Vegan Mango Cheesecake

If you're a fan of tropical flavors, this vegan mango cheesecake recipe is the perfect treat coming into spring or summer.

This vegan treat is packed full of flavor from the toasted coconut crust to the creamy vanilla lime filling, and tropical sweet mango curd topping.

During the warmer months, I love to keep a batch of either these mango cheesecake bars or my vegan lemon cheesecake or strawberry cheesecake bars in the freezer as they make the perfect refreshing and light dessert or snack.

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What makes this mango cheesecake so good

• Bursting with tropical flavors of mango, coconut, and lime.
• Irresistibly creamy cheesecake filling without vegan cream cheese or silken tofu.
• Makes a big batch of freezer-friendly cheesecake bars.
• No-bake and really easy to make.
• Gluten-free, eggless, and dairy-free.

Ingredients you'll need

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Ingredients notes

• Toasted coconut flakes give the crust of these mango cheesecake bars a delicious toasty malty flavor. If you can’t get toasted coconut flakes you can use raw coconut flakes and toast them until slightly browned under your grill. Or you can substitute it with desiccated coconut.
• Cashews are in both the crust and in the filling of the cheesecake for that creamy texture and slightly cheesy flavor.
• Medjool dates with their soft texture and sweet caramel flavor, make the perfect binding agent for the crust. You can use any soft dates for this recipe. If your dates are hard/tough, try soaking them in some hot water for 30 minutes to help soften them up first!
• A pinch of sea salt helps to balance the sweetness and enhance all the other flavors in the recipe.
• Full-fat coconut cream or coconut milk for that rich and creamy consistency found in the filling. If using coconut milk, you’ll only want to use the thick part from the top of the can. The slight coconut flavor of the filling contrasts so well with the juicy mango topping.
• Soy or coconut yogurt is added to the filling which adds to the tangy cheesecake flavor of the filling.
• Pure maple syrup is the sweetener for the filling, you can also use agave nectar.
• Lime juice and zest work incredibly well alongside mango, so it's used in place of lemon juice which you'll find in most of my other no-bake vegan cheesecake recipes.
• Vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract flavors the mango cheesecake filling. Make sure you opt for a brand that is vegan-friendly such as Neilsen Massey pure vanilla extract and Taylor and Colledge vanilla bean extract.
• Coconut oil, when chilled solidifies, which makes it a great natural setting agent for no-bake desserts.
• Sweetened mango pulp or mango puree, or ripe mango chunks. Unless you can find super ripe and sweet mango, I recommend using canned mango pulp. It's also great if you're based somewhere like Ireland where I am, and finding great mangoes is rare! Here is the mango pulp that I use. It's great in vegan mango tart as well.
• Caster sugar is optional depending on your personal taste and the sweetness of the mango that you're using. If you’re based in the US, be sure to use organic sugar, as non-organic is often not vegan!
• Cornstarch, also known as cornstarch, is what thickens the mango curd topping of the cheesecake.
• Agar-agar powder is a vegan alternative setting agent to gelatine. In this recipe, it's used to set the mango layer of the cheesecake bars. Make sure you use the powdered variety, or if using agar-agar flakes, convert the quantity according to the brands’ instructions.

How to make this recipe

(Full ingredient quantities and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post)

No-bake crust

The crust for this vegan mango cheesecake is made with pretty wholesome ingredients. First, add the dry ingredients (in this case toasted coconut flakes, cashews, and salt) to your food processor and grind them down into a fine powder.

Then add in the wet ingredient, which in this case is juicy dates. Blend again until the ingredients stick together to form a dough consistency.

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Next, press the crust into the base of a square cake pan lined with parchment paper. You can also use a 7-inch or 8-inch round cake pan to make a round cheesecake. You can use a flat-bottomed glass or cup measure to compact the base down.

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Cheesecake filling

First, soak the cashews ahead of time, this will give them a silky, creamy consistency and make it easier for your blender to process them. To soak, add the cashews to a bowl and cover them with filtered water. Leave them to soak for about 4 hours, then rinse them clean and drain before use. Note: If you’re in a hurry – don’t worry you can soak them in boiling water instead for an hour, then rinse and drain.

The cheesecake filling comes together in a high-speed blender. Simply add in all of the ingredients, which are cashews, coconut cream, non-dairy yogurt, maple syrup, lime, coconut oil, and vanilla, and blend until smooth and creamy. You can find more tips on how to get a creamy cheesecake filling in this guide to vegan cheesecakes.

Once you have a smooth filling, pour it into the prepared cake pan and freeze until set. You can also chill the cheesecake in the fridge, it may just need a couple more hours to firm up properly.

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Mango curd topping

This is probably my favorite part of this vegan mango cheesecake. In fact, you could even make this mango curd without agar-agar and keep it in a jar in the fridge to enjoy with other desserts!

Add the sugar, agar-agar powder, and cornstarch to a saucepan with water and whisk well to create a paste. The sugar here is optional, but I do recommend it especially if you're using fresh mangoes which may not be as sweet as store-bought mango puree.

Next, pour in the mango puree and cook it over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until it thickens up. Make sure you keep stirring the curd with a spatula throughout the process, to prevent it from sticking to the pan.

Lastly, allow the mango curd to cool slightly before spreading it over the cheesecake. Place back in the freezer to set fully for 3 hours or overnight if you're preparing them the night before you want to serve them.

Once set, remove the cheesecake from the cake tin and trim off the edges with a knife. Cut into serving slices and topped with some freshly grated lime zest.

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Storage instructions

Place the cheesecake bars in an airtight container and refrigerate. They'll stay fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Freezing instructions

You can also freeze this vegan mango cheesecake in an airtight container for up to a couple of months. I recommend first slicing the cheesecake into individual bars so that you can defrost them as needed. Then just allow them to sit at room temperature for an hour before serving.

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Recommended tools

• Food processor
• High-speed blender
• 8-inch square pan

Recipe tips

• Using a springform pan makes it easier to remove the mango cheesecake once it has been set. I also, recommend lining the base and sides of the tin with parchment paper, creating a sling to lift out the set cheesecake.
• Use Alphonso mangoes if you can get your hands on them. They are very difficult to come by here in Ireland, which is why I always go for canned mango pulp. If using fresh mangoes, you might want to add a little extra sugar to the curd layer to sweeten it.
• If you're not a fan of the taste of coconut, you can swap the coconut cream for vegan cream cheesecake and just use extra cashews for the crust in place of coconut flakes.

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More vegan cheesecake recipes

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