Lemony Lime Cheesecake

So I had to bring the desserts for my church group Wednesday. That can be tough when the group knows you are a food blogger. Such high expectations. Mine is a great group with no pressure at all, but there are some fine cooks among my friends. I wanted to show that sugarfree can be tasty for anyone, not just the diabetics. Since my upcoming newsletter theme is a little fancy--ladies' luncheons, showers and teas, then I knew some wonderful desserts were in order. Gotta say I outdid myself with two new recipes that are really delicious. Sadly, I ended up with a crazy headache and had to send the desserts with my hubby while I stayed home. I am glad I made both a day ahead.

The recipe I am sharing today is a lemon and lime cheesecake. The base has only a very light citrus taste, with only some lime zest to lend a lime flavor. The top is a tart, yet creamy lemon lime curd that really pops with flavor. I love the combination in your mouth. Creamy and tart in different combinations as you chew. This really is a wonderful spring dessert, and would be pretty on the Easter table, any baby or wedding shower, or on a fabulous dessert cart for a ladies' lunch. If you like lemon or lime, you really should try it. Most recipes are one or the other, but the combo is extra special. And never mind the name "curd" anyway. I never could understand why something so yummy had such an unappealing name.

Lemony Lime Cheesecake

Crust:
3/4 cup almond flour
1 tbsp coconut flour
1/4 tsp xanthan gum
pinch salt
3 tbsp melted butter
3 tbsp erythritol/stevia blend equal to sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Filling:
24 oz cream cheese
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cup erythritol/stevia blend equal to sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lime zest
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup heavy cream

Curd:
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 cup erythritol/stevia blend equal to sugar
2 whole eggs plus 1 yolk
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp heavy cream
pinch salt (omit if using salted butter)

Garnish:
whipped cream

Butter or oil the sides and base of an 8 or 9 inch springform pan. For easiest removal, cut a circle from parchment paper to line the base. In a small bowl, combine almond and coconut flours, xanthan gum and salt. Stir in melted butter, sweetener and vanilla. Press this mixture into the base of the pan. Bake at 350 for 5 minutes. It will not look cooked through.

To make filling, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add eggs, one at a time until incorporated. Slowly add sweetener, vanilla, zest, salt until just mixed.  Slowly add cream, but do not overbeat. Pour this mixture over the crust in the springform pan. Wrap the pan in foil and place into a larger roasting pan. Place both pans onto a lower rack in a 350 degree oven. Pour water into the roasting pan to create a water bath. Bake for 55 minutes to 1 hour. When time is up, open the oven door a few inches, but let the cheesecake remain in the oven. After an additional hour, remove cake to the counter to fully cool. At this time, run a knife along the edges.

While cheesecake is cooling, prepare the curd. In a small saucepan, heat the lemon and lime juice combined with the sweetener. In a separate bowl, beat two eggs and one separated yolk. Very slowly pour the heated juice into the eggs, stirring constantly to temper, not curdle. When all the juice is added, return the mixture to the saucepan. Heat on a moderate flame, stirring well, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon. Remove from heat and stir in butter until melted, then the heavy cream. Add a small pinch of salt. Chill the curd until time to assemble the cooled cheesecake.

When the cheesecake has cooled on the counter to room temperature, spread the chilled curd over the top. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving. To serve, add shipped cream to the edges of the cheesecake.

Serves 12:  329 calories  5 net g carb

I love that the crust on this cheesecake is sturdy. I even picked up a slice with just my hand. The xanthan gum helps stabilize it, but it will work without it. I had a little trouble getting it to cover the base of the pan. It is a bit sticky. Just keep buttering those fingers. The top of mine did crack, even with the water bath. Probably because my ingredients were not quite a room temperature. It was a busy day. No problem though, because the lemon curd covered the crack. Small blessings are so appreciated!

My hubby said this was a hit at our group. I had only three slices left, and my mom who came over to help with some more kitchen cabinet work, liked it too. This is just one of the recipes I will feature in the April Diner News, so get ready for some festive foods! Just wait until you see what I did with peanut butter...

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Hazelnut Cheesecake Dessert--Comfort When You Need Some Love?

