Is it spring break where you are? Because I've got just the thing for you if it is... Blue surf cake. Also known as Ocean cake, Tidal Wave cake, Cloud cake, Beach cake. Maybe it could even be Galaxy cake...! This is basically your recipe when you're looking for a fun cake that's blue-themed and natural (in every sense).
But before I proceed to talking about the blue here, let me just say that you can still make this yummy, ice cream-like, dairy-free raw cake any day minus the blue element. The blues in this cake don't affect the flavor, just the aesthetic... blue adds an interesting touch, especially if you're looking to create "surfy" vibes, ocean roars, fluffy clouds, or galaxies galore ;)
Isn't it incredible how something as simple as a color can change your whole perception of a cake? Colors are one of those things that make me incredibly happy. Gentle hues, enchanting wispy swirls of pretty shades, color-themed desserts. It's a kind of grown up "playing with food" I wholeheartedly approve of.
And sometimes you just need that extra shade to make a particular "theme" happen. It's wonderful when you have basic ingredients on hand to co-operate with your vision: you know, red berries for pinks and peachy tones, turmeric for yellow, blueberries or blackberries for gorgeous purples, spinach or avocado for greens, etc. (P.S. If you need some inspiration / guidance in that department, check out the raw cake natural coloring guide, which you can download from the homepage of this website).
But when you need a natural blue... It can certainly be a pickle!
It's a dilemma I've already struggled through when this raw blueberry cashew cheesecake happened. I got a reader request for a blue birthday cake to fit in with a specific party theme. Strapped for natural options in my kitchen I've gone through the rounds and tried everything in sight to create a gorgeous blue cheesecake to no avail.
Luckily in that circumstance I found a good workaround solution, but the hunt for the perfect blue colorant never left my mind. And so I've been on the look out and experimenting with different options since.
I finally landed on what I think is the perfect solution: blue butterfly pea flower powder. That's what's coloring this cake. All natural. All simple. All the blue shades you'll ever need. And more (since blue powder has some magical chameleon properties I'll tell you about in a minute).
Natural Blue Food Coloring Options for Raw Cakes
Before I tell you about the blue butterfly pea tea powder and why I favor it, let me tell you about other alternatives I've tried out or explored for context:
- Blueberries, black currant, blackberries, fresh or frozen. Result: so purple!
- Blue fruit and veg chemistry, involving combining things like purple cabbage juice and baking soda or berries, etc.: works wonderfully for some things, but not for raw cakes. You can read about my experiments with it here. In a nut shell: it worked for me for things like frosting or parfaits, but not raw cheesecake. If you're curious about the cabbage method though, on my blogging pal Natalie has a great DIY tutorial on it here.
- Blue food dye. No artificial dyes for me... There are some great natural ones out there, but they tend to be hard to find and costly. If you're interested, here's a brand I love.
- Blue matcha powder. That's one I haven't tried yet, but have seen pretty things made with on Instagram and think it's an interesting option. It seems pretty comparable to me to the butterfly pea tea powder I used here, though the butterfly tea I found to be a lot more affordable.
- Blue Majik spirulina. I'll admit I coveted this option above all else. It makes the most gorgeous blues hands down. I also like spirulina and use it regularly for personal purposes and in treats, so switching to a blue-er version would be quite simple. But. BUT. I tried to picture what you'd think of me if I told you you needed to purchase a $65 (or over $100 in some countries) bottle of algae powder so that you can use a sprinkle of it in a cake... Somehow I imagine that wouldn't have gone over too well ;) I'd still absolutely favor this option, just not at this price point.
- Loose Leaf butterfly pea tea: when I first heard of blue butterfly pea tea and its magical coloring properties I ordered a bag of loose tea straight away. It's a common drink in many Asian countries, especially Thailand. It makes beautiful steeped or iced teas. It's a stunning shade of blue. And if you add a bit of lemon it turns pinks and purples galore. Chameleon tea chemistry right there! So gorgeous for serving as a tea or refreshment for guests. Also really fun for kids experiments -- a friend recently did a Harry Potter-themed birthday party for her girl and they made magic color changing "potions" in little vials and this tea is so perfect for stuff like that. In short, it's awesome and fun. But steeping a whole batch of tea isn't going to work for cake -- you need a much more concentrated blue for something like that. That's where the powder comes in handy instead!
I came across the blue butterfly pea tea powder quite by chance. A friend told me about some pink pitaya powder she's been using, which got me to the Just Blends website where I discovered the blue powder I've been looking for all along. It seemed quite affordable, and to be honest at that stage it was between succumbing to the costly Blue Majik siren call or going with this. I decided to order some and see what happens.
