Coconut-macadamia cheesecake

So I thought I would share the recipe for the coconut-macadamia cheesecake that I made for Christmas dessert. I got it from Robin Robertson's cookbook Vegan Planet. My whole family loved it!

Disclaimers - the recipe calls for vegan cream cheese which I would have been more than happy to use but I ended up using real cream cheese. I figured, since there was already tofu in the cheesecake my family might be sent over the edge if there was vegan cream cheese. Plus my sister is an absolute freak about cream cheese so I wanted to make her happy. As you'll see the recipe says to put ground macadamia nuts into the crust - I omitted this part from mine because my brother in law can't have nuts. So let me know how it is! Here we go!

Ingredients
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons ground macadamia nuts
1 1/2 cups vegan graham cracker or vanilla cookie crumbs
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/4 cup soy margarine, melted (I prefer Earth Balance, it tastes so buttery and good!)
one 16 oz package firm silken tofu, drained
one 8 oz package vegan cream cheese
1 cup sugar or natural sweetener
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 teaspoon pure coconut extract
1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted

1. Bring the ingredients to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 9 inch springform pan. **If you don't have a springform pan, I strongly suggest you get one. I previously made a different cheesecake in a pie pan because I didn't have a springform pan and it just didn't hold together as nicely as it did using a springform pan. Trust me on this one people! You will thank me later - it makes life so much easier.**
2. In a large bowl or food processor, combine the 2 tablespoons macadamia nuts, the crumbs, maple syrup, and soy margarine until well blended. Transfer to the prepared pan and press the mixture against the bottom and sides of the pan. Bake for 5 minutes, then set aside to cool.
3. Place the tofu and the vegan cream cheese in a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Add the sugar, coconut milk, and coconut extract and process again until smooth. Pour into the prepared crust and bake on the center oven rack until firm, about 40 minutes. Turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake inside for 30 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for several hours before serving.
5. To serve, remove the pan sides, sprinkle the top evenly with the 1/2 cup macadamia nuts and the coconut, and cut into pieces.

Side note - You can toast the shredded coconut in a dry skillet which is how I did it. You want to toss the coconut every minute or so to prevent overbrowning. The cookbook says to stir frequently over low heat but I found that the coconut wasn't toasting that way so I let it sit for about a minute or two then kind of flip/tossed the coconut in the pan. I also had the heat cranked up. **Or you can brown the coconut on a baking sheet in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Enjoy!