I have to be honest. I have needed some comfort food lately. My life has been in a tailspin like never before, and I have just not been able to bring myself to blog. I am barely even cooking. I will spare you the details, but we can just leave it with my latest insights: relationships are hard, even with the best of intentions. Families are complicated, especially sharing a business. And when you really try to do something significant to change lives, you will have opposition.

So continuing with my honesty, I have really slipped up the last few weeks. My old comfort foods, barbecue potato chips and french fries found there way into my mouth. It is what it is. With my stomach in knots and my life in turmoil, even with healthy food within reach (that is what planning gets you--no excuses) I chose the treats. Somehow I needed to be bad. Someone might know the psychological reasoning for this behavior; as I am sure there is one. I just wanted to fess up in case you go there too sometimes.

The thing is, guilt later just adds to the problem.  Feeling like a failure in every part of my life, one evening, I made this treat. It fits in my eating plan, so no guilt.  It was yummy and my boy at home really liked it too. The thing is, neither the bad-for-me-food nor the healthier substitute really brought me comfort. A lot of us have used food for reward, for comfort, for protection. It is not that great a friend though, because it still doesn't feel like love. Only hugs from those who love you and the touch of God's unconditional love can do that. So that is my lesson for this time in my life.

Here is my recipe. Even easy enough to make while heartbroken. Sorry for the not so great photo--it was getting dark and I just didn't have any creative juices going. I am back on track from my crisis potato chips, btw. They just didn't help.

Hazelnut Cheesecake Dessert

8 oz neufchatel or cream cheese

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup hazelnut sugarfree syrup

1 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp powdered Swerve

Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender. Process until smooth. Pour into 4 dessert glasses and chill.

With neufchatel cheese, each serving has:   74 calories     2 carbs      6 g fat   5 g protein

So lets keep this true confessions theme going. I thought Pearson had finished this dessert off the night I made it. As I headed into turn the lights off in the kitchen and head to bed, I saw there was still a serving left. Still in the bowl of the food processor. With the kind of attitude that comes only with true weariness, I just dumped it back into my dirty punch cup and placed it in the fridge. Under the mushroom leftovers. It sat there three days without so much as a piece of plastic wrap to cover it. Yup. Before writing this post, I went to find it. Still there. Oh my, this is still so good! Despite all my gloominess about food not fixing your problems, please do try this. If you are already in a good mood, then it will bring a smile to your face!

Now on with my story, because this much could involve you just a little. As most of you know, cooking and blogging are not my calling. I teach. I seek out kids who are crashing in the traditional classroom. In my program, it is not all about grades and arbitrary standards of success. Instead of experiencing a hundred little failures a day, they get to learn in an atmosphere where they can learn but not fail. We focus on the ways they learn best. This requires a lot of one on one instruction and will only work in a small school setting. Think one of a kind artisanship instead of mass production. That's is what my school is about. This past week, I have been facing closure. Financially we are not making it. Most of our teens need scholarships. We never turn a student away. This week, I lost both of my young directors, one of whom is my son. One leaves on good terms and the other, not so much. Without a volunteer staff, I have no idea how to carry on. But several of my incredible teens have begged me not to give up. See my gift from one of my students?

To pull together a restart, I need to find more volunteers. I cannot run a full summer program without more adults. At this point, I don't have enough money to get the summer rent paid. Every penny I earn through my cookbook sales goes to our school. Not just a percentage. All of it helps provide for these kids. So, If you want to help us out, buy some books and you will be a winner too. Either my e-book or any of the Low Carbing Among Friends cookbooks if you order through my page. http://amongfriends.us/24-7-LCD.php

If you would like to know more about our educational model, check out our webpage. www.elementeducation.org 

We take donations via paypal, so if you have all our books, any donation would mean a lot to our teens...and me. And maybe once the financial crisis is over, I will find more time for blogging and recipes.

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Proceeds from my book sales go entirely to support my educational program. Your purchase makes a difference to the teens I teach.