I was really impressed with the product. I liked that it shipped internationally, was affordable, natural, and well packaged. I also loved that I could order it right along with the pitaya powder (which I adore!). So it was a pleasure to work with from start to finish. I've been having fun using it in cakes like this, in ice cream, and even breakfast. I liked it so much I even emailed Just Blends to tell them I thought it was a great product.
The oddest thing happened when I got an enthusiastic email back from the owner of Just Blends. Strange coincidence: turns out the lady who owns it is someone I knew from from my Instagram circle and who is a fan of my work and she was really excited to hear from me ?. Strange coincidence the second: a good blogging pal of mine (Anthea from RainbowNourishments.com) happened to be staying at that lady's house and they were just talking about my blog when I emailed... Small world!
Steph, the lady behind Just Blends, even gave me a 10% discount code for my blog readers. If you order from her, use the coupon code "UB10%" to get ten percent off any of your purchases.
Last but not least, in all the "blue" excitement, I forgot to tell you about one other feature of this cake: it's oil-free. Yep, no coconut oil, and still all light and white! Yipee!
One tiny last note I'll share: the cake is lemon-free. Keep in mind the chemistry chameleon note above re: the blue color changes shades when it comes into contact with acids.
Also, about the hues -- the directions are recreating the cake pictured, but of course feel free to improvise and adjust the colors to your liking.
Ok, let's cake!
As per usual, this recipe is for a tiny 5″ cake (this is the pan I use). See downloadable cake size guide below if you need help with sizing this cake up or down. Also, if you need any tips to get comfortable with raw cake making, you may find Unconventional Treats handy for that.
Oh, and one more final note: because this cake is designed to be very lush and creamy (no coconut oil, remember..), it’ll also get quite melty if not kept frozen. So be sure to serve it frozen, or thaw out for just 5-10 minutes prior to serving.
PrintBlue Surf Cake
A fun, tasty, blue-themed no-bake cheesecake recipe. Perfect for blue surf, fluffy clouds, or blue galaxies. Naturally dairy-free, oil-free, and refined sugar-free.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 5" cake
- Category: Cake
- Method: Raw
- Cuisine: Dessert
Ingredients
Crust:
- ½ cup raw cashews
- 3 soft medjool dates, pitted
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
Filling:
- ¾ cup raw cashews, pre-soaked & strained (*see notes below)
- ⅓ cup coconut cream from a can of full fat milk that's been chilled overnight in the fridge
- 3-4 tablespoon maple syrup (to taste)
- ½ tsp raw ground vanilla bean (or contents of half a fresh vanilla bean pod)
- ½ tsp salt
- 1¼ tsp blue butterfly pea tea powder for color
Instructions
- Process all crust ingredients in a food processor. Transfer into a 5" springform pan and press down into an even flat crust. Freeze while working on next step.
- Add all filling ingredients, BUT ONLY ¼ teaspoon blue butterfly tea powder, to a power blender and blend into a smooth creamy consistency. Remove a third of this mixture and pour it into the springform pan over the crust, trying to keep it mostly to one side (let's say keep it to the right).
- Add in ½ a teaspoon more blue butterfly tea powder to the remaining mixture in the blender and blend once again to combine. Transfer half this mixture into the springform pan, placing it mostly into the center, or slightly to the left side.
- Add another ½ teaspoon blue pea powder to the remaining mixture in the blender and blend to combine. Transfer this mixture into the pan, pouring it mostly to the left. Now use a skewer or a small spoon to lightly swirl the mixtures together. I used a circular motion and went mostly around the edges of the pan to create the sea wave effect. Feel free to improvise -- just don't over-mix or the different layers will merge into one color.
- Freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Keep frozen until serving time. Slice and enjoy! Keep any leftovers frozen.
Notes
*To pre-soak nuts: place in a glass bowl, cover with water, and leave to soak for 4 hours (or overnight in the fridge). Then strain and discard the water.
For a quick pre-soak, cover with boiled water and soak for 15 mins, then strain and discard water. (Note: this technique doesn't preserve the nutrition of the recipe as well as the traditional soaking technique above).
Note: the purpose of soaking the nuts is to re-hydrate them and plump them up for blending into a smooth, cheesecake-like consistency. Proper soaking techniques also maximize nutrition and digestibility. If you're interested in learning more about nut soaking and other dessert prep tips and tricks, I delve into these subjects in detail in my book Unconventional Treats.
