That cake guys.
OH! THAT! CAKE!
I think it’s my greatest realization yet.
I only wish the pictures would do it better justice.
I came this close to dying at least 5 times a day for the past week as I’ve been enjoying a slice of this little piece of heaven every morning after my workout.
I’m telling you, if this baby isn’t reason enough for you to get out of bed and work out like mad, nothing ever will be.
You know what’s REALLY weird?
Back when I was young, there was this insanely delicious Moka Sour Cream Cheesecake that I used to make, but unfortunately, I had lost the little booklet in which the recipe was printed.
It was a recipe that had been published by Kraft in one of their Special Occasions little booklets that they sometimes hand out for free in grocery stores around this time of year.
For well over 15 years now, I’ve been searching for it. Tried the Net like a zillion times and went through all my books and boxes on countless occasions, to no avail.
This cake truly was my ultimate favorite cheesecake EVER. I can still remember exactly what it looked like and how it tasted. How I came to lose the recipe, I will never comprehend.
Still, I had come to the sad conclusion that it was forever lost and that I would never get to taste that delicious cake ever again.
Well, guess what?
That cake right here tastes almost exactly the same, only it doesn’t have all the added sugar and heavy cream and other less than desirable ingredients that the original called for.
Seriously.
This cake is so creamy, you will never believe that it was cooked.
It is so sweet, you will never believe that it contains no added sugar whatsoever.
It feels so rich, you will never believe that it’s so low in fat. In fact, most of its fat contents comes from the hazelnuts and is actually good for you.
As for the chocolate frosting, it’s so insanely smooth and chocolate-y, you could almost swear it’s simply Nutella, plain out of the jar.
The only little giveaway that this cake is in fact healthy is the crust. Now I’m not saying that it’s not as good as the rest of the cake… Only it does have that little “je-ne-sais-quoi” that says “Hey, I’m Healthy”.
I can’t say it’s a bad thing, though. I happen to really like it.
Besides, I always eat my crust separately and this one is perfect for that… it really holds up well so you can grab itwith your fingers and eat it like a cookie.
Win? WIN!
INGREDIENTS
- 1½ cup whole wheat flour
- ½ cup old fashioned rolled oats
- 75g toasted hazelnuts, coarsely crushed
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup date paste
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- ¼ tsp Himalayan or fine sea salt
- 500g reduced fat cream cheese
- 500g 1% fat cottage cheese
- 500g fat free plain Greek Yogurt
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup date paste
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup carob powder
- ¼ cup egg whites
- 2 tbsp instant coffee, diluted in 2 tbsp boiling water
- The juice of one lime
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 heaping tablespoon arrowroot flour
- ¼ cup date paste
- ¼ cup all natural hazelnut butter
- ½ cup fat free plain Greek Yogurt
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 3 scoops vanilla flavored Whey Protein Powder
- Toasted Hazelnuts, whole and crushed
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 325F. Spray a 9” spring forn pan with cooking spray and line the sides with bands of parchment paper.
- Combine all the ingredients for the crust in the bowl of your food processor and process on pulse until well combined. The mixture should hold together when squeezed firmly.
- If you feel a little bit more moisture is needed, add a little bit more applesauce, one tablespoon at a time, until desired texture is achieved.
- Transfer to reserved baking pan and press firmly to the bottom to form a crust. Set aside.
- In the bowl of your food processor (you might want to give it a quick rinse) add cottage cheese and date paste and process until smooth. Add cream cheese and yogurt and again, process until smooth.
- Add cocoa powder and carob powder give that a spin until well incorporated.
- Add eggs, one at a time, then egg whites, lemon juice and vanilla extract. Sprinkle arrowroot over batter and resume processing until well blended.
- Pour batter over reserved crust, tap the sides gently to remove any potential air bubbles then delicately place your cake on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 55 minutes.
- After 55 minutes, turn off the heat, crack the door open and allow the cake to cool for a couple of hours.
- Remove cake from the oven and cool to room temperature, then transfer to refrigerator to chill completely, at least 6 hours but preferably overnight.
- Add all the ingredients to the bowl of your food processor and process until smooth and creamy.
- Pour over chilled cake (remove from pan first!) and spread evenly with a spatula.
- Garnish with whole and crushed toasted hazelnuts.
- Slice with a warm blade for easier cutting.
Press crust at the bottom of a spring form pan
Pour in batter and tap lightly to remove air bubbles
After baking, cool to room temperature then chill completely in the refrigerator
Yeah, you might get a crack… but it’s no biggie really!
Crack gets covered with decadent high protein hazelnut chocolate icing!
Garnish with more hazelnuts
Cut yourself a nice thick slice
Oh yeah, that’s what I’m talking about!
Go on, grab a bite…
Hmmmm… creamy enough for you?
And how about that taste… amazing, right?
Right!
So tell me… are you dead yet? 