New Year's Cheesecake

Time for one last decadent treat! (Although this does fit into Keto proportions if you do dairy and sweets) This is the cheesecake I made for my oldest son and the rest of the family for our New Year's Day celebration. I partied too late in the night, so I had to get up early to make one before everyone else got out of bed. My accountant son did beat me awake anyway, but that just gave us some one on one time in a quiet house. That was nice. Because my old springform pan is bent and doesn't seal too well, I went in search for a recipe that didn't need a waterbath. My daughter-in-law wanted a New York style, so I tried altering this recipe from Brown Eyed Baker that claimed no waterbath was necessary. The theory is that a quick high temperature bake followed by a long low heat bake results in a creamy cheesecake that stays moist without the bath. No promises concerning the cheesecake connoisseur's dilemma concerning possible cracks. Mine had not cracked while it was still warm from the oven, but it did crack on the way to my mom's house. Oh well. I just didn't have time to let it chill before we had to go. Everyone agreed that it tasted wonderful, and it was so nice not needing to mess with the water bath and all that foil! I heard recently that cracks may be caused by too much whipping of the eggs, so you might choose to go easy there and see what happens....just a thought from a girl whose day is not wasted by a crack in dessert.

The initial high heat--500 degrees--will leave this cheesecake a little brown on top, so don't try this method if that bothers you. The original author says you may want to check it and add some foil if it is getting too brown. Don't add it at first though, or the cheesecake doesn't cook correctly. This recipe is not as dense as the other New York Style cheesecakes I have made in the past. It has quite a few eggs, so that adds to the lighter texture I think. I even used one less than the model recipe. I think I would always use one less egg, because the texture is very nice. I also opted for an almond meal crust.

I used my sample of sucralose and erythritol blend granular sweetener from Natural Mate. I couldn't find the granular on sale yet at Amazon, but the concentrates are there. Hopefully, this will be available very soon. It measures 2 times as sweet as sugar and blended in very well. Everyone liked the sweetness and did not even notice it was not made with sugar...and yes, I quizzed them on that one!

It makes a large cheesecake--9 inch springform and 5 packages of cream cheese. That will feed a crew! At our house, cheesecake is often subbed for birthday cake, so all is good. In fact, I still have some leftovers to finish up before we hit the keto plan for the new year.

New Year's Cheesecake

Crust:
1 cup coarse unblanched almond meal
5 tbsp butter, melted

Filling:
5 (8 oz) blocks cream cheese, softened
sweetener equivalent to 1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 egg yolks
5 eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, melt butter. Stir in the almond meal and mix until the nuts are moist. Press into the base of a 9 inch springform pan. Butter your fingers to rub an inch along the base edge of the spring form pan. Bake for ten minutes. Remove crust from oven and change the oven temperature to 500 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Incorporate the sweetener 1/4 cup at a time. Add in the salt, cream, lemon juice and vanilla. Beat for 2 minutes. Add the egg yolks and beat until incorporated. Add the eggs, one at a time, continuing to beat between additions.

Pour the cheesecake mixture into the pan. Smooth the top and tap for air bubbles. Bake on a lower middle rack of the oven for exactly 10 minutes. At the ten minute mark, turn the heat down to 200 degrees. Do not open the door. Bake for 1 1/2 hours. If top is browning too much, place a foil guard loosely around the edges. Remove from oven. The cheesecake should be firm around the outer edges and still slightly jiggly in the center. Let cool for 5 minutes, then run a knife along the edge to loosen it and help prevent cracking. Let cool at room temperature for an hour, then transfer to the refrigerator for several hours.

Serves 16
357 calories     35 g fat    4 net carbs   7 g protein

This is creamy and delicious even without the fruit topping. The nut crust is perfect. Everyone loved it. Don't wait for another New Year Celebration.

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Bacon Cheesecake Cups

 First off, this is not one of those sweet bacon recipes. The cheesecake is not sweetened at all, but I can promise you these are amazing!

That said, wow has it been a crazy week around our house! Our home was burglarized on Monday. My husband returned home from work just about an hour after we all left because he had forgotten something. He found the house ransacked, and all of our laptops missing, as well as both Playstations and games. Scary stuff. Talking to me on the phone, he saw they had broken in our French doors off the kitchen. Looking outside, John noticed a  backpack near the back fence. Inside that and another bag were the items being stolen. We can only assume that his unexpected return surprised the thieves, and sent them running over the fence. They must not be very good jumpers, because they seem to have dropped everything they stole.  Now I would like to say that my guard dog  Tinker, the almost 90 pound pit bull scared them away. I think not. It seems that they had time to look through upstairs and even use our own bags to haul away our things. Tinker is so darned friendly! Still, I am glad they didn't hurt my hubby or my dogs, but those were some brave or stupid robbers. They opened my bedroom drawers, but passed over a diamond necklace in a velvet box. They must have been hoping for drugs. Too bad for them, we are all so healthy. Had I lost my laptop, the newsletter would not have gone out either--and let's not talk about all the recipes I already have done for the next edition of Low Carbing Among Friends!

