5 days to a new year! This past week went in resting in, watching movies, sleeping late, late brunches and lots of great food. I am trying not so successfully to get back to work days and blogging schedule. It took me a few hours to write up the post.
I had pinned Roxana’s Cheesecake Tiramisu Brownies a while back and the past few days were a perfect time to vegan-ize them. The cheesecake layer is a bit thin as hubbs was never fond of cheesecakes and I did not want to eat the entire pan by myself :).Which I wouldn’t usually mind, but then it is the holidays, gotta share:). He loved the balance of flavors and these were a big hit with everyone visiting as well! You can easily double the cheesecake layer and make them taller.
The Brownie layer is gluten-free, has less oil and sugar and stays soft even when refrigerated. The cheesecake layer is tofu and coconut flour. Swirl in a bit of the brownie batter on top or sprinkle with sweetened cocoa. You can also lightly soak the bottom layer in espresso + liquor before serving. Stays well refrigerated for 3-4 days.
The brownie layer has oats and coconut flour. The great thing with Oats is that it doesn’t really change the texture or taste of a baked good much when compared to a regular with gluten option. You can make just the brownies too. Double the recipe, add a 1/4 cup chocolate chips into the batter and bake. Or use my other brownie recipes for the brownie layer, regular with gluten or gluten-free.
Hello there fudgy delicious beauty.
More holiday goodies from the blog rounded up here. Lots of gluten-free options!
On another note, I am going to evaluate and plan a few ideas for next year. Open an Etsy shop with a few goodies, come up with cookbook themes and recipe ideas to pitch to publishers(which I have to do), and think about a Dosa food cart (gluten-free vegan Indian fusion wraps). The first and last options are dependent on if I can get help with them. A few local friends did offer help, but a part time effort by me and by them might not be enough to start them up successfully, especially the last option. So we will see. 🙂 Which one of these would you definitely want me to do? 😉
Make these!
Steps:
Melt the chocolate. Add flaxmeal, oil, coffee and sugar and mix well. in another bowl, mix in the dry ingredients.
Spread the brownie batter on parchment lined or greased pan.
Blend all the ingredients for cheesecake and spread the batter on top of the brownie.
Swirl in some reserved brownie batter. Bake for 45 minutes. Let cool completely before slicing. Served to a mix crowd and approved and loved by all!
Recipe Card
Tiramisu Cheesecake Brownies. Glutenfree Vegan Nutfree Recipe
Ingredients
Brownie:
Dry
- 1/2 cup (60 g) oat flour I grind my own old fashioned Oats
- 1/4 cup (30 g) Almond flour or cashew flour or light/medium GF flour
- 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) baking powder
Wet
- 1 Tbsp flaxmeal
- 2 Tbsp non dairy milk
- 1/4 cup (0.02 ml) maple syrup
- 1.5 Oz (0.5 bar) 70% Dark Chocolate Theo bar - 1.5 oz - 42 gms or 1/3 cup dark chocolate chunks or vegan chocolate chips
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp instant coffee omit for regular brownie or if you plan to soak them with prepared coffee later
- 1/8 tsp (0.13 tsp) salt
- 2 Tbsp oil
- 1/4 cup (59.15 g) Sugar 2 Tbsp for less sweeter
- 1/4 cup (45 g) vegan chocolate chips optional
Cheesecake:
- 8 oz (226.8 g) firm tofu I used Nasoya Organic firm
- 2 Tbsp coconut flour or 1 Tbsp cornstarch
- 2 Tbsp oil
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp (0.5) lemon juice or more as needed
- 1/3 tsp (0.33 tsp) salt
for later
- cocoa powder for dusting
Instructions
Brownie:
- Line a ceramic or glass 9 by 5 loaf pan with parchment. In a bowl, add all the dry ingredients under Brownie and mix well. Heat non dairy milk and maple syrup until hot (in pan or microwave). Whisk in the dark chocolate and flax seed meal and mix until the chocolate melts. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Add the wet mixture into dry and mix to combine. Mix in 1/4 cup chocolate chips into the batter. Drop the batter onto prepared parchment lined pan. Spread it using a spatula to even it out. (For flavor variation Add 2 tsp espresso to the batter for a coffee flavor or add a few drops run extract) Reserve a Tablespoon of the batter to make swirls on top(optional).
