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
The Thanksgiving holiday just isn’t complete at my house without pumpkin pie. The best recipe I’ve found for it is the one on Libby’s pumpkin can, but it does need adjustments to be low carb. But this year I decided to enhance my low carb recipe to a Maple Pumpkin Pie with Pecans.
The first change is the pie crust. I made the crust with hazelnut flour mixed with a low carb flour. You can use all almond flour as a substitute for both flours. The crust will not be like a regular crust, but more like a crumble crust on the bottom. Look for almond flour or hazelnut flour in the health food section of the grocery store or at health food stores. You can also find Bob’s Red Mill low carb flour in these places also. Bob’s is not the lowest low carb flour, but it will only add about 1/2 a carb to the serving over the CarbQuick flour. The other change is using sugar substitute for the sugar and heavy whipping cream for evaporated milk.
If you use Splenda, the filler that carries the sweetener has up to .9 carb per teaspoon. I don’t know the exact amount as they only show <1 carb. Xylitol and liquid sucralose have no carbs. That saves up to 36 carbs by making the switch. For those that like it, liquid Stevia also works.
For those who are phase 1 of Atkins or just don’t want a crust on your pie, you can make this without the crust. Just spray the pie pan with baking spray and pour the filling into the pan. Everything else is the same. If you want to make them in muffin pans or custard cups, go the instructions at the bottom of the page.
For more recipes for your Thanksgiving or Christmas holiday to stay on a low carb lifestyle, go toA Low Carb Winter Holiday
Hazelnut and low carb flour pie shell.
Pie Crust:
1/4 tsp Salt
3 Tbsp Cold Water
1/3 cup Shortening or Butter (cold)
1/3 cup LOW CARB BAKING MIX (CarbQuick, Bob’s Red Mill, LC Foods or Atkins)
1/3 cup hazelnut flour or almond flour
Heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly spray an 8″ or 9″ deep dish pie pan with cooking spray.
In a mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients ( Low Carb Baking Mix and salt). Cut in shortening until pea sized balls are formed. Sprinkle water one tablespoon at a time and mix in lightly with a fork. If the dough is very moist, then only use as much water as necessary for it to form a ball. Let rest a few minutes.
Divide the dough into quarters and place in each section of a deep dish pie tin. Use your fingers to spread the crust around the bottom of the pan and work it up the edge of the pie pan about half way. Use a fork, to pierce the bottom of the crust a few times.
Bake the crust for 10-12 minutes at 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Crust Nutrition Info: Calories: 72.3 g Net Carbs: .4 g Protein: 1.1 g
(I’m giving you crust only information in case you want to use it for another pie. Whether you use Almond flour, Hazelnut flour or all Baking Mix, the crust will be about the same number of carbs.)
1/12 slice of Maple Pumpkin Pie.
Pie Filling
3/4 cup Sugar substitute
1/4 cup Brown Sugar Substitute**
1/4 cup sugar-free Maple Syrup
1 tablespoon ground Cinnamon *
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon ground Ginger *
1/4 teaspoon ground Cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground Nutmeg *
3 large eggs
1 can (15 oz.) Pumpkin Puree
1/2 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/4 cup unsweetened Almond or Coconut Milk
1 cup Pecan halves (optional)
Whipped cream (optional)
• You can use 2 tablespoons Pumpkin Pie Spice for the cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Still add the clove .
** You can use white sugar substitute for the brown sugar if you can’t find any sugar free Brown Sugar. Do NOT use the Splenda Brown Sugar mix for this. It uses real brown sugar, so the carbs are quite a bit higher.
Mix sugar, salt, and spices in a small bowl. Beat eggs in large bowl., then stir pumpkin, maple syrup and sugar-spice mixture. Combine milks and stir together. Gradually add to mixture as you stir it in.
POUR into prepared pie shell. Arrange the pecans over the top of the pie.
BAKE in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. After it cools down enough, about 30 minutes, I cover the pie with plastic wrap.
Serve or refrigerate. Top with whipped cream before serving.
To make a thicker pie, use 4 eggs, 3 cups of pumpkin puree and 1 cup of heavy whipping cream. This will add about 1 net carb to the count.
Makes 10 average servings or 12 small servings.
Nutrition Info per serving: 10 servings
Calories: 237 Fat: 22g Net Carbs: 4.1 g Protein: 4.4 g
Nutrition Info per serving: 12 servings
Calories: 198 Fat: 18.4 g Net Carbs: 3.4 g Protein: 3.7 g
Crustless Pumpkin Pie (Custard)
You can make these in 8 to 10 muffin pans instead of putting into a pie shell. If you’re on phase I of Atkins, the crust is definitely not a part of the plan.
To make: Simply use the recipe for the pie filling and mix it up according to the directions above, omitting the optional pecans.
Preheat the oven to 365 degrees (F.). Spray 1/2 capacity cup muffin cups or custard cups with cooking spray. Use a 1/2 cup measure to dip into the batter and fill cups to about 2/3 full.
Put muffin cups on a baking sheet and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let cool, then cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Remove from the mold. Add a dollop of whipped cream and serve. Makes 8 to 10 servings.
Nutrition Info: 8 servings per serving
Calories: 131 Fat: 10.5 g Net Carbs: 4.3 g Protein: 3.6 g
L to R: Turnips and Cauliflower au Gratin Casserole, Irish Style Kohlrabi, Classic Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Thanksgiving, then all the other winter holidays are coming up quickly. To help find those recipes that I’ve posted over the past few years for holiday meals, I’m putting many of them on this one page. At the beginning of December, I’ll do a similar page with Holiday Sweet Treats that will cover the cookies, candies and cakes for the holiday season.