This post contains affiliate links to the Just Blends powders.
Xuan Nguyen says
Love the color of this cake! If I want to use a 6” mold, what’s the amount that I need to make it work?
The Real Person!
Hi Xuan. Thanks so much :) It's a fun color. To convert it to a 6" cake you need to multiply the recipe by 3. There's a downloadable recipe conversion chart below the recipe for future reference, or for other size conversions, if you're interested. Happy (un)baking!
Connie says
Can this cake be kept in a grocer bag with ice packs in it for a few hours? I need to make an 8” cake, do I double all the ingredients? Can I use raw honey instead of maple syrup? Thanks
The Real Person!
Hi Connie. Yes, it'll hold if packed with ice packs in a cold bag for sure. I recommend keeping it in the metal tin as well, as the metal conducts the cold better so it'll stay better chilled longer.
An 8" springform pan usually holds 6 cups in ingredient volume. This recipe is tailored for a 5" pan which holds about 1.5 cups. So you'll need to x4 the recipe for an 8" cake. This cake is a bit on the low/flat side, which looks neat in a 5" size, but in an 8" you might like the cake to be a bit taller, in which case you can x5 the ingredients of the filling to give the cake a bit more height -- optional.
You can def use honey if you prefer. Just a few things to consider: it has a particular flavor which it will add to the cake. If the honey is too thick you might want to add a bit more coconut milk to help things blend easier. If the honey is a darker color it can change the cake color slightly into a deeper off-white. And lastly, maple syrup tends to be sweeter than honey, so you might need to adjust the sweetness to taste (you can taste the filling in the blender before pouring it into the pan and adjust at that stage as needed).
Cristina says
I followed this recipe to make a blue birthday cheesecake however I substituted the blue pea tea powder for blue spirulina powder. I tasted the filled before throwing it in the freezer and OMG it tasted so cute. Can't wait for tomorrow!!! Thank you for the recipe.
The Real Person!
Aw, so glad it worked out well with the spirulina, Cristina! :) Enjoy it.
John says
I have been making raw vegan naturally sweetened cakes/cheesecakes for a while. I have tried oiling the ring with coconut oil and using parchment on the inside of the ring. Although the cake does not stick to the ring, this leaves a wrinkled impression on the cake, not very good for presentation. I have tried just oiling the ring , leaving the cake at room temperature for 30 minutes or more before attempting to unclasp it. This leaves a smooth surface on the outside, although half the time part of the cake sticks to the ring and/or the cake begins to crack. Then I need to very carefully use a knife to go around the cake.
I notice that your cakes have a smooth edge thus you do not use parchment on the ring. Is there a "trick" that you know to keep the cake from sticking to the ring and /or cracking ?
The Real Person!
Hi John my trick is actually to use nothing :) I don't use parchment and I don't oil the ring. I just pour the contents in, and once the cake sets I thaw it out a few minutes and remove the ring and everything comes out smoothly. Oiling it with coconut oil would make the filling and the ring stick together, making it harder to separate when unclasping.
Alex says
Hi!
I had seen the tutorial video on YouTube and loved the deep blue aesthetic of the cake. So I finally decided to make it yesterday and... It was a huge success! It was my first attempt at making a vegan cheesecake so I didn't expect it to go that well.
A question : the filling had a very thick consistency after I mixed the ingredients together, which didn't allow the result to be as smooth as on your pictures. Do you have any tip on how to overcome this?
The Real Person!
Hi Alex. I'm glad you enjoyed it :)
What kind of blender did you use to blend the filling? I find the older style (tall profile) Vitamix power blenders work best for this filling. If not using a power blender in general the consistency will be more thick / lumpy.
If using a power blender with a large pitcher base (like the newer low profile Vitamix or Blendtec, etc. ) then you'd need to increase the recipe amounts to make more, as these larger blender bases do not handle small batch recipes as well and require more volume to blend things to a smooth consistency.
Cindy says
Wow. I really appreciate this explanation regarding the Vitamix blender! I think I will minimally triple the filling , as it will help with both a smoother consistency and give more height. My cake was very short in height. What could have caused this? I made this for my daughter’s 19thbirthday and she loved it (as she has your other cheesecake recipes!). Much thx.
The Real Person!
Hi Cindy, I'm glad the explanation helped. What pan size did you use? This particular cake is not very tall (some of my other cakes are taller, for example). The simplest way to increase height is to either multiply the filling even more, or to use a smaller pan.
