More times than not, when I was making a tofu or yogurt-based mousse cake, I found that after it thaws, the cheesecake has a soggy crust that is sitting in a massive puddle of water. Trust me, I learned this lesson the hard way not once, not twice, but three times. At first, I thought that the issue was using soft silken tofu vs firm, since the firmer the tofu, the less water in it, and while yes, that is half the issue, the other half was how I was setting my tofu rare cheesecakes. Using the freezer causes the water(which is abundant in tofu) to expand into ice crystals, and then when the entire thing thaws out, the liquid will just leech out of the cheesecake. So not that pleasant. The lesson here is DO NOT freeze your tofu cheesecakes. Freezer + tofu = water pouring out of it in excess. For some reason, there is very little info warning anyone about tofu rare cheesecakes leaking out water online, so I had to figure this out by Googling what happens when you freeze tofu, and realize from there what the issue was. My rant about freezing tofu and how it can ruin your tofu-based desserts aside, this recipe was born out of a need to use up some leftover Oreos and goat cheese. It was an immediate no-brainer to go the route of a cheesecake from that point on, and initially, this was actually going to be a pumpkin-flavored one. I ultimately ended up switching to cold brew, though, because my friend Ahran gifted me with three bottles of her vanilla-infused cold brew concentrate, so rather than going out and buying pumpkin puree, I figured, why not just use what I already have on hand?

When it comes to the components, we have four in total. The Oreo crust, the no-bake tofu cheesecake, a shiny chocolate ganache, and a torched cold brew meringue on top. The crust was a lot of fun, just because I took brown butter, crushed Oreos, and salt and mixed them together. Brown butter works beautifully in dessert, and I personally love brown butter, coffee, and soy products, so it just felt like the right choice here. That and the alternatives were either a neutral-flavored oil or just melted butter. So brown butter obviously wins here. With the cheesecake mixture, I used goat cheese to add a nice tang, but also because it is so naturally dry that it will help soak up some of the excess liquid from the tofu. I also used white chocolate and gelatin to help set the mixture, and folded some chopped up chocolate through the filling to give a nice stracciatella effect in the cheesecake! I used the Coba coffee concentrate specifically to flavor both the cheesecake and the meringue. For the meringue, I used egg white powder only because I could control the quantities of that better, and make sure I have just the right amount of meringue to pipe cute little dollops on top of the ganache with. You can use a regular egg white instead, but you will need to roughly triple the other ingredients and omit the cold water. I also wanted to do a ganache to tie in with the chocolate in the Oreos and in the cheesecake itself, just to tie it all together! Hilariously the end product tasted very similar to a coffee mud pie, right down to the Oreo crust!

Makes 1 6-inch cheesecake:
For the crust:
3 tbsp brown butter
1/2 cup crushed Oreos(just the cookies, the filling reserved for the cheesecake mixture)
a pinch of salt

Mix together the ingredients in a bowl until combined. Pour into a 6-inch lined ring mold that is placed on a lined sheet tray, and press the crust onto the bottom. Refrigerate the tray and mold until the cheesecake mixture is ready to be poured in.

For the cheesecake mixture:
11.5oz silken tofu, excess water drained
4oz goat cheese(can sub out with cream cheese)
4oz cream cheese
reserved Oreo fillings
2 tbsp cold brew concentrate
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup white chocolate
2 1/2 tsp gelatin powder + 2 tbsp cold water
a pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1.5oz dark or milk chocolate

In a food processor, blend the silken tofu, goat cheese, cream cheese, and Oreo fillings until fully combined. In a pot, heat up the cold brew concentrate, milk, and white chocolate first, until the white chocolate is fully melted into the liquid. Then dissolve the gelatin powder into that as well. Stir in the salt and vanilla. Then pour the liquid into the food processor and puree until everything is combined. Chop up chocolate and fold that mixture by hand into the cheesecake mixture. Pour the mixture into the 6-inch ring mold, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before attempting to unmold. Transfer to a serving surface right after unmolding the cheesecake.

For the chocolate ganache:
3 tbsp dark chocolate
1 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp heavy cream
a pinch of salt

Over a double boiler, melt everything together until just combined. Allow the ganache to cool down to just above room temperature, but still a spreadable consistency, and then pour and spread the ganache on top of the set cheesecake.

For the cold brew meringue:
1/2 tsp egg white powder
1 tbsp cold water
1/2 tsp cold brew concentration
1 tbsp granulated sugar
a pinch of salt

In a bowl, whip everything together until the mix forms stiff peaks and is pale brown in color. Transfer to a piping bag and pipe on top of the cheesecake. Toast the meringues using a blowtorch to finish.