This looks wonderful! But can I use something else than dates or can I leave them? Because they are always put in sugar.. and I’d like to avoid sugar. I have this problem really often, don’t know what to do
Not sure I follow you Isa? what do you mean by “always put in sugar”? Dates are high in sugar, but they are entirely naturally sweet. They don’t contain any refined or added sugar…
Maybe it’s different in America.. I come from Germany and my mom told me this. Perhaps I have to check that on my own
Hey there. I also live in Germany and have never ever seen dates with added sugar! I’m sure your mother meant that dates are naturally high in sugar.
Came close to dying… heehee! I know exactly what you mean. I find myself wiping away tears of joy from time to time. Gosh, we love our food, don’t we. Anyhow, not only is this recipe shockingly healthy, it is also supremely beautiful from start to finish. Your ingredients and photos are simply glorious and your inventiveness never ceases to amaze. Have you ever thought of opening up your own Café Sonia? I’m serious! You should. Are you waking up to a winter wonderland in Montreal? (not sure if you’re in Montreal proper). The trees are heavy with Christmas white here… so beautiful.
Oh, Kelly… today has been anything BUT wonderland. The kind of day that makes one HATE snow with a passion. We got like 50cm of the stuff, I spent 3 hours TRYING to get out of my parking, to no avail, was basically a prisoner of my own home all day, with no power or running water. It’s been an awful, awful day for me. Reading your comment actually is the greatest thing that’s happened to me all day. Thank you so much for your kind words again. They feel particularly good today!
As for my opening up a Café, I can’t say I’ve never thought about it… not sure there would be a market for this kind of product here, though… hey, who knows, it might happen someday!
hi there, this look delish! I would like to pin it but for some reason I don’t get the “pin it” icon on any of the photos. Did you change the settings on your page to do so?
Hi again, I logged into pinterest and was able to pin it via your pinterest acct. Thanks for sharing and Merry CHristmas!!
OMG this looks heavenly, definitely making this this weekend but I don’t know that I’m going to be able to hold off overnight or even for 2 hours!…quick question though, you mention in the steps to add a bit of arrowroot to the mix for the batter but you didn’t list it in the ingredients list. Is it crucial to add this or just a recommendation? thanks Sonia!
That plugin, I swear… I hate it sometimes! It didn’t publish the right recipe… looks like it gobbled up my update! I made the change again, now the correct version is up. Thanks for pointing that out, Claudia! Honestly, though, I have no idea what would happen if the arrowroot was to be omitted. I don’t think it would ruin the entire recipe, but I personally wouldn’t dare leave it out. If you don’t have arrowroot, you can always replace with cornstarch!
Let me know how it turns out if you do give the cake a try. And FYI, it seems to be getting better with age… so very well worth the wait!
Whaaat! This looks amazing. So decadent looking! And I love how healthy it is. It’s on my list for sure.
I haven’t made cheesecake in a long time and this looks perfect. And that icing! It’s going on the next chocolate thing I make. I’m gonna go share / pin / etc. the heck out of this thing!
LOL! Thanks Erin! You are too kind. Are you going to make it a gluten free version?
That reminds me, I need to write something about my gluten-free month. It turned out to be reduced gluten because of some mistakes I made (unintentionally). I need to do another month and be extremely careful next time! But the thing way, I didn’t notice any difference at all. We’ll see.
I am really surprised that you haven’t seen any difference at all! What kind of mistakes are you talking about? You used flours that you thought were gluten free but that in fact contained gluten? I say maybe you should try reducing simple carbs and foods that have a high GI… I know that these have a terrible effect on me! I can’t wait to read about your experience!
I’m replying to a comment two months old. Classy!
Anyway, yes. That’s what I meant. Accidentally using stuff I didn’t realize had gluten in it!
I’m thinking about a peanut buttery version of this but I’m thinking the coffee flavoring really helps. Even if it was chocolate base + peanut butter topping… hmm. I don’t know. We’ll see!
Ooooh, peanut butter and chocolate! YUMMY! Although I don’t do peanuts anymore (wow, haven’t had any in ages and just realized I don’t miss them at all… well, didn’t… until now!!!)
Oh well, will have to settle for hazelnuts, I guess!
I love the look of this – so decadent even though it’s gluten and sugar-free.
Oops, I just realised it’s not gluten-free but I guess the wheat flour could be replaced.
So right, Suzanne! Very easy to make this gluten free!
Well if it’s that healthy surely I can have twice as much…
LOL, Patricia! Don’t I wish! The calorie count is still quite high even though it’s healthy, so I’m not sure I would have 2 slices still… at least not in the same meal!
Have I mentioned that you keep outdoing yourself? I have no words to describe how amazing this looks! I am so impressed
I’m just catching up on all my reading and commenting now… I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!
Heidi, thank you so very much. What amazingly kind words. You totally rock, my friend.
Have yourself a Happy and Healthy New Year!