This Cranberry Crumb Cake not only looks incredibly festive, but it also tastes super delicious! It’s layered with vegan Cheesecake and topped with Sugared Cranberries making it the perfect dessert for Christmas, ok let’s be honest, it’s actually perfect any time!

If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen that I shared a picture of this dreamy Cranberry Crumb Cake with vegan Cheesecake layer a while ago. I made it spontaneously for me and my neighbors because I thought it would be a great dessert to start the Christmas holidays. Anyways, I didn’t expect that so many of you would be excited to get the recipe. Sorry for the delay, but now here it is.

Vegan Cheesecake with Crumbles and Cranberries
This delicious Cranberry Crumb Cake (Vegan Cheesecake) doesn’t have the usual Cheesecake filling that you may be used too. Not only is it made vegan because it contains no eggs and no dairy, but it’s also made with custard. A vegan Cheesecake is usually made with tofu, or drained dairy-free yogurt (in Germany it’s known as “quark“) or dairy-free cream cheese or just plant-based milk. There are so many possibilities when making a vegan Cheesecake, but I, however, wanted to try out a new version. Anyways, the result was super delicious because the filling is a combination of vanilla custard and cheesecake which make a great match!
Easy Vegan Cranberry Crumb Cake
The dough for this Vegan Cranberry Crumb Cake comes together very easy and super fast. You don’t have to get your hands dirty and you don’t have to let the prepared dough chill in the fridge. All you need are a few simple ingredients, plus one bowl and an electric hand mixer. (But your hands will do too if you don’t have a mixer). Start with adding all the ingredients into your bowl and mix until the dough is crumbly. Please notice, that the longer you mix, the bigger the crumbles get. So stop mixing if the size of the crumbles looks good to you.

Sugared Cranberries – The healthier Candy’s
If you’ve ever tried pure Cranberries you might have noticed that they taste very sour, but in this Cranberry Cheesecake, they taste heavenly! The sour Cranberries make a perfect addition to the sweet cookie-like Crumb Cake shortcrust and the creamy Custard Cheesecake layer. Also, I like Cranberries when they’re sugared, so I added some as a topping on top. I think they look like little snowballs and taste like candy with a fruity center. The best is, that these sugared cranberries are healthier than regular candy’s because cranberries are very rich in vitamins. I mean, how could it be better than candy’s that are sweet and healthy?

This Cranberry Crumb Cake (Vegan Cheesecake) is:
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
- Egg-free
- Crumbly
- Creamy
- Topped with Sugared Cranberries
- Easy to make
- So delicious!
- Perfect for Christmas or any occasion!

Use Cranberries or other fruits
I think in America cranberries are available all year round, but here in Germany, fresh cranberries are usually only available from October until April. Anyways, if they’re not in season or available where you live, you can of course swap to any kind of berries and fruits. I‘m pretty sure this vegan Cranberry Cheesecake would also taste very delicious with other fall and winter seasonal fruits, such as cinnamon apples, pears, or plums. Another great idea is to use canned fruits, such as cherries. In Summer you can definitely try this simple cake recipe with adding blueberries, raspberries or fresh strawberries. To be honest, I haven’t tried this recipe with frozen berries yet, so I can’t guarantee if it will turn out the same. However, feel free to try it out. I would be happy if you leave a comment letting me know how it turned out.

The size of your baking dish
For this recipe, I used a small 7-inch (18 cm) springform. But you can also use a bigger form, such as an 8-inch (20 cm) or 9,5-inch (24 cm) springform if you prefer to have the cake a bit flatter and not so high. Please make sure to have a look at the baking time. The cake is done when you insert a tooth pick in the center of your cake and it comes out almost clean. Also, remember that the custard cheesecake filling becomes firmer when cooled.
If you’re looking for more delicious Cheesecake and Crumb Cake recipes, you can have a look at my recipes for Blueberry Crumble Cake with Cheesecake layer, Cheese Crumble Cake with juicy Berries, Blueberry Cheesecake with Almond Brittle , Cheesecake with Cherries, or my Brownie-Cheesecake. Have fun trying this easy recipe and please let me know if you liked it.