This week, I had convention to attend for our school, and all the preparations for it. Our educational program is so small, just a few of us do all the work! It is amazing how tired one gets at these events. It wasn't physically demanding, but the stress of putting your best face on for hours seems to take a toll on me. Long days anyway! Crazy weeks like these seem to be the norm lately. Seems I am busier now than ever before! Blogging my recipes takes a spot on the back burner when I have the newsletter to get out and all these other obligations.  But I am back today. Doing some prep for the week with a recipe to share.

It is funny how I get stuck on a theme. Last week I was busy creating muffin tin meals, since that was the theme of the May Diner News. I had lots of fun stuff in that one. Seemingly, I am having a hard time letting that concept rest. This recipe is made in a muffin tin too. It is sooo delicious! I took my old recipe for cheesecake muffins and left out the sweetener. Instead I added some onion and jalapeno seasoning. That and baked them up inside bacon crusts. Amazing!



Bacon Cheesecake Cups

13 slices thick cut bacon
1 lb cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp minced dried onion
1 tsp jalapeno seasoning OR 1 tbsp minced jalapeno pepper (optional)

Place slices of bacon on a cookie sheet. Place into a cold oven. Turn the oven on to 350 degrees. Cook bacon for about 20 minutes. or until it is cooked but not crisp. Remove from oven and allow to cool about 5 minutes. Wrap one strip around the outer edges of each of 12 standard muffin cups. Crumble the remaining strip. Place a drop or two of the bacon grease in the base of each muffin cup.

In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer to combine cream cheese, eggs, onion and seasoning. Divide the batter among the muffin cups, taking care to stay inside the bacon ring. Bake for 20 minutes. The cheesecake will puff, but fall after the cups cool. Garnish with crumbled bacon.

12 cups, each:   313 calories    8 g protein   30 g fat   2 g net carbs

All my guys loved these.  John's did not have the jalapeno seasoning. I mixed the cheesecake batter first without the peppers, poured his out, then added seasoning to the rest of the batter. You can add it--or fresh peppers--as you like.

If you want to go even easier, you can skip the bacon around the edges, and instead just cook it more thoroughly, then crumble it and add it to the batter. I tried that out too. They both taste great, but I definitely prefer the wrapped version because the bacon is crispier. But then, I am a crispy bacon gal, myself.

Hoping for an easier week, but thanking the good Lord for keeping us safe and miraculously in possession of our electronics.


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Red Velvet Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

My favorite color is red. Vibrant! Especially powerful when it comes to food.

Red Velvet desserts were introduced to me back in college, when our cafeteria served "Sooner Cake" on home football game days. I think what I loved most was the cream cheese frosting. I never could pick out the exact flavors of the red cake, but I liked it. So what are the signature flavors of red velvet? I guess it would be the addition of cocoa and buttermilk.

I didn't mess with all that because I found a bottle of LorAnn Red Velvet Baking Emulsion at my Ross store. Just $2.99--that is a better deal that the whole bottle of red food coloring we typically seem to need to get that brilliant hue. This emulsion, and yes it is really thick, has the flavoring in there too. No need for buttermilk.

Having had a Red Velvet Cheesecake on my list of desserts to try out since last Christmas, I purchased a bottle about a month ago. The hectic pace of my life kept me from getting a sample made for Thanksgiving. Red Velvet is my oldest son's favorite. I did manage to get a couple of recipes done for the Diner News, however. One I will share. The other? (Mini Red Velvet Cheesecakes) You will have to order the newsletter for yourself! Hey, my devoted Diner News fans need some special perks too. Order here:

http://www.247lowcarbdiner.com/html/newsletter.html

Now on to the Brownies. I had a problem with these. Although many brownie recipes that use flour rely on the red coloring to be obvious in the brownie portion, in my almond flour based recipe, the chocolate overpowers the color. So instead of having a red brownie with white cream cheese, I opted to also color half of the cream cheese mix that goes on top. It worked wonderfully! These are gorgeous and so delicious too.

