Monthly Archives: December 2014

Desserts, Recipes

Light and Delicious Pistachio Cheesecake

When it comes to a festive-looking, easy to make, no-bake cheesecake, this Pistachio cheesecake is great.  It’s a twist on the pudding cheesecake that is delectably delicious and low carb.

No Bake Pistachio Cheesecake

16 oz Cream Cheese
1 pkt unflavored Gelatin Mix
1/2 cup Sugar Substitute
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 oz. Sugar-free Hazelnut Syrup (optional)
1/2 pkg Sugar Free Pistachio Pudding Mix
3/4 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/4 cup Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

Crust
1/2 cup Almond Flour
1/4 cup Baking Mix or LC Flour
2 tablespoons Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground Ginger

Make the Crust:
In a small bowl, mix all crust ingredients, cutting butter through with a fork. The dough will be soft and sticky. Spray an 8×8″ cake pan with cooking spray and spread the dough over the bottom of the pan. Wet your finger tips or the back of a spoon to make spreading it easier. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool while you mix the filling.

Make the Filling:
In a small bowl, add sugar substitute and boiling water. Sprinkle the gelatin over the top and let it sit a few minutes to soften, then stir it in. Continue to stir until the gelatin completely melts, about five minutes.

In a large bowl, put the softened cream cheese and vanilla extract and mix on low speed blended. Gradually add the gelatin mixture and hazelnut syrup, if using, and continue to beat until the filling is smooth and creamy.

Mix 1/2 box of the Pistachio pudding mix with whipping cream and almond milk. Us a mixer to beat the ingredients together. Let stand for about five minutes until the pudding begins to set. Add 1/2 cup of the cream cheese mixture to the pudding and stir together with a spoon.

Pour the remaining cream cheese mixture onto the top of the baked crust and smooth it out evenly. Pour the pistachio pudding over the top and smooth without mixing it into the lower layer. Loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Cut into 12 servings, 4 slices one direction by three across the other way.

Serve with a tablespoon of whipped cream and a few chopped pistachio nuts, if desired.

     Nutrition info per serving
        Calories:246.7 Fat: 24.2 g Net Carbs: 3.6 g Protein: 4.5 g

Asian Recipes, Recipes, Soups and Stews

Hot and Sour Soup at Home

A soup that can warm you up from the inside out on these cold nights is the Chinese Hot and Sour Soup.  You don’t need to go out for it because it’s easy to make at home.  If you have rice wine vinegar and soy sauce at home, then you have a good start toward the soup.  I made it with what I had in the house — chicken bullion instead of broth, turnips instead of mushrooms, and celery added for a bit of crunch.  Instead of scallions, I added dried minced onions and chives and I also added some mixed, chopped greens.   The original recipe called for shitake mushrooms, but I’ve substituted regular mushrooms for a lower carb dish.  This is a delicious soup with or without other Chinese food on the menu.

Hot and Sour Soup

4 cups Chicken Broth
2 tablespoons Soy Sauce
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed Red Pepper
1 cup fresh Mushrooms, thinly sliced
4 tablespoons Rice Vinegar
1 tablespoon Cornstarch
1 large Egg, lightly beaten
1 deli Smoked Pork Chop, diced
1 stalk Celery, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon Ground Ginger
3 Scallions, thinly sliced
1 cup mixed greens, torn or chopped

Prep all vegetables before starting as this will cook quickly.

In a large pot, combine broth, soy sauce, crushed red pepper, ginger and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil over medium hea, then add celery, pork and mushrooms.

Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

Whisk together 3 tablespoons vinegar and cornstarch. Add to pot; simmer, stirring, until soup is thickened, about 1 minute.

Drizzle egg into the soup and stir to form ribbons. Remove from heat; let stand, covered, 1 minute. Taste; add additional vinegar, if desired.

Makes 6 servings

Nutrition Info: per serving
Calories: 57 Fat: 1.9 g Net Carbs: 4.3 g Protein: 5.6 g