You can calculate things more precisely via the volume of the pan you're using. To give you an example I made this cake as a small 5" cake. A 5" springform pan holds 1.5 cups volume in total. If you were to use a 6" pan, you'd need to multiply the ingredients by at least 3, as a 6" pan has a volume of roughly 4 cups. An 8" pan's volume is 6 cups, 9" = 9 cups, etc. You can refer to the size chart here (in the springform pan section) to get an idea of different pan sizes: https://thebakingpan.com/baking-pan-sizes/ >> the link doesn't list the sizes for the tiny pans I use sometimes, so just for reference a 4" pan holds about 1 cup, and a 5" pan is 1.5 cups as I mentioned earlier. To avoid the math I made a small downloadable cheat sheet (you can find it just below the recipe) for quickly converting the most common cake sizes, so hopefully that's of help.
Either way, you can also play around with the recipe volume on your own to create a desired height by increasing the ingredients in proportion to your pan size. I never worry if I make a little extra filling, etc. since you can always freeze it in small silicone cupcake moulds on the side and have a bit extra dessert that way.
Hope this helps! And I'm really glad to hear your daughter is enjoying these cakes :)
Mandi Schuler says
I had my mom make this for my husband's and I wedding reception. It was perfect. We had a Publix sheet cake in back served to everyone and this was mainly for me and my gf df mother in law after the fun of smooshing a piece. Wonderful cake. Thanks!
The Real Person!
Hi Mandi. Sounds lovely -- so glad you could enjoy this cake on your special day :)
Samuel says
Would it change color if you dropped lemon juice onto the cake. Just wondering, cause it would change color colors in liquid. (Pea Tea and lemon)
The Real Person!
Hi Samuel, yes that's right, it would turn purpelish if you include lemon (and you can control how purple you want it by playing around with quantities. That's why I omitted lemon here though, since I wanted a strictly blue cake.
Cassie Thuvan Tran says
This looks like a seashore in cake form! I cannot begin to describe how beautiful the colors of the top layer are. I have never even heard of butterfly tea, but I bet it has the most lovely flavor and aroma!
The Real Person!
Hi Cassie. You can't really taste it in this cake, it's used more for the coloring. But it's a lovely looking tea. A brewed version of it is super pretty.
Vync says
Hi Audrey,
Can you do a video on how to mix the mixture together? I tried to mix up the 3 mixture but still couldnt get the correct way to pour the three different color . Could you advice on this part?
The Real Person!
Hi Vync. A video has just been added as requested! :) Hope that helps.
Priscilla says
Hello! Just ran into this very interesting page and was wondering if the blue butterfly pea tea powder can also be used in other cake batters, like for instance a Madeira cake. The thing is that I would like to make a 'blue' cake for my daughter's underwater theme for her birthday and I'd like a cake that can be made a couple of days in advance and that I can leave on the cake table without anything bad happening to it. Would love to hear your view on this one. Thanks a lot and I simply love what you do 'naturally' in the cake world (if that makes any sense...) 😀
The Real Person!
Hi Priscilla. It can definitely be used in baked goods too to create blues. A few things to keep in mind are: the cake base color would need to be white for the color to turn out blue (if the cake is yellowish, the final product could turn out green). Also if blue butterfly pea tea is mixed with lemon juice it turns purple, so you'll want to make sure it doesn't come into contact with any. I'm not sure if other acidic agents (like apple cider vinegar) would cause the same reaction -- haven't tried, but you can do a small test in a glass of water by combining blue butterfly pea tea with a few drops of it to see if it turns the water purple.
An underwater theme birthday party sounds like a lot of fun :)
P.S. Not sure if it's helpful, but you might like the idea of this kind of cake (or decorating) as well: https://www.unconventionalbaker.com/raw-beach-cheesecake-recipe-dairy-free/
Mira says
Have you tried it with other flavours than vanilla or do you recommend any? E.g. cardamon, Cinamon, ..?
The Real Person!
Hi Mira. I haven't tried this blue cake theme in other flavors -- I went with vanilla because somehow it made sense to me with the tropical / sea theme. Also color-wise, I was worried some spices might add a bit of a color that would turn the cake colors a bit murky or "muddy." But I've made many similar raw cakes with cardamom, and cinnamon, rose water and orange blossom water, berries and berry powders, etc. -- there's definitely room to play around and add flavors to your liking.
Kathy says
Hello,
I am wondering whether I can crush dried butterfly pea flowers to make butterfly pea flower powder?