I don't like adding too many artificial flavorings and colorings to our diet, but this is an obvious special treat dessert. That and the Mini Cheesecakes in the Diner News are just for holiday celebrations around here. Of course, that might include Valentine's Day, Birthdays, Independence Day, Bowl Game day for my Oklahoma Sooners....you get the picture.

Red Velvet

Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

Brownie

3/4 cup almond flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 oz unsweetened chocolate

1/2 cup oil (of your choice or butter)

1 cup sweetener of choice

3 eggs

1 tbsp Red Velvet Emulsion

1 tsp vanilla extract

Cheesecake:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sweetener (powdered would give the best texture over granular here)

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 tsp Red Velvet Emulsion

In a large bowl, combine almond flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. In a heatproof bowl, melt chocolate in the microwave. Stir in oil and sweetener until well blended. Add in eggs, one at a time, stirring well until mixture looks glossy. Stir in the emulsion and vanilla. Combine the wet ingredients and dry ingredients in the large bowl. Line an 8x8 dish with parchment. Pour batter into the dish.

In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese. Stir in sweetener, egg and vanilla. Use a large spoon to dollup mounds of cheesecake over the brownie batter. Use only half of the cheesecake mixture. To the remaining half, stir in 1 tsp emulsion. Dollup the rest over the brownie batter, alternating with the white mixture. Use a butter knife to swirl the two cheesecake colors together. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Let cool before cutting.

If you cut the brownies into 9 servings, you have 3 carbs each, with about 325 calories if using a no carb, no calorie sweetener.

These are moist, easy to cut and the contrast in texture is wonderful. They are easy to put together too. Use whatever sweetener you prefer. The measurements are the equivalent for sugar. I tested with a sucralose sweetener, but erythritol blends and xylitol would be fine too--probably even stevia. So many choices there. Just do make them. They are perfect for holiday parties and will keep you on plan.

Tie Dye Easter

This is a photo of my Tie Dye Cheesecake all done up for Easter. This is cut into bunny shapes from a couple of years ago. I did make this again this morning, for tomorrow's family get together. With all the kids home, we were then out the door and didn't get home til late. The whole bunch got together and dyed eggs at my mom's house. Yes, my boys are too old for it, but we still do it because it is fun and a family tradition. Our prize for the coolest this year went to my oldest son's football egg. It does take some dipping to get a brown egg! Our ugly award went to my youngest son, who managed to make an olive green egg. Still don't know how he managed that!We go to church on Saturday evenings, so we headed out, with blue and purple fingers from coloring eggs. We have already had our Easter service...which was awesome~ Tomorrow will be a slower paced morning with just some devotional time and some wonderful food with the extended family.

This year, I made the cheesecake in an Easter Egg shaped mold. If it comes out clean I will be sure to get photo in the morning light. Even if you don't have an elaborate menu planned, this is quite fun to put together and pleases most people. It is just a light no bake cheesecake--almost more like a cheesecake flavored creamy gelatin. Fun to get creative with and very hard to mess up! The recipe is in Low Carbing Among Friends Volume 1 page 263.

Here is the shot of the one we are eating later today. I found this cute egg shaped mold at Hobby Lobby last year. Gotta love those 80% off sales.

Tie Dye Cheesecake

1 cup cold water
1 envelope dry gelatin
16 oz cream cheese
2/3 cup powdered erythritol
1 tsp vanilla (Clear vanilla will keep the cheesecake brighter)

Pour cold water into a small microwavable bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over the surface of the water and let it absorb five minutes. While that is sitting, use a mixer in a medium bowl to combine the cream cheese, erythritol and vanilla. Heat the gelatin for 1 minute on high in the microwave oven. Remove and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Add the gelatin to the cream cheese and mix well.

Divide the mixture into the number of colors you plan to tint. Add food coloring to the desired shade. Once colors are blended, use a large spoon to to drop the  cheesecake mixture into a pie plate, silicone form or casserole dish. Alternate colors to create a tie dye effect. Chill well before unmolding or cutting.

To make cut out shapes, use a casserole dish to make a thinner layer of cheesecake. Use cookie cutters to create shapes and lift carefully onto serving plate. Keep the shapes chilled.

