Chocolate Cheesecake ~ Veganized!

Who doesn't like cheesecake?! Well, I'm sure there are a few out there who don't, but this "cheese"cake  is sure to please vegans and non-vegans alike. This also great for people who are lactose intolerant or have an allergy to dairy. Enough talking, let's get to the recipe! And no one will ever know that there is tofu in it! Sneaky sneaky! ;)

                             Adapted from The Kind Diet's Mixed Berry Cheesecake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease a 9" spring form pan, or a largish pie plate will do as well
For the crust:
3/4 cup vegan margarine, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1-2 Tablespoons of vegan cane sugar (optional, depending on the sweetness of your graham crumbs)

Combine ingredients and press into the bottom, and slightly up the sides (about 1.5inches) of the baking dish you will be using. Bake at 350 for 5 minutes, then let it cool on a baking rack.
Meanwhile, you can make the filling.

Filling:
1 cup of Better Than Cream Cheese (plain, non-hydrogenated version)
1 1/4 cups of medium firm, water packed tofu (about 340 grams)
1 Tablespoon of canola or safflower oil
1/2 cup of vegan cane sugar
1/4 cup rice, soy or almond milk
2 teaspoons Arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 squares of unsweetened bakers  dark chocolate, melted (about 56 grams)
1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted

Dark chocolate bar for garnish (use a vegetable peeler to make "curls").

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. You don't want any lumps in your mixture!:) Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to 1 hour. I'd recommend placing a cookie sheet under the cake as you bake it (the melted margarine leaked out a bit when I used a spring form pan). Let the cheesecake cool to room temperature, and then transfer to the fridge and let cool completely. The cheesecake is best if cooled overnight (or 6 hours-ish), because the consistency is much more like cheesecake when it is fully chilled. Top with chocolate garnish and serve!

I will post another picture tomorrow when I serve it and it is cut and has the garnish on it! :)