Decadent Cherry Torte

My sweet sister-in-law, noticing that I never ate any dessert at family functions {not vegan}, set out to make a delicious dessert for me as a surprise for our next family function. Imagine my surprise when I arrived at her house to find that she'd made me a decadent, fluffy, creamy, sinful, and delicious cherry torte! The dessert was one of the very best things I've ever put in my mouth. After thanking her profusely, I asked her for the recipe. She emailed me the link she'd gotten the recipe from.

I made some slight modifications, and made the torte again myself, this time for a group of friends.

Decadent Cherry Torte
Serves 8 - 12

1 cup vegan butter {I used Earth Balance buttery sticks}, softened
1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
4 tbsp unrefined sugar
1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips {I used Ghirardelli brand}
2 10oz cartons Soyatoo Soy Whip {I found mine at Good Earth}
1 8oz tub Toffuti Better Than Cream Cheese {Good Earth, Harmon's, and Whole Foods all carry this}
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 21oz can cherry pie filling

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Stir together butter, flours, and unrefined sugar until coarse, even-sized crumbs are formed. Press the mixture into a greased 9x13" pan, and bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

2. Turn off the oven. Sprinkle chocolate chips over crust, and return to still-warm oven for 5 - 10 minutes until chocolate chips are soft. Using a spatula, spread the chocolate chips into a thin even layer. Set the crust aside to cool.

3. While the crust cools completely, whip the Soyatoo according to package directions. In a separate large bowl, blend cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Carefully fold in the Soyatoo until the entire filling is well combined.

4. Spread the filling into cooled crust. Gently top evenly with the cherry pie filling, and chill for at least 3 hours {overnight is preferable}. Cut into squares and serve.

Note: You can leave out the chocolate chips if you prefer a simpler dessert, or if you don't like chocolate. Ninjahusband preferred the torte without the layer of chocolate. I preferred it with.