Any advice will be appreciated.
Cheers,
Kathy
The Real Person!
Hi Kathy -- argh, what a shame. Don't feel bad -- I've done the same thing in the past and still have a whole bag of butterfly pea flower tea hanging around ?
I've thought of the same when it happened to me, but upon examining the flowers I determined that they were not dried enough to be ground properly. If yours are super dry though (such that you can easily crush them with your fingers into dry bits), I would totally give that a go.
You can make pretty tea with it though, it makes a gorgeous teal blue tea and if you add a few drops of lemon it turns purple, which makes for a nice tea to serve others...
Kathy Angelone says
Thanks Audrey,
Hmmm I did have a go at one of the flowers earlier and I may just have to go with that as I need to make the cake tomorrow for Friday!!
Yes I made my daughter and I a cup of blue tea yesterday- she thought it was pretty but didn't really taste of anything - such insight from an almost 3 year old!!
I'm thinking that I might make some magic water using the tea for her birthday party...
Would I be able to use drops of the tea as colouring for blue surf cake?
Best,
Kathy
The Real Person!
Hi Kathy,
Yes, magic water is a great idea. I have a friend who had something like that for her girl's birthday -- like a magic potion :)
Drops of tea would be too diluted though, so I don't think they won't make a color difference, unfortunately. Does the theme have to be blue? If so, maybe this blueberry cake would work better? If blue isn't a must, there's a similar cake to this surf one that I made with pink pitaya powder, but you can use any pink berry powder you like instead and others can be more commonly accessible (even at a pharmacy or supplements section of grocery stores, as they often sell raspberry or cranberry powder capsules, for example). This beetroot cake is another example of that. You can also go for just regular pink cake using fresh strawberries. One last alternative I can think of is purple cake using maqui powder, like in this lilac cake (you can replace lilac with just any nut milk instead), or this maqui tahini cheesecake. And there's always the beach cheesecake if you want to stick to an ocean theme.
I hope that gives you some options :)
Kathy Angelone says
Thanks Audrey,
It looks like the day has been saved! I dryer some of the flowers further in the oven and then crushed the petals down with a pestle and mortar. Check my Instagram profile @kangelone to find out how my blue surf cake turns out on Friday!!
The Real Person!
Oh, phew! ? That's good to hear! :) I'll definitely check it out. I'm glad dehydrating the flowers more did the trick.
Loana says
What does the filling taste like at the end?
The Real Person!
Like a vanilla ice cream cake.
Noemi says
HI my daughter wants me to make this cake for my grandson's 2nd birthday and she does not want me to use coconut cream, she saw another cake recipe somewhere that uses Nutiva Coconut Manna I am not a baker I just make healthy food for my grandson so have no idea what that is but wondering if we can replace the coconut cream with the coconut manna?
The Real Person!
Hi Noemi, I'm so sorry for not being able to reply sooner. I've been sick the last few weeks, so just catching up on comments now. The manna will work, but will make the cake a lot firmer, so I would add more liquid (non-dairy) milk to offset that. Coconut cream is very soft, whereas coconut manna has a firmer consistency.
Michelle says
Hey.. an FYI I just tried downloading the raw cake multiplication helper but it doesn't appear to be working for me, recipes are amazing, thank you for your blog ! looking fwd to trying them x Oh and now I see an email has come into my inbox, I assumed it would download immediately ! Thanks I am confused though by the ingredient quantity being x 8 if the size of the pan is changing from 4" to 9'', seems heaps more ingredients rather than just pretty much doubling which I would expect?
The Real Person!
Hi Michelle,
I know it can seem confusing, and the natural inclination is to double, etc. but the thing is that these pan sizes are measured not by inches, but rather by volume (i.e. how many cups can fit into the pan). Increasing the pan size by 1", 2", or 3" changes the volume capacity of the pan quite significantly (especially for the larger sizes where the sides of the pan go up taller as well).
The guide I created is taking into account average standard volumes of 4" pans, 5" pans, 6" pans, etc. and makes change recommendations based on that.
To give you a visual idea, going from a 4" cake to a 9" cake is like making a cake in a wide mug vs in a standard cake pan... Hope that makes sense :)
johanne says
Oh the magical night sky cake. I think I could pass the day looking at this pixie dust galaxy. Tomorrow ll set off to my Medjool Date vender and buy another 5 lbs. Thank you for the inspiration for the eyes and soul.-Hanne
The Real Person!
Hi Hanne -- thank you so much for your lovely comment :) Enjoy all those dates!