Gluten Free Dairy Free Cheesecake
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. The Tofutti brand is the brand used in the recipe. And silken tofu adds a lovely texture without compromising the taste.
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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
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 ½ 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.
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.
Recipe
Gluten Free Dairy-Free Cheesecake
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Grease the bottom and sides of a 9" springform pan with solid coconut oil. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix melted coconut oil, graham cracker crumbs and cinnamon.
- Using your fingers, press the crust mix into the greased pan and halfway up the sides.
- Bake for 11-12 minutes. Place the pre-baked crust aside and allow to cool at least 30 minutes before filling.
- Move the oven rack to center position and turn oven down to 325 F.
- Start the filling
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the tofu on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Add in the sugar and cream cheese and mix for 1 minute.
- Add the egg and vanilla and blend for another 30 seconds.
- When the crust has completely cooled, pour the filling mix into it. Smooth the top.
- Bake the cheesecake on the middle rack in your oven for 40-45 minutes, until the edges are firm but the center is soft.
- Turn oven off but leave the cake in the oven with door cracked open for about 1 hour.
- Remove cake from oven and place it on a cooling rack. Let cake cool completely before placing in the refrigerator.
- Refrigerate until serving. Serve with a heaping spoonful of cherry pie filling on top.
Notes
- When pressing in the graham cracker crust, push the crust halfway up the sides of the springform pan.
- The filling should be smooth - make sure to smooth the top before baking.
- After baking, leave the oven door open slightly to allow the cheesecake to cool gradually.
- Refrigerate after cooling for best results.
- Serve chilled with cherry pie filling on top.
Love desserts? Also check out these delicious gluten free desserts:
My first try at making a cheese cake and it has been a hit. I used frozen blueberries made into a topping with monk fruit simple syrup and corn starch to avoid the high sugar pie fillings.
Hi John,
Oh the blueberry topping sounds delicious!
Christine
I was so excited when I saw the reference in my email inbox. And so sad when I saw it relied on tofu. I also have to be soy-free. So sad and disappointed
Hi Beckee,
So if you want to substitute the tofu, use 8oz of full fat coconut cream (the thick part) or 8oz. of plant based Greek yogurt.
Hope that helps! 🙂
Christine
Hi there,
Just want to say I love this recipe and want to try it for this years Christmas. For the recipe I'm going to change it up a bit but need your help / expertise. I want to make mini cheesecakes and make each one into different flavours. I was wondering if this method could work if I add it to cupcakes trays and add my own filling to each one?
Thanks.
Hi Kristine,
Thanks for much for asking. So let's see... you could definitely make them into mini-cheesecakes using a cupcake tin! For the different flavors, I haven't tested adding any filling before baking, but you could certainly try that, my concern would be if it makes the cheesecake filling too soft/thin. The better option would be to top each one with something different like strawberry glaze or chocolate drizzle or chocolate with nuts, after baking. I think it would work fantastic. Try baking at the same temperature but for 18 minutes since they're smaller cups.
Let me know how that goes!
Christine
I can't have soy any other alternative? I can't have the graham cracker crust. Any other alternative? Thank you.
Hi Becky,
I haven't tested anything other than the tofu, so I have no suggestions there. But for the crust, this would be another option: https://zestforbaking.com/gluten-free-pie-crust
Hope that helps!
Christine
Zested a lemon and added it when I added the vanilla. Topped it with fresh blueberries as I served it. Oh, and my daughter and I decided to double the crust ingredients because who doesn’t love graham cracker crust?
Huge thank you for this recipe!
Hi Bob,
Wonderful! Glad you enjoyed it!
Christine
Hi! I'm not gluten free or dairy free myself but I'm wanting to make this for a friend. I haven't ever cooked with soy and was wondering if you could share the brand you used. Thanks!
And the cream cheese too if possible!
Yes! That is Kite Hill brand cream cheese 🙂
Christine
Hi Dominica,
It's the Organics firm variety - it's at Tom Thumb, which is also the same as Albertson's and Randalls in the US. Otherwise, any firm variety should work the same.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Christine
I have a soy intolerance issue. Is there a substitute for the silken tofu? Thanks for all the great recipes you have shared with us!
Hi,
This looks wonderful. What size springform pan?
Thank you,
Jeanie
Thanks Jeanie!
Great question - 9". I'll update the recipe with that info!
~Christine
For the GF & dairy free cheesecake, can I replace the sugar with a substitute like Monk Fruit sweetener? I have to very much limit my sugar Thank you so much for your recipes.
Hi Lee,
Thanks for asking - so I haven't tested it with monk fruit, but that would be the one I'd recommend if you're looking to limit sugar.
Thanks for the kind words!
~Christine