Cheesecake:
- Lightly squeeze the Tofu to remove excess water and add to blender. Blend all the cheesecake ingredients in a blender until smooth. Taste and adjust/add lemon juice and salt to preferred tang/cream cheesy taste. Drop the blended batter onto brownie batter. Spread evenly with a spatula. (To make soy-free cheesecake layer, use my cashew filling from my tiramisu sheet cake, half of the recipe, blend and pour on top and bake)
- If making swirls on top, add 2 tsps non dairy milk to the reserved brownie batter (the batter is quite thick). Mix well and drop spoon fulls on top. Swirl the brownie batter into the cheesecake batter with a knife. ( optional)
- If using a regular metal pan, place the pan on a baking sheet during baking so the bottom of the brownie does not get hard/overbaked.
- Bake at preheated 350 degrees F / 180ºc for 40 to 45 minutes or until the center is set and the edges of the cheesecake start to get golden. Sprinkle sweetened cocoa powder on top. Cool completely and slice. Refrigerate for half an hour before slicing for best results.
- store refrigerated for upto 4 days. Let it sit for a few mins outside the fridge before serving so that the brownie layer soften a bit.
Notes
To make just the Glutenfree brownies, double the recipe, add 1/4 cup chocolate chips to the batter. Add more oat flour if needed , too the brownie with chocolate chips, and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick from an inch from the edge comes out almost clean. for a Spelt flour Brownie, see here. Nutritional values based on one serving
Nutrition
La Cocinera Novata
Hi Richa, I did this tiramisu/brownie/cheesecake and I loved using tofu. It’s great for the cholesterol. The final result was brilliant. 🙂
Vegan Richa Support
Awesome!! Do leave a rating too if you feel so!
Elaine
Thank you! I love your recipes!
Elaine
Hi-I’m confused any the amount of lemon juice. 1 and 1/2 teaspoons, total? Thx!
Richa
its 1/2 tsp and more as needed.
Carolin Schulz
Richa, these look SOOOOO delicious!! I can’t wait to make them…!
Do you by any chance have a soy-free option?
Richa
yes use my baked cheesecake mix. http://www.veganricha.com/2016/10/vegan-cheesecake-baked.html
Emily
Wow, the topping does taste so much like cheesecake unbaked! I would suggest baking a little less time for fudgier brownie! plus soft fresh cheesecake flavor. also depends on ovens though.
John
These were so good! I make them every few weeks!
Heghineh
I’m very impressed! this recipe is fantastic, I must try this for my daughter
Richa
oh no. i am not sure why you didnt like it. maybe the tofu cheesecake taste or texture? you can use unbaked cashew based cheesecake topping as well. both the tofu and cashew versions do taste and feel slightly different than regular dairy cheesecakes.
Jan
these came out fabulous. I doubled the recipe for a larger pan and all gone!
Alejandro
oh this looks SOOO DREAMY! I would love to try these!
I only have cacao and not cocoa powder, would this also work fine on a 1:1 substitute?
Also I have cacao nibs…can they be used in place of the dark choc chips? do they even melt? is their taste ok? (Sorry if this sounds all soo novice! I haven’t had the opportunity to bake much in the past and REALLY want to get into it 🙂 )
Also how firm is you ‘firm’ tofu? we have various types of “firm” available and I’ve been caught out before with the wrong one! haah oops
Richa
you can use cacao powder. cacao nibs don;t really melt like chocolate so will not work in the recipe. you can just add more cacao powder and an additional 1 Tbsp oil.
you can use silken, soft firm or regular firm tofu that feels soft to touch and blends smooth really easily. dont use super firm or any other firm that is too hard or crumbly to blend into a smooth mix.
Amy Davies
I’m sorry if this gets posted twice, I’m new at this!
Anyway… I have this recipe baking in my oven right now. I really can’t believe how much the batter actually tastes like cheesecake! I’m newly vegan, and I have prepared quite a few of your recipes. They are all amazing and have really helped with the transition. The salted “caramel” pie is absolutely delicious! I look forward to trying more, thanks!
Richa
Awesome! hope you liked the baked version too! you can make mini cheesecakes with the blended mix 🙂 let chill in the crust and serve!
Rikita Budhrani
I just made these and they came out GREAT! They look just like the picture. The only thing is that the cheesecake mix was a bit hard to blend in the blender so I just used a fork to beat and combine all the ingredients together instead. They taste amazing and for future I would probably add cashews or try the coffee flavored variation SO healthy and delicious! THANKS A TON Richa. 🙂 Hope this review helped!
Richa
yay awesome! probably the tofu was too dry. if it ends up miced smooth by hand it will work just fine. sure change it up to your flavor preference! so glad you made it!