8 servings   at 209 calories,   4 g protein   20 g fat   4 g carbs


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http://amongfriends.us/24-7-LCD.php

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Crockpot Cheesecake

The newsletter is out with lots of great crockpot ideas. This is one of them. I saw the original idea over at A Year of Slowcooking blog. I tried it--with a few low carb substitutions--and we liked it. It is really about the same amount of work as a regular oven baked cheesecake, but the method is interesting. It would be helpful at times when the oven is full. In addition, I must admit this is the only cheesecake I have ever managed that had absolutely no crack. Woohoo. The only problem being that my cheesecake pan will not fit into my crockpot, so the cheesecake is stuck inside a cakepan. Not the prettiest presentation. I may just have to find a small springform pan that fits inside my crock. This is a smaller cheesecake than I usually make, but that means it is better for everyday eating. No one needs all the calories that are in my 5 bricks of cream cheese New York Style dessert. So this is good. It will even be very pretty once I find a small springform pan. I am thinking tomorrow's servings will have some blueberries. My goal is to get some better photos then. For now, this will do. The cheesecake was not ready to cut in time to be included in the newsletter, so if you were wondering, here it is.

The crockpot bakes the cheesecake in a waterbath, and I guess the smaller cooking space regulates the heat to prevent the cracks. Just be sure to observe the cooling procedures. Also, mine is in an older crockpot that seems to cook on a lower temperature than newer models, so mine took a little more than 3 hours to be done. Just test it with a finger poke in the center. I think I made mine a little more firm than Stephanie did on the original recipe, but we like a firm New York Style.

Just a note on sweeteners. I developed my version of this recipe to use ZSweet. The nut crust uses granulated, and the cheesecake filling takes advantage of their wonderful powdered version. Unlike Ideal, ZSweet does not add starches to make the powdered version. The texture really does prevent the gritty sweetener problem we get with straight erythritol. I love this stuff for that reason....just take care in adding it to the mix. That powder does fly! I stirred it in by hand before using the mixer. Problem solved.  I also love  the fact that they have added in stevia to balance the tastes. I used to have to do that myself. Now I can confidently use only one sweetener.

Now all this, and you may say, give me the recipe. It is in the newsletter. If you are a Diner subscriber, you have it. Now aren't you glad you are--or don't ya wish you were? It is never too late! We have another car in the shop again, and I'm guessing I would only need to sell about 100 newsletter subscriptions to get it fixed. Hint. Hint. I do have some exciting projects in the works at my little Diner, but time will tell on those. Until then, we are living lean. Well, I did use a little of my Diner earnings to buy a Babycakes Cupcake baker. Walmart has them on clearance for just $15 online. I can't wait to try it out. Cupcakes, muffins and low carb pies are in the future. Having given up turning on my leaky oven during the heatwave, it has been a long time since we have had any baked goods around here. Since the heatwave shows no signs of imminent demise, I must prepare for temperatures in the hundreds plus teens. I think my oven is becoming kitchen storage for August. I will dream tonight of miniature pumpkin pies, complete with coconut flour crust, baking in my new red little cupcake machine. Can' wait for fall. Until then, this cool and creamy cheesecake is summertime dessert heaven.

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Dibs

Remember the Cheesecake Dibs I created? Add all that creamy yumminess and add peanut butter flavor to it, and you have these wonderful little treats perfect for Easter. I always did love those Reese's Peanut butter eggs. These are not quite as peanutty, but very good...and low carb legal!

I make mine in that special little pan, but any mini cupcake pan would do fine. I like them best when they are just a little bit frozen still. See the ice crystals in the photo? That is what makes them the most like the Dibs Ice Cream Bites. They are just chilled or room temperature too, as long as it is not too hot. The coconut oil tends to melt onto your fingers too much.

On my last post, my incredibly talented baker friend, Jennifer, said she had some trouble getting the erythritol to not be gritty. I have had a problem with that myself in other recipes, even though I used the powdered version. I will share something I learned that is helpful, and I hope it works for you. I read on Low Carb Friends that you can melt erythritol into a simple syrup. I tried it with a teaspoon of vanilla on my stovetop and it worked well. I then stirred that into my frozen yogurt mixture and it worked like a dream. Absolutely smooth!

