Chai Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cheesecake

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Heat almond milk in a small pot and put tea (for the cheesecake) into a mug. Once almond milk is hot, pour over tea, stir, and steep for 15–30 minutes.

Once tea has steeped, place flax meal into a small bowl and pour 7 1/2 tablespoons of the warm almond milk/tea mixture (leaving the tea leaves at the bottom of the mug) over top. Whisk until well combined and then place into the refrigerator to gel up while you make the other layers.

Drain water from the cashews and add to a high-powered blender. Add the remaining “cheesecake” ingredients, along with the remaining almond milk and tea leaves (don’t remove the tea leaves from the mug!). Blend until smooth and creamy, stopping to scrape the sides as necessary. Set aside.

Add all the topping ingredients into a small food processor (mine is 3 cups) and pulse until nuts are broken down but still a little chunky for texture. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat coconut oil and honey for the crust, until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients until well mixed. Your dough will be quite wet.

Press the dough evenly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Since the dough is quite wet, it might take a little bit of time, so just be patient. Bake until the edges of the crust are lightly golden brown, about 7–8 minutes.

When the crust has about 2 minutes left to bake, transfer the cashew mixture into a large bowl and pour in the flax eggs from the refrigerator. You want to leave them in the refrigerator as long as possible, so they can really gel up. Stir until the flax is evenly mixed into the cashew cream.

Remove the crust from the oven. Your crust with most likely have risen in a few spots. Just use a small spoon to quickly pack it back down flat. Immediately pour the cheesecake mixture over top and smooth out evenly. Finally, sprinkle the pecan mixture over top, and lightly press it into the cheesecake to adhere.

Bake until cheesecake has risen slightly and feels set, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely on the counter. Cover and refrigerate overnight to completely set.

Once refrigerated, slice and devour!

Notes:
1. I buy my cashews pre-roasted. If yours aren’t, stick them in a 400ºF oven for just a few minutes, until lightly golden brown.
2. I’ve made this crust with different brands of coconut flour and, to get 66g, some brands need less than 3/4 cup. So, I strongly urge you to weigh your flour to make sure you get perfect results.
3. The milk tea mixture needs to still be warm when adding to the flax. So, if the tea is cold, zap it in the microwave for a few seconds.
4. You need to pour the cheesecake over the crust as soon as it comes out of the oven, so it’s best to make it first.
5. It can be a little difficult to get the first piece of cheesecake out. Just make sure you get the knife under the crust, not between the crust and cheesecake. An offset spatula really does the trick for serving here!