For a nutritious raw lemon cheesecake dessert, a creamy, rich, lemony coconut cashew cream filling rests above a naturally sweetened nut crust! Next, make my No-Bake Raw Chocolate Grapefruit Tart with Nut Crust.

I’ve been on a lemon kick recently. Cookies, pies, sorbets, and fresh lemon slices in my mouth. I blame it on the last rush of summer coursing through my veins.

I’d been wanting to make lemon bars for a long time, but the thought of using that much butter made me nervous. So I decided to make lemon cheesecake instead, but the thought of that much cream cheese and sugar made my stomach churn just as badly.

I eventually gave up and created chocolate beet cake, the obvious option of alternative.

Finding a new use for an easy nut crust

I had the itch to create my raw grapefruit tart recently, and it occurred to me that I could definitely reuse the nut crust for something light and summery (even though Im chompin at the bit for Fall).

So I prepared enough crust for 88 pans and then stood in my kitchen gazing at it. I imagined it would eventually tire of my looking at it and develop itself into some brilliant creation.

Obviously, I’m quite rational.

Enter the raw lemon cheesecake bar idea

Instead of staring and wishing for food, I began searching around in the cupboard and fridge. We had an excess of lemons, and I discovered a bag of cashews I’d purchased with the purpose of creating a cashew cream pie (wait tuned for that one), as well as a can of coconut cream meant for whipped cream in the fridge.

Why not mix the two to make a rich bar filling? And why not include some lemon? Lemon juice, lemon zest, and maybe some lemon emulsion.

Ohheckyeah.

Should they stay in the freezer?

Fortunately, it turned out to be a terrific idea. I made the mistake of placing them in the freezer to set before attempting to eat them immediately. After approximately 30 minutes, they had a beautiful creamy consistency, but they were also a little melty.

Flavor is also lacking. The iciness of being in the freezer was too distracting to the taste receptors, not because it required more power.

Set in the freezer, store in the fridge

I discovered that freezing these raw lemon cheesecake bars until firm and then refrigerating them until ready to serve is the best combo.

It gives them that delightfully creamy, delicious, cheesecake-like tongue feel. It’s just what I’m looking for in a surprisingly nutritious dessert.

Thus the tl;dr is that you need prepare ahead for this meal, but the recipe itself is really simple. Put everything in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Even better, it keeps well in the fridge. This isn’t one of those recipes that you have to eat the next day because it turns mushy and disgusting. No, sir. It’s just as good on day five, if not better!

Nothing is perfect, so I’ll say this about this recipe: the crust is a shambles. I don’t like to add a lot of sweetness simply to keep it together, so I leave it a little crumbly and eat it with a fork or spoon.

Or simply cram it in your mouth and ignore the crumbled mess on your shirt. I’m not going to pass judgment on you, and if other people succeed, you don’t need that type of negativity in your life.

How to serve lemon cheesecake bars

I like to top mine with thinly sliced fresh lemons. I prefer to eat them as is, but I also like to squeeze them on top of the bar for a little something something.

You may alternatively use lemon zest, candied lemon slices, or no ingredients at all! They’ll be tasty no matter what.