasting tray and place it in the oven.

Step 7

Pour boiling water into the roasting tin so that it comes about halfway up the sides of the tin. Be very careful that none goes over the top of the tinfoil.

Step 8

Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour. When it is ready it should be set but still jiggle in the middle if you tap it. Switch the oven off but leave the cheesecake in there (it's fine to leave it in the water bath) and leave it to cool down slowly for an hour or so, then allow it to cool completely at room temperature before you cover it and place in the fridge overnight.

Step 9

While the cheesecake is baking make the blueberry sauce, place the blueberries, lemon juice, sugar and 1 Tbsp of the water in a pan. Simmer for about 5 minutes until the berries have softened then mix the cornflour with the remaining Tbsp water, add it to the pan and cook while stirring for another minute or so until it has thickened.

Step 10

Remove from the heat, allow to cool then refrigerate overnight.

Step 11

Once the cheesecake is chilled, run a knife around the edge to make sure it isn't sticking to the tin then undo the clip and remove the rim of the tin. Pour the chilled blueberry compote over the top and serve.