Cranberry Cheesecake (Vegan Crumb Cake)
Author:You do not have a fitting cake pan at hand right now? Try my Cake Pan Conversion Calculator!
Ingredients
Shortcrust Pastry:
- 2 cups flour (250 g) (gluten-free*, if desired)
- 1/2 cup plant-based butter or margarine (120 g)
- 5 tbsp sugar (75 g)
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp apple sauce (or ½ mashed banana)
- 1 pinch of vanilla
Custard Cheesecake:
- 2 ½ tbsp cornstarch (40 g)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup plant-based milk (250 ml)
- 6 tbsp sugar (80 g)
- 1/3 cup plant-based butter or margarine (80 g)
- 9 oz dairy-free quark (250 g) (I used soy quark, *see recipe notes)
- 1 tbsp soy flour or semolina (optional)
Further ingredients:
- 1 ½ cup cranberries (150 g)
Sugared Cranberries:
- 2 cups cranberries (200 g)
- 100 ml water
- 3/4 cup sugar (150 g)
- 1/2 cup sugar (100 g) to cover
Instructions
Shortcrust Pastry:
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Put all the ingredients for the shortcrust pastry in a mixing bowl and mix using an electric hand mixer (first on low, then on medium speed), until the dough is crumbly. (The longer you mix, the bigger the crumbles become).
- Press 2/3 of the dough into a greased 7-inch springform pan (*see recipe text for the perfect size), also pull up the sides.
Custard Cheesecake:
- In a cup, stir cornstarch and vanilla in 2-3 tbsp of plant-based milk to dissolve. Bring the remaining milk to the boil in a pot, add the cornstarch mixture and bring to the boil again, while stirring constantly. Stir in vegan butter and sugar, so you have a creamy custard, then allow to cool slightly. Blend the soy quark with soy flour until creamy and fold in the pudding. Mix until creamy and once cooled, fill into the prepared shortcrust.
- Place the 1 ½ cup cranberries on top of the filling and crumble over the remaining 1/3 of the dough.
- Bake the cake for about 50 minutes, or until a tooth pick comes out almost clean. (The cake becomes firmer when cooled).
- Then allow the cake to cool completely and preferably place in the fridge for 1-2 hours (or overnight) before serving.
Sugared Cranberries:
- In a pot, mix 3/4 cup of sugar with the water, bring to the boil and cook for a few minutes while stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved. Then allow to cool slightly, otherwise the cranberries will get burst.
- Roll the berries in the syrup mixture and place them on a cooling rack. Allow to dry for at least one hour (or refrigerate overnight).
- Once the syrup has dried on the berries, you can roll them in the remaining sugar. Now they’re ready to serve or use for cake decoration!
Notes
- To make this cake gluten-free, you can use a gluten-free flour blend instead of all-purpose flour or spelt flour.
- To make this cake sugar-free you can use erythritol instead of regular sugar.
- If you do not find any dairy-free quark in the supermarket, you can make it yourself. Simply fill about 26,5 oz (750 g) of dairy-free yogurt in a strainer lined with a cloth and let drain for 12 hours. That should make approx. 17,6 oz (500 g) of quark. Otherwise, you could also use dairy-free cream cheese or tofu. If you're not vegan, you can also use regular dairy products, of course.
- If the cake gets too dark on the surface while baking, simply cover it with a piece of baking paper or aluminum foil.
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This was phenomenal! I made it as a special request from my vegetarian-with-vegan-tendencies sister, and the whole family loved it. You wouldn’t know it was vegan if you weren’t told. I couldn’t find quark and I wanted to freeze the finished product for a couple of weeks, so I substituted an equal weight of Tofutti dairy-free cream cheese. It froze beautifully and I just made the sugared cranberries the day before serving and added them after thawing. It was so creamy and delicious, and the cranberries added such a great tang and punch of flavour. Thanks for a great experience!
That’s awesome! I’m very glad you liked it! Thanks for your feedback! 🙂
Looks amazing! Any idea if it can be made ahead and frozen? I want to make it for my sister but we’ll be away from home so I won’t have access to my kitchen to prepare it, and it’s my first attempt at a vegan cheesecake. Can’t wait to try it!
Awesome, I hope it was a great success and you enjoyed it. ❤️
Looks soooo delicious can’t wait to try! Can we use a biscuit base and can this be made crust less too?
Feel free to try it out! 🙂 Just take note that the cake will be flatter when you make only a bottom base.
This recipe worked wonders for me. It’s one of THE BEST cheese cake I’ve ever made and my husband couldn’t believe it didn’t have any eggs! I used a 9″ pan and decided to double the cream cheese filling mid-recipe (keeping the shortcrust pie amount the same) but it still was so delicious and held very well. I substituted cherries for cranberries and also rum and lemon zest for vanilla, and I’m glad I did that. For the first time cheese bakers like me, I would strongly encourage y’all to try this recipe.
So glad you love this recipe! 🙂
Thank you so much for your amazing feedback. <3
I can’t wait to make it. Love all your recipes and that you give suggestions that you can use other ingredients
Thank you so much! ❤️
Loved it! After trying your cake recipe I had high hopes for this one, and it was a bomb. Flavour and texture on point.
Hi Sahl, Thank you so much for your feedback! So glad you enjoyed this cranberry crumb cake! Lots of love, Bianca <3
I made this and it was absolutely divine! I used blueberries iso cranberries and silken tofu iso quark. I also used a slightly bigger baking tin (21cm). Have you ever used potato starch iso corn starch?
By the way – I love your blog!
Hi Veronica,
So glad that you liked this cake!
I’ve never used potato starch for cakes because I have always cornstarch on hand. Sometimes I also sub soy flour. However, feel free to try it out. I’m sure it will do too! Thank you so much 🙂
Lots of love,
Bianca <3
This cheesecake looks incredible, Bianca! Love the sugared cranberries on top, so pretty!
Much love, Ela 🙂
Hi Ela,
So glad that you like the cake! ?
Thank you for your comment.
Lots of love,
Bianca ❤️
Oh Bianca, I do love how creamy and smooth the filling looks in this cheesecake! And I’m definitely trying to make my own quark very soon!
Hi Anna,
So glad that you like it. ?
Thank you for your comment!
Lots of love,
Bianca ❤️