Main Course:
Turkey – I don’t actually have a recipe for roasting turkey. Almost anyone you might find will likely be low carb. What adds the carbs is the dressing. See below. But here’s a Roast Turkey recipe from AllRecipes.com that is beautifully seasoned and not stuffed.Rosemary Roasted Turkey
Low Carb Stuffing Bread
Low Carb Stuffing – This is an easy-to-make stuffing bread that will work well with any of your usual vegetables and/or fruits and sausage to make a delicious stuffing you can bake in your turkey or in a side casserole dish. Add some of the turkey juices to the mix to bring in the flavor of the turkey.
Side Dishes:
We need good side dishes that are still low carb. Potatoes just don’t cut it on a low carb lifestyle, no matter how much we want them to be a part of the meal. Here are a few options for potato replacements that are very tasty and may make you forget all about that other root vegetable.
Back before I went to the low carb lifestyle, I used to make this pancake often and with other fruits than apples. It works very well with pears and peaches instead of apples. Technically, none of those fruits are on the okay list for Atkins phase 2 or phase 3, but lately Atkins has been allowing more of these “forbidden” fruits to their list. They put out a recipe using peaches, so I think the best bet is to just be careful of the number of carbs in the total dish and not do it too often.
I use a combination of CarbQuick and almond flour for the pancake part. You can use all almond flour or a combination of almond flour and coconut flour (use 1/2 the amount called for of coconut flour if you use it. It expands with liquid.) I don’t like coconut flour as well for baking because the texture is kind of gritty, but if you use a small amount, it works very well.
To make a great breakfast, serve this with bacon and eggs, or just bacon or ham. Great start for the day. To make a nice dessert out of it, put a dollop of whipped cream on top and/or a bit of sugar free caramel syrup.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Put 8 inch pie tin into the oven to heat.
In a bowl, beat together the flours, eggs, coconut milk, 2 teaspoons sugar substitute and salt.
Cut the apple in half, then slice into thin pieces. Put slices in a small bowl, add cinnamon, clove and 2 tablespoons sugar substitute
German Apple Pancake cooked in a cake tin.
Remove the pie tin and put the butter in the hot tin and swirl it around to coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Be sure to use a pot holder when holding the tin. It will be hot enough to melt the butter.
Layer the apples over the bottom of the buttered tin then pour the flour and egg mixture over the apples carefully.
Bake for about 20 minutes until the pancake is golden brown. It will puff up while cooking. Cut into quarters and serve immediately. Add a little whipped cream topping if you wish.
Makes 4 or 6 servings, depending on how many carbs you have to spare.
Nutrition Info – 4 slices – per slice
Calories: 120 Fat: 8.1 g Net Carbs: 6.3 g Protein: 4.8 g
Nutrition Info – 6 slices – per slice
Calories: 80 Fat: 5.4 g Net Carbs: 4.2 g Protein: 3.2 g
Fall is beginning to really arrive in many parts of the country. Here, in the Truckee Meadows of Northern Nevada, it’s an overcast, blustery day and trees are beginning to change colors. My pear tree is a mixture of red-orange and golden leaves from the multiple varieties grafted onto it. My pumpkin vine failed to produce any pumpkins, but luckily, the grocery stores have canned available. I usually pick up several cans in the fall to last me year ’round because I love pumpkin! I like to have Pumpkin Butter with my low carb muffins or spread it on the top of little cakes. Pumpkin pie should be savored year-round. Not to mention those Pumpkin Madeleine cookies that I posted recently or luscious Pumpkin Cheesecake. And there’s the old stand-by for breakfast, Pumpkin Pancakes!
So, here is another lovely pumpkin dish. A flan is a Spanish dish that is like a custard, usually with a caramel sauce, and it is very easy to make. My recipe will make six little ramekins of these delicious desserts. You will need six 1 cup ramekins or you can make them in a muffin tin. Just be sure you have a pan large enough for the tin to sit in. My recipe uses coconut milk or almond milk, so it is good for those of you who can’t tolerate cow’s milk. It also makes it lower carb than using heavy cream, but you can substitute that in if you prefer the richer taste.
Not crazy about pumpkin? Are you nuts! Seriously, I know there are some people who don’t really like it, but you can try this Orange Flan recipe instead. (It’s near the bottom of the new page.)
Light Pumpkin Flan
3/4 cup Sugar Free Maple Syrup
3 large Egg
1/3 cup Sugar Substitute
3/4 cup Pumpkin Puree
1 tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/2 teaspoon Ground Clove
1 – 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 -1/2 cup Almond Milk or Coconut Milk (or heavy Cream)
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Heat maple syrup in a small pan over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar substitute. Cook until the sugar is blended in.
Butter or spray six one cup ramekins or six large muffin wells, put 2 tablespoons of the syrup in each and roll around the bottoms to coat. Mix the remaining ingredients together until smooth. Pour into ramekins, dividing mixture evenly to about 1/2 inch from the top.
Put the ramekins or muffin pan into a large pan that is deep enough to add water at least half way up the sides of the pan or ramekins. Be careful not to get water in the ramekins. Carefully place in the center of your oven.
Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until the custard is set. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving. Garnish with a dollop of whipped cream or cool whip. You can also top with a few roasted pumpkin seeds for a bit of crunch if you like.
Makes 6 servings.
Nutrition Info with almond or coconut milk:
Calories: 59 Fat: 3.2 g Net Carbs: 2.4 g Protein: 3.8 g
Nutrition Info with heavy cream:
Calories: 256.8 Fat: 24.6 g Net Carbs: 4.1 g Protein: 4.8 g
