is it possible to soak cashews for too long?

You can blanch them, which is to partially cook them in boiling water for a minute or two, to get the mellow the flavor and muddle the nuttyness a bit. If you blanch enough at one time then you have cashew water you can use to experiment with later

Oh good to know!

yes. they are like any woody substance, they can bloat and ferment if left for more than a day.

How long did you soak them for? I usually soak them overnight when I want to make a cashew cream and that gives the best results vs soaking for 2-3 hours, as they get really soft and then blend up nice and smoothly. Last night i soaked some and then forgot about them until this afternoon, so they were soaking for a good 16 hours. I drained them and used them for a maple cashew cream frosting to top my vegan whole wheat carrot cupcakes and it turned out great. So I'd say for a cheesecake, the longer the better. Hope that helps.