Cheesecakes are a fabulous dessert, they look amazing, taste delicious and are really simple to make. Honestly, if you’ve never made one, do try this recipe, as everyone thinks you’ve slaved for ages to create a super pudding, so you can bask in the praise, whilst secretly smiling to yourself because you know how easy it was to do.
My usual family Sunday lunch stretched ahead of me with temperatures due to reach 27degrees, and who in their right mind would want to be cooking a Sunday dinner in that heat, so I went down the route of skewers, pulled beef, salads, and light desserts.
My scrumptious great nephew, Caspar, was coming for lunch – he’s on a gluten and dairy free diet and loves chocolate (he’s well trained) so I needed a plant-based, gluten-free chocolate pudd. Out came the cheesecake recipes, and I figured, I could surely swap out the ingredients to suit Caspar rather than have to find a specific recipe, and it worked a treat! Violife and Elmlea are wonderful dairy alternatives for cooking, and the end result was a delicious, plant based gluten free cheesecake, which you wouldn’t have realised was dairy free, it was so creamy and rich in flavour.
Remember, that dark chocolate is naturally plant based and gluten free, so if you stick to good quality brands without additional gluten and dairy ingredients, you should be okay. Do read our blog on Understanding and Adapting to Dietary Restrictions with Choc Affair (link) though, as it may give you a little more information and of course ALWAYS check the ingredients labels.
This cheesecake is not cheap to make, often plant based and gluten free recipes aren’t, however it was so good, and rich, that the portions could be smaller, and go further, balancing out the costs a little more.
Give it a try, you’re going to love it – Caspar certainly did, as he enjoyed his picnic, getting rather messy to say the least.

Ingredients
Biscuit Base
- 300 g free from digestive biscuits. (Asda/s own label are also vegan, but not gluten free)
- 150 g Plant based butter or Stork Margarine.
Cheesecake Filling
- 600 g Violife soft cheese alternative
- 300 ml Elmlea plant based double cream
- 75 g icing sugar
- 300 g Choc Affair 60% Classic Dark chocolate buttons
Decoration
- 150 ml double cream
- 2 tbsp icing sugar
- 12 Terry’s chocolate orange segments
- 75 g melted chocolate
- Sprinkles
Method
For the Biscuit Base
- Melt the butter in the microwave on short bursts on in a small pan over a medium heat until fully melted.
- Break up the biscuits in a bag with the end of a rolling pin, (I used the base of a glass, as I couldn’t find a rolling pin) or in a food processor if you have one, then add the butter, and mix until it is well combined.
- Tip into a 8″/20cm deep springform tin and press down firmly, then pop it in the fridge for at least an hour to chill.
- For the Cheesecake Filling
- Melt the chocolate in the microwave in short bursts of 20-30 seconds until fully melted – leave to cool slightly whilst doing the rest.
- Beat together the cream cheese and Icing sugar in a large bowl, and add in the slightly cooled melted chocolate, beat until smooth and nicely combined. Add the double cream, containing to whip until smooth and thick. Pour the mix on to the biscuit base, cover, and chill in the fridge for a few hours – decorate as you wish, then serve and enjoy.