Based on my popular no-bake cheesecake recipe, this creamy cheesecake is perfect for Christmas, st. Patrick’s day, or your next dinner party!
It has an easy no-bake espresso biscuit base and is made with homemade Irish cream liquor and cocoa butter for a hint of white chocolate flavor.
Tip: If you need more ways to use up your homemade bottle of baileys, try my baileys tiramisu next!
🧾 Ingredients
Here's everything you need to make this homemade Baileys cheesecake recipe from scratch:
Ingredient Notes
Find the complete list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Dairy-Free Baileys Irish Cream: This homemade version uses Irish whiskey, dairy-free cream and milk, vanilla extract, espresso, and chocolate. It is thicker and tastes a lot closer to the original Baileys than the storebought almond milk version!
- Cacao Butter: Similar to my matcha cheesecake, the filling is made without coconut oil and instead is set with cacao butter. Cacao butter has a slight white chocolate flavor to it, which really compliments the Irish cream flavor. It also sets the cheesecake, so don't reduce the amount!
- Cashews: Give the filling a classic cheesecake flavor and provide richness and structure.
- Vegan Cream Cheese: My favorite brand to use for cheesecake recipes is Violife as I find it most similar to regular full-fat cream cheese. You can also make your own cream cream cheese if not available in the stores.
- Vegan Greek Yogurt: I use alpro Greek-style protein yogurt, but you can also use thick coconut yogurt, vegan sour cream or skyr.
- Vegan Cookies: Oreos or homemade oreo cookies for the chocolate cookie crust. You can also use other vegan cookies like digetives or biscoff cookies.
- Espresso Powder: Or coffee beans ground to a powder adds a little kick to the oreo crust. And baileys and coffee are a match made for each other.
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🔪 Instructions
Here are step-by-step images showing how to make this vegan baileys Irish cream cheesecake. Please refer to the detailed printable recipe card at the end of this page for full measurements and written instructions:
Step 1: Blend the cookies and salt in a food processor until they resemble fine crumbs. Add the butter and blend again to form a dough consistency.
Step 2: Press the crust into the base of a springform pan (or cake pan with a removable base) lined with parchment paper and smooth it out with a spoon or flat-bottomed glass.
Step 3: Blend the homemade baileys, soaked cashews, dairy-free cream cheese and yogurt, maple syrup, cocoa butter, vanilla, and salt in a high-speed blender until smooth and creamy.
Step 4: Pour the cheesecake batter into the prepared cake pan and refrigerate overnight, or until the cream cheese mixture has set.
Step 5: Remove the cheesecake from the cake tin. Gently push up the removable base until the cake releases.
Step 6: Decorate the top of the cheesecake with whipped cream, and dusting of unsweetened cocoa powder and dark chocolate shavings (check out this Black forest cheesecake which runs through how to make chocolate curls in detail).
You can also top the cake with caramel sauce or a splash of homemade vegan Baileys liqueur just before serving to make it extra delicious!
💭 Recipe Tips
You can prep this recipe a few weeks before serving it and set it in the freezer. Remove it from the cheesecake pan whilst frozen and defrost it in the fridge overnight before serving.
Line both the sides and bottom of the pan with parchment paper to prevent the filling from sticking. In case you forget and the cake is sticking to the sides of the pan, carefully wipe the outside of the pan with a damp cloth.
Quick soak the cashews if you're in a hurry. Add them to a pot of boiling water and let them sit for an hour, or simmer for 30 minutes and they will soften.
Use a good quality high-speed blender to get the best results if you can. It will make all the difference in getting the silkiest cheesecake filling!
Use a hot wet sharp knife to slice the cheesecake into servings. Wipe the knife with a damp clean kitchen towel or some kitchen paper between each slice to get nice clean cuts.
💬 FAQs
Store the cheesecake in an airtight container or on a plate covered in plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Yes, you can freeze it for up to 3 months in a sealed container.
I recommend slicing the cheesecake into individual servings to make it easier. Then just defrost the slices a couple of hours before serving, or overnight in the fridge.
Yes, you can. Just make sure all of the ingredients you use in the Baileys (eg. vegan condensed milk) do not contain gluten.
And simply swap the cookies for a GF brand.
Yes, you can use soaked sunflower seeds in place of the cashews. Again, just check the labels on the other ingredients as all brands will vary.
🍰 More Vegan Cheesecakes
📖 Recipe
No Bake Baileys Cheesecake (Vegan)
Ingredients
Crust
- 160 g (5.6 oz) vegan oreos or oreo-style/bourbon
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- 50 g (¼ cup) vegan butter
Filling
- 250 ml (1 cup) vegan baileys (quarter of the recipe)
- 200 g (1 ½ cups) cashews soaked *see notes
- 400 g (1 ¾ cups) vegan cream cheese I use homemade or Violife
- 60 g (¼ cup) vegan Greek-style yogurt or coconut yogurt
- 90 ml (⅓ cup) pure maple syrup
- 100 g (⅖ cup) cacao butter melted
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Toppings (optional)
- ½ batch vegan whipped cream
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- chocolate curls
Instructions
- Prepare: Soak the cashews in water for 4 hours, rinse and drain. You can also quick-soak your cashews by soaking them in boiling water for one hour.Make vegan baileys (you need a ¼ batch for this recipe).
- Make the crust: Line the bottom of a 7" or 8" cake tin (with a removable base) with some parchment paper.Add the cookies, espresso powder, and salt to your food processor and blitz for about 30 seconds until evenly finely ground. Add in the vegan butter and blend again until evenly combined and the mixture sticks together between your fingers. Press the cookie mixture into the base of the cake tin, and smooth it out with the back of a spoon, making sure it is compact. Set aside in the fridge while you prepare the filling.
- Make the filling: Add all of the filling ingredients to a high-speed blender and blitz for several minutes until smooth and creamy with no lumps. Pour the mixture into the cake pan and place it back in the fridge to set for a minimum of 5 hours (or overnight if preferred).
- Serving: Once set, carefully remove the cheesecake from the cake tin by lifting the bottom of the pan (see notes).Top with vegan whipped cream, dust with cocoa powder, and decorate with chocolate curls or shavings.Use a hot wet sharp knife to slice the cheesecake into portions before serving.
- Storage: Refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 5 days. You can also freeze it in an airtight container for up to a couple of months.I recommend first slicing the cheesecake into individual portions so that you can defrost them as needed. Then just allow them to sit at room temperature for an hour before serving.
Notes
- Soaked cashews: Soak them in water for 4 hours, rinse and drain. You can also quickly soak them by soaking them in boiling water for one hour.
- If the cake is sticking to the sides of the pan, carefully wipe the outside of the pan with a damp cloth.
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*This recipe was originally published in April 2019. The recipe has since been improved and updated to simplify the instructions.