I thought yesterday, I would try the same technique with the powdered xylitol. While it did melt, I may have let it get too hot, or something else is chemically different, and it behaved differently. The sweetener formed into a mass that would not mix in with the coconut oil and cocoa. I had to throw away the sticky sweet lump. Then I just added some liquid stevia to sweeten the remaining coconut bark. At this point, I would recommend not trying to melt Ideal sweetener, but it may have just been "my bad." That was the end of that bag, so I will probably just keep using the erythritol I tried in the original recipes. I think it also helped the coconut bark coat better. These seemed to make a thinner coating than my first batches. Sweetening low carb treats sometimes requires the assistance of a food chemist!

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Dibs

16 ounces cream cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup powdered xylitol or 1 1/4 cup erythritol

**************
1/2 cup coconut oil
3 Tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 cup powdered erythritol (or to taste with any combination of sweeteners)

Bring cream cheese to room temperature. Beat cream cheese and eggs. Add in peanut butter and sweetener. Poor into special baking mold or use mini muffin cups. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 325 degrees.

Remove from oven and let cool. Place in the freezer for at least 2 hours. When ready to dip, first prepare chocolate coating. In a ceramic mug or small bowl, melt coconut oil and then stir in cocoa powder and sweetener. Remove the frozen cheesecakes from their pan. Using tongs, dip each frozen bite into melted chocolate mixture. Set on foil to firm up. Eat frozen for an ice creamlike treat, or eat chilled for a cheesecake treat. Either way is great! My tray makes two batches, or 48 dibs.

24 servings (2 pieces)  143 calories   2.7 net carbs



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Strawberry Cheesecake Muffins

My sweet friend and fellow Diner, Kahri, just gave me a gorgeous, handcrafted gift. I couldn't wait to make something pretty to show it off. Isn't that doily in the picture with the Strawberry Cheesecake Muffins beautiful? I cannot crochet, knit, or even keep count to do cross stitch, so I am in awe at the beautiful work she does. It is even more amazing that she does this as well as care for four kids! I am not too sure my muffins are worthy, especially since the whipped cream kept melting on me. That's summer in Oklahoma.



Pretty or not, these little cheesecakes are very easy to assemble and my guys loved them. The recipe is slightly altered from my usual recipe in the e-book, so I'll give it to you here.

Strawberry Cheesecake Muffins

8 ounces cream cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar substitute
2 Tablespoons Vanilla DaVinci Syrup
8 drops Capella strawberries and cream flavor drops (may substitute 1/2 teaspoon extract)
2 strawberries

Soften cream cheese and dice strawberries finely. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix with a hand mixer. Pour into sprayed muffins cups and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. When cooled, invert onto a plate and top with whipped cream. Optional: drizzle with strawberry or raspberry syrup.

Dessert Shots - a new fad made Low Carb

These tiny desserts are all the rage in restaurants these days. And why not? Portion control is built right in. The price is right, and yet the decadent goodness is all there. When I saw these at Chili's, I knew I could duplicate them at home. Well, today, I found some inexpensive shot glasses at Old Time Pottery, so I took the plunge. The dessert I am starting with today was easy to put together, and everyone loved it. I even dragged out the boys' old baby spoons, which were perfect for our mini desserts. Expect to see more dessert shot recipes from me in the future. Oh, the possibilities...

Tonight's dessert used the Cheesecake Muffins I baked over the weekend. I crumbled one small muffin per dessert, and made a quick batch of whipped cream to help layer. For a pie crust taste, I used a mixture of almond flour and flax meal. So easy to be so impressive.

Cheesecake Dessert Shots

4 prebaked Cheesecake Muffins (See recipe in the Muffin Mania section of the e-book)
1/4 cup whipping cream or canned whipped cream
1/4 cup almond flour, mine was unblanched, but any would do fine
2 Tablespoons flax meal
1 Tablespoon Splenda
1 Tablespoon butter

Prepare nut mixture first. Combine almond flour, flax meal and Splenda. Mix butter in with a fork. Toast lightly in a skillet or toaster oven.

Add a small spoonful of nut mixture into the bottom of each shot glass. Top with crumbled cheesecake muffin, pressing down slightly with your finger or a small spoon. Add a layer of whipped cream. Alternate layers until the glass is full.
Serves 4

My husband just walked by saying, "Gee, those were so good, I could have eaten more." That is my point exactly, I say with a smile.

