Today is our 10th anniversary!
The special ingredient in this recipe is SWERVE. You can find it if you click HERE. If I could, I would use it for all of my recipes, but because it is so expensive, I use it for making caramel (erythritol doesn't melt so it won't work) and I use it for ice cream because unlike erythritol, it keeps ice cream nice and soft.
Swerve looks and tastes like sugar and has a very low glycemic index of approximately zero. It is composed of prebiotic fibers that have been shown to help with candida-cleansing and weight loss.
This recipe is just one of the great dessert recipes in my new color cookbook "The Art of Eating Healthy: Sweets" available here.
CRUST:
1 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1 cup coconut oil or butter
1 cup Swerve (or erythritol)
2 tsp stevia glycerite
1 tsp Celtic sea salt
FILLING:
5 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 1/2 cups confectioners Swerve (or powdered erythritol)
1 tsp stevia glycerite
3/4 cup vanilla almond milk
3 eggs
1 TBS vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9 inch springform pan. In a medium bowl, mix ingredients. This will be a thick pie dough, press onto bottom of springform pan. Place in oven to pre-bake the crust. Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, mix cream cheese with sweeteners until smooth. Blend in almond milk, and then mix in the eggs one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate. Mix in vanilla until smooth. Pour filling into prepared crust. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Turn the oven off, and let cake cool in oven with the door closed for 5 to 6 hours; this prevents cracking. Chill in refrigerator until serving. Meanwhile, make the caramel sauce and chocolate sauce.
CHOCOLATE SAUCE:
2 TBS grass fed butter or coconut oil
1