Anonymous
What would be the best substitute for flax meal? Flax and chia makes my heart race fast in a bad way. Glad to discover this now, thank you for sharing. Bless you.
Richa
cornstarch or any other starch. or you can omit it. the baked result will just be slightly crumbly. taste will be the same.
Anonymous
Can you please tell the size of cake pan? Also can I use wheat flour and all purpose flour or oat and wheat flour?
Thanks
Richa
8.5 by 4.5 size bread pan. you can use oat + any flour
Anonymous
Can we entirely use all purpose/oat flour. What can be the substitute for maple syrup? Only sugar will make this lil dry.
Richa
1/4 cup sugar. it wont be dry as there is oil
chimes
I love you! Congrats on the feature. Richa — you were my foodie pen pal aaages ago, and I keep coming back here for recipes because I have a ton of food allergies, and I love Indian food, but most of my allergies are things commonly found in Indian cooking (tomatoes, onions, rice, carrots, peas, potatoes, ginger), and you’ve helped me figure a few things out. Thanks for sharing yet another great recipe (that I can eat!).
Healthy-diabetic.ca
My brownies are in the oven as I type this. The house smells delicious and I can’t wait to eat them!
Richa
hope you loved them! 🙂
The Peace Patch
goodgolly that’s a stack of deliciousness! Most definitely do a cookbook…I’m positive it would sell boatloads even before hitting the bookstores!
Alison Cole
What size of baking pan are you supposed to use for these?
Richa
I used a regular metal bread pan 8.5 by 4.5 inch (medium size) and placed it on a baking sheet to reduce the heat hitting the bottom. on center rack
Jacki
These were fantastic. I took them to have after a post race dinner, and no one would try them bc they’re vegan, and chose to eat store bought cherry filled turnovers left over from breakfast.. :/ my children were super happy with that!! I brought them all back with me. So delicious! I may double the coffee next time!
Richa
Oh no, well you got to eat more then!
Jacki
These were fantastic. I took them to have after a post race dinner, and no one would try them bc they’re vegan, and chose to eat store bought cherry filled turnovers left over from breakfast.. :/ my children were super happy with that!! I brought them all back with me. So delicious! I may double the coffee next time!
amethystjean
Their loss! People need to open their minds. If they tried them they would have been blown away, I’m sure. I would choose these over store bought turnovers for sure!
Richa, these are just amazing….everything you do looks amazing
The Vegan Cookie Fairy
Wow *__*
nirlepindia
Dear Richa,
This must be one of the most tempting visual image of a TIRAMISU CHEESECAKE!
We love the efforts you put to whip up a delicious recipe every single time!
-Team Nirlep India
https://nirlepindia.wordpress.com/
ravit
It looks great! Gonna make it soon. Thanks for recipe
Cadry's Kitchen
Gorgeous! Those brownies are just stunning. I can’t wait to hear more about your big plans for 2014. It all sounds very exciting!
Laura @ This is Thirty
These look delicious – love that they are gf too!
coconutandberries
Wow Richa, I think you’ve outdone yourself here! These look truly scrumptious! Definitely bookmarking these for the future once I’m back on the sweet treats 🙂
Hannah
Ah, where has the year gone! You’ve definitely got the right idea for how to use these final days of 2013 though… Don’t rush back to work so soon, you certainly deserve some downtime. I’m in a bit of a lull myself, but I only wish I had such ambitious plans ahead. Sounds like you’ll have your hands full soon, and with such exciting projects! I would offer my photography services for a cookbook, but obviously you’ve already got that handled. I do hope you pitch a cookbook though- You’ve got it in your soul, I’ve already seen that much.
Richa
Thank you Hannah. You are the sweetest:) I will be bugging you to guide me through the process 🙂
Glue and Glitter
Richa! These look so amazing.
angela@canned-time
My absolute favorite dessert. Looks so delicious Richa !
Katie @ Produce On Parade
What?! I’ve died and gone to heaven! 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Tami@NutmegNotebook
I’ll keep these in mind for Valentines Day
Gabby @ the veggie nook
This looks amazing Richa! While I’m a little desserted out (did that make sense? haha), something I never though possible, I am totally going to bookmark these for a later date! Happy holidays my dear!
Dixya
im just impressed by this Richa..your recipes are always so droooling.
Miranda
What could I substitute for tofu as that is unavailable right now in my lockdowned home?
Richa
cashews, use 3/4 cup cashewes, soak for an hour in hot water and blend with enough water to make a thick cream and use that instead