Vegan Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes

I used to have this fabulous banana cream pie recipe that I made quite often when I was in college. It had the most luscious coconut banana cream filling, and sometimes I would even top it off with caramel and pecans for good measure and because it was so good.  I always made it in a deep dish pie plate just so there could be extra filling and whipped cream.  It was super decadent and super sugary.  Good memories come with that pie, and I was thinking about it when I got a bunch of free slightly damaged bananas from the store (super good deal by the way for anyone who is looking to make smoothies and banana bread).  I thought...man, that pie sounds good right now.  But it was a week night, and making a big pie would have been too time consuming, not to mention I wouldn't have anyone to share it with until the weekend...so I came up with a compromise for something that I would enjoy just as much.  Mini caramel pecan banana cream cheesecakes.  I love cheesecake just as much as I loved that pie, so I was happy about it.  Someday I will completely remake that giant pie, but for now cheesecake!

This is something super simple that anyone can make by the way, which I know you all will love!  No complicated fancy steps.  For the crust, I made a pecan butter laced one that tasted like cookie dough.  It was the perfect base for the luscious filling!  Of course coconut had to be included here, so coconut milk blended with banana, vanilla  and maple syrup made the most delicious but simple filling.  For the caramel I went for the quick route and made my go to 30 second caramel made with pecan butter and maple syrup.  Seriously, it reminds me of caramel and if you don't have dates on hand to make date caramel or don't feel like blending anything this is perfect!  Plus, the slight nutty pecan flavor goes beautifully with the bananas.

They were ready in about an hour (most of which was chilling time) and they were scrumptious!  If you think you can't bake, guess what?  With these you don't have to!  Which is bonus for summertime when you don't want to heat up the oven. Or, if you think you are bad at making vegan desserts, these are hard to mess up so they are a good place to start learning.  The next time you have bananas on hand, give these a go!  Trust me, you will be happy you did!

Vegan Mini Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheesecakes
Makes 8

Crust:

• 1/2 cup gluten free organic oat flour
• 1/4 cup raw pecan butter*
• 2 Tbsp coconut butter, warmed to liquid
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp sea salt

Cheesecake Filling:

• 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk at room temperature
• 1/2 cup mashed organic banana
• 3 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup coconut butter, warmed to liquid
• 1 sliced organic banana

For Topping:

• 1/4 cup raw pecan butter*
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• pinch sea salt
• filtered water as needed

Instructions:

1. To make the crust, stir together all ingredients in a bowl, and then press into the bottoms of 12 silicone muffin tins.  Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
2. To make the filling, combine all ingredients but sliced banana in a blender and blend until smooth.
3. Place the sliced bananas over the crust in the tins, then pour the filling over the bananas and place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes or up to an hour.  Once they have firmed up, unmold them and place them on a tray.
4. whisk together the caramel ingredients, then drizzle over the finished cheesecakes and sprinkle them with pecans. Store any left over cheesecakes in the refrigerator.

*If you do not have pecan butter, you may use your favorite nut butter instead.