Name: Gluten Free Dairy-Free Cheesecake
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 135 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ cups crushed GF Graham Crackers; 1 tsp. ground cinnamon; 6 Tbsp. coconut oil (melted); 1 pound package silken tofu (drained); 1 cup sugar; 1 pound dairy-free cream cheese (2 packages); 1 egg (room temperature); 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract; Can of cherry pie filling

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Look no further for the creamiest, smoothest gluten free, dairy free cheesecake! A simple graham cracker crust and cherry topping elevates this dessert to over the top decadent.

There is almost nothing more luxurious then a creamy, tangy, tantalizing cheesecake. Unfortunately, gluten-free options are often really pricey. To make matters worse, a dairy-free version is nearly impossible to find premade. So this gluten free, dairy free cheesecake is here to save the day! It’s rich, super tasty and easy to make. And it’s waiting for you to enjoy it.

How is this cheesecake made dairy free?

Cheesecake and dairy seem to go hand-in-hand right? Fortunately there are tasty alternatives to traditional dairy cream cheese! This recipe uses a combination of dairy free cream cheese and silken tofu. Dairy free cream cheese is found in most grocery stores. This is the brand used in the recipe. And silken tofu adds a lovely texture without compromising the taste.

Can I substitute real cream cheese to make it a traditional gluten free cheesecake?

Possibly, although this recipe was developed to be specifically dairy free so the results may not be the same.

What kind of graham crackers work the best for the cheesecake crust?

This is a pro tip for this recipe that makes preparing the graham cracker crust so much easier. The 5.6oz package of the Schar brand of graham crackers is exactly the amount of graham crackers you’ll need to make the crust. Just open those individual packages up and toss them in the food processor and crumble them up. No measuring needed!

What toppings are good on this cheesecake?

A rich, creamy cheesecake deserves the best toppings. While cherry pie filling is the top choice, lemon pie filling or even fruit tastes amazing too.

Can I make it ahead of time?

The beauty of cheesecake is that it stores extremely well. The most convenient way to store cheesecake is to freeze it and take pieces out as needed. Once it’s completely cooled, remove the springform side and carefully slice it into pieces while keeping it on the springform pan bottom. Then wrap the entire thing, springform pan bottom and all with plastic wrap. Place it in the freezer.

Tip: Slicing the pieces before freezing makes serving MUCH easier. Otherwise you have a whole frozen cheesecake to thaw, which takes a lot longer than individual slices.

How to Make Gluten Free Dairy Free Cheesecake

The ingredients

Don’t you love it when there’s a manageable ingredients list? Nothing too complicated or hard to find? Well in the case of this gluten free and dairy free cheesecake, just dairy free cream cheese, tofu, sugar, an egg and vanilla is all you’ll need for the delicious creamy filling. And tasty graham crackers for the crust. A can of cherry pie filling and you’ll have a dessert to wow even the toughest critic.

Making the crust

: Graham cracker crust mixture

: Gluten free graham cracker crust ready to fill

You can either break out your 5.6oz. box of Schar brand graham crackers and toss those beauties in the food processor to crumble or process about 18 graham crackers (the measurement should be 1 1/2 cups). Then it’s just mixing with the cinnamon and coconut oil and patting it out in the pan.

A note about forming the crust in the pan: When patting it out in the pan, make sure to take the crust up about halfway up on the sides of the springform pan. This process may take a few minutes, but it’s worth it to have a nicely formed crust!

Mixing the filling

After the crust is baked, there’s about 30 minutes of cooling time needed. This is the perfect time to make the filling. Start with the drained tofu and add that to a stand mixer. Beat it on medium speed for 3 minutes.

Add the sugar and the cream cheese and continue mixing for another minute. Add the egg and vanilla last and mix again.

The mixture will go from somewhat chunky to fairly smooth.

: Cheesecake filling still lumpy

: Cheesecake filling fully mixed

Baking & cooling the cheesecake

Baking this beautiful gluten free dairy free cheesecake is the simplest step… just place the filled springform pan in the center of the middle rack in your oven and bake for 45 minutes. No water bath needed!

After 45 minutes, the cheesecake is done baking and now needs to cool to firm up. Leaving it in the oven, turn the oven off and prop the door open. Let it cool in the oven for 1 hour.

After an hour, remove it from the oven and let it finish cooling on a wire rack.

Then just slice and top with some delicious cherry pie filling.