Mini Low-Carb Pumpkin ‘Cheesecakes’ {Vegan, Paleo}
The perfect addition to your Thanksgiving table: Mini Low-Carb Pumpkin Cheesecakes! Rich, and creamy, but guilt-free! No sugar, gluten/grains, dairy, or eggs. A wholesome holiday indulgence. (No-bake, Paleo & Vegan)
GUILT FREE PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE
Just because it’s the holidays, doesn’t mean you have to blow your diet! But you don’t have to deprive yourself either.
You can still enjoy decadent desserts, like these individual pumpkin ‘cheesecakes.’ Dessert that you (and your body) can be thankful for! No post-meal regret here.
And their miniature size is perfect for serving (AND for portion control!)
Easy, Healthy, YUM
These miniature desserts will be the CUTEST thing on your Thanksgiving spread. And you’ll love how EASY they are to make. 15 minutes to put together. Your food processor does all the work. Just blend & chill.
These ‘cheesecakes’ taste so close to the real thing. Smooth, and rich, with a little tang, just like cream cheese. But instead of animal products. they’re made with plant products: coconut oil and CASHEW cream (my favorite thing EVER).
And the no-bake crust is SO buttery and crisp. It’s made with toasted pecans and a dash of cinnamon. YUM. Not only is it yummy, it’s nutrient-packed, full of fiber, vitamins and minerals. Dessert with benefits 😉
Give Thanks
What are you most thankful for this year? That’s the question we always take turns answering at our Thanksgiving table each year. It’s sort of a tradition now.
We always spend the holidays at my parents’ house. Add in 5 children, plus 5 spouses/significant others, 9 grandkids, 1 grand-dog (and a partridge in a pear tree.)
It’s a glorious cacophony of laughter, games, kids running wild, and all the warm-fuzzies. I don’t know how I got so lucky, but I genuinely love my family. And I’m *always* thankful for them.
I’m Thankful for..
- The way my daughter dances… with reckless abandon and wholehearted enthusiasm. She’s 4 years old, and she’s been a better dancer than me for… her entire life, haha!
- How passionate my son is about his toys and games. Even though I’ve had to endure countless hours of listening to My Singing Monsters and stories of the latest Pokemon card, I love his excitement.
- My husband being a better parent than I am. When I’m spent at the end of the day and losing my patience with the kids, he takes over and he’s my hero.
- The little things, and the big things. Simple joys like food (mainly vegan cheesecakes). Getting to eat food, take pictures of food, and talk about food 😉 Ha. Food is my favorite. It’s true.
- And enormous things, like the unfathomable, unconditional, amazing love of God. I don’t deserve it, but it’s lavished on me, and freely available to anyone who’ll accept it.
We all have so much to truly be thankful for!
If you’re reading this right now, I’m thankful for YOU. Yep, even though we’ve probably never met, I’m glad you stopped by my little corner of the interwebs.
I hope you enjoy these mini CHEESECAKES 🙂
{ps. Looking for more pumpkin treats? Check out these healthy pumpkin spice CAKE BALLS and this no-bake Pumpkin PIE.
Mini Low-Carb Pumpkin 'Cheesecakes' {Vegan, Paleo}
Ingredients
Crust
- 3/4 cup toasted pecans
- 1 Tbs refined coconut oil
- Pinch of pink salt
- Dash of cinnamon
Pumpkin 'Cheesecake'
- 1 cup raw cashew pieces - soaked
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 Tbs canned coconut milk
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 1/2 - 2 tsp pumpkin spice - to taste (plus extra cinnamon, if desired)
- 2 pinches pure stevia powder - to taste
- Dash of pink salt
- 1/3 cup refined coconut oil - melted
- Coconut whipped cream - for garnish
Instructions
To make the crust:
- Pulse toasted pecans in a food processor until coarsely ground. Add remaining ingredients and pulse until sticky crumbs form.
- Place 6 silicone cupcake molds on a small tray. Press 1 heaping Tbs of crust firmly into the bottom of each mold. Freeze while you prepare the filling.
To make the cheesecake filling:
- (Soak cashews in a bowl of boiling water for 2 hours or overnight in room-temp water). Drain, rinse and shake cashews dry.
- Blend cashews in food processor until completely ground. Scrape down the sides.
- Add remaining ingredients (except coconut oil). Blend again. Stream in the coconut oil last.
- Taste and adjust for sweetness and spice.
- Fill each silicone mold with cheesecake using an ice cream scoop.
- Wrap molds tightly in foil and freeze until solid (about 3-4 hours)
- Remove cheesecakes from molds, & transfer to fridge.
- Garnish with coconut whipped cream (see notes). Enjoy!
Notes
What I used:
Silicone Baking Molds from Ikea (You could also use parchment cupcake wrappers) or a silicone muffin pan from Amazon. Use 1 can of Thai Kitchen canned coconut milk (refrigerated a min. of 5 hrs.) Scoop out the solid white cream into a mixing bowl. Sweeten with a few drops of stevia and 2 tsp vanilla. Whip for about 30 seconds until light and fluffy. Sweetener Swap: If you're not counting carbs, you may replace the 2 Tbs coconut milk in the filling with 2 Tbs maple syrup, to taste. For the crust, you can add 2 medjool dates for sweetness, but it's good without.Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a star rating. Tag me on Instagram @emily.likes.food so I can see 🙂
20 Comments
Ashley Crhistian
Emily I love this post, and all the things you are thankful for!! I am thankful for you and your family and this wonderful recipe. I’m making it today for myself, my parents, and my cousin who all don’t eat the typical thanksgiving pies, we’ll enjoy it tomorrow with our crowd of 22. Happy Thanksgiving!
Emily
Aww you’re so sweet Ashley! Dusty and I are thankful for you and Josh. Hope you enjoy all the cheesecakes Happy Thanksgiving!
Lorie
If I double this, can I make it in a 9×13 pan?
Emily
You probably could! It would be flat like bars though 🙂 but still yummy
Kimberly
I love the things you’re thankful for! I have made cashew cheesecake before and my husband loved it. This is big because he likes cheesecake but I was never fan ( can’t have dairy ). I REALLY want to try these! I start craving all things around June or July and I plan my Autumn yummies now.
Emily
Haha, you have my permission to enjoy all the pumpkin deliciousness year round 🙂
Cashew cheesecakes are my absolute favorite dessert! Who needs dairy when you have cashews, right?? 😀 If you make these, I’d love to hear what you think. Hope you enjoy!
Kimberly
Sorry, I start craving all things Autumn around June or July.
Kimberly
I have these in my list of goodies to make. My husband actually mentioned “That one time I made cashew cheesecake”. I can take a hint.
Sandy
Ive recently dove head first into low carb & am ALREADY trying to plan a Thanksgiving meal cause the thought of all those carbs that are usually on my table is making me anxious! Searching your recipes, I NEVER see a carb count? Is there a spot that I’m totally over looking since I’m looking at it on my phone? I’m dying to try these but would love the carb count! Thanks!
Emily
Hi Sandy! I don’t have carb counts on everything, but my more recent low-carb recipes, I have started adding the macros in the notes section underneath the recipe.
If you don’t find it, you can always paste the recipe into MyFitnessPal.com under food>recipes. Hope that helps 🙂
Nikki
What if I don’t have silicone cups can I use a regular mini metal cupcake tray ? But what I put in it to make it not stick when freezing?
Emily
Yes, you can use a metal tray, just use parchment cupcake liners
Carol Lettington
I’ve read through this recipe several times looking for the macro -nutrients but cannot find them. Can you please post then with the recipes?
Emily
Here you go! 🙂 361 cal, 34g fat, 9g carbs, 3g fiber, 6 net carbs, 5g protein (According to MyFitnessPal)
Kir
Hi Emily. I know you use a lot of coconut products in your recipes. For those of us allergic to or intolerant of coconut are there other substitutions? Thanks.
Emily
Yes, but it can be a little tricky since coconut comes in so many forms. In this particular recipe, coconut oil can be subbed with palm oil, and coconut cream can be subbed with cashew cream. If you ever need assistance with a recipe, send me an email— Emily(at)prettypies.com. I’m happy to help! 🙂
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Leah
I’m eager to try this one this year for Thanksgiving. I don’t use Stevia though. Is there an alternative to it and if so, would it be a 1:1 conversion, do you think?
Emily
Sure! Use any powdered sweetener you like, such as Lakanto monkfruit/erythritol , Besti monkfruit/allulose, or powdered coconut sugar.
Start with 2 Tbs and adjust to taste. I would also add an extra teaspoon or two of coconut milk so it’s not too dry.
Hope you enjoy! Let me know how it goes