Vegan Russian Chocolate Cheesecake

I totally forgot to introduce myself in my last post, my name is Celin and I'm a blogger from Austria. I'll be making some more blog posts here about fashion, music, etc. but lately, there has been a huge change in society concerning nutrition and healthy diets.

While it was more or less a "must" on every family members plate to have it covered with at least one piece of meat for dinner, it's becoming more and more popular to follow a vegetarian/vegan diet. I guess everybody knows what defines a vegetarian, but some may still wonder what "vegan" means.
People who follow a vegan diet do not only go without eating meat, they do not eat any other products, which were produced by animals in any way, either. For example: eggs, milk, butter, etc.

I've always thought that eating vegan must be hard and unbalanced - but it's exactly the opposite!There are so many great products for vegans out there and vegan food can be tasty, too! 
To test this I've tried baking a vegan cake and I have to admit that I was quiet unsure whether it will taste good or not. But, yes this vegan russian chocolate cheesecake tastes amazing! And it's a lot healthier than a normal cake. If you want to try it out (and I guess you should) you can find the recipe below! 

RECIPE   Ingredients

Chocolate Crust
1 2/3 cups (200g) flour
scant 2/3 cup (120g) sugar
2 level tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup (20g) cocoa powder
1 heaping tsp. instant coffee
2 Tbsp. soy or chickpea flour
1 pinch salt
1/2 cup (125g) cold margarine

Cheesecake Filling
1/4 cup (40g) vegan vanilla pudding powder, or 3 Tbsp. Bird's Custard Powder
1 Tbsp. soy or chickpea flour
4 Tbsp. soymilk
16 oz. (500g) plain vegan yogurt (one big container)
1/2 cup (125g) margarine, melted but not hot
scant 2/3 cup (120g) sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 320F (160C).
Mix the dry ingredients together, then use your finders to mix in the margarine. When it's done, it should get slightly darker in color and form little crumbs. If it's too dry, add a little canola or vegetable oil one tablespoon at a time and mix again with your fingers until it's ready. When that's done, take 3/4 of the mixture and flatten it into your baking form. The rest will be used to sprinkle on top. I used a spring form pan. Set aside or put in the fridge while you make the rest.
Mix the pudding powder or custard powder and the sugar and then add the soymilk and stir until combined.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix once more until even.
Pour over the crust and then use the reserved chocolate part to crumble over the top.
Bake for 75 minutes, let cool for an hour or so until everything solidifies. Eat.

(source)