Easter Bunnies!

Even better! If you put the cheesecake recipe into a slightly bigger dish, you can use Easter cookie cutters to make the most adorable treats! The cheesecake is sturdy enough, that these will cut out fine and will transfer to a plate with no problem. Aren't they cute?

Tie Dye Easter Cheesecake

Looking for something special to compete with all those chocolate bunnies this Easter? This is it!

This no bake cheesecake is so easy and so cute! The colors of spring in a sugarfree dessert. I came up with this one after seeing a blog talking about tie dye cupcakes. I haven't had too much luck lately with cakes, so the thought of cheesecake entered my mind. Come to find out, Disney makes an almost famous tie dye cheese cake with a red velvet cake base. Well, you can try that one if you want, but I want something failproof. So I went searching for a no bake cheesecake. After all, who wants the oven browning interfering with these beautiful colors?

I found a good recipe on Linda Sue's site. If she liked it, I assumed I would too. Her recipe is here: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/its_a_snap_cheesecake.html
I made her recipe, then divided the mixture into 6 bowls. I added about ten drops of food coloring for each one. Then I just plopped the cheesecake mixture into a springform pan. Let it chill a few hours and you have a fantastic dessert that will impress everyone. More than a feast for the eyes, it tastes good too.

Better Than Instant Toffee Cheesecake Pudding

We aren't big dessert eaters, but once in a while, it is nice to have a sweet treat. On days when the cooking system has made dinner a quick no brainer, I choose to make a low carb dessert. That is something I never did when I cooked the entire meal from scratch every night. Here is my latest creation and John's new favorite. It is adapted from a recipe for Cheesecake pudding on Linda's site.

Toffee Cheesecake Pudding

8 ounces softened cream cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup DaVinci English Toffee flavored Syrup
1/4 cup toasted chopped pecans

Blend the cream cheese, sour cream and syrup. I use an immersion blender. Chop nuts and toast them lightly. Spoon the pudding into dessert glasses and sprinkle nuts on top. Chill. Serves 3-4.

Beautiful and so good.

Cheesecake Muffins

I just got an order in from Netrition. I always like to try a new flavor of DaVinci's syrup--the ones you can't get at Walmart or Sam's. This time out, I got Peanut Butter and English Toffee. For my batch of muffins this week, I made the Peanut Butter Cheesecake muffins with a little change. I added less real peanut butter and a bit of the DaVinci syrup. To half of the batch, I added some cocoa powder to make Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake muffins. Now, these are not the super rich New York cheesecake you may be expecting, but they are quick and tasty. They are also a good break from eggs and sausage for breakfast.

Check back later this week, I plan to try a custard with the Toffee syrup.

Cheesecake

We had a Thanksgiving luncheon for our small church group on Sunday. Trying to keep it low carb is only so successful when it is a potluck. I made a low carb cheesecake. Everyone joked about it being low carb, but not low fat. Still, everyone chose it over the storebought chocolate cake. It was awesome. I combined several recipes according to what I had in the kitchen. Sooooo good! It is so creamy and smooth. Mine still cracked on top, but I hate messing with a water bath. If you have the patience, submerging the springform pan in a water bath will hopefully give you a perfect cheesecake top. If not, just hide the crack with some berries!

Lisa's Cheesecake

24 ounces of cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 cup Splenda plus 5 Tablespoons
3 eggs
1 Tablespoon Vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Whey Protein powder
1 cup pecans
3 Tablespoons butter
1 cup frozen berries

Toast pecans until lightly golden. Chop them finely. Melt butter and stir it into the pecans. Add 2 Tablespoons of Splenda. Press this mixture into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan.

Bring ingredients to room temperature. Blend the cream cheese and Splenda. Add sour cream vanilla and protein powder. Blend well. Mix eggs in one at a time. Pour this into the prepared pan. Bake at 300 degrees for 50 minutes. Turn oven off. Open door for one minute. Close oven door and leave the cheesecake in the oven for one more hour. Chill for at least 3 hours.

Place berries in a saucepan and add sweetener to taste. (approx. 3 Tablespoons) Cook until liquid forms. I added a touch of xanthan gum to thicken the juices a bit, but this is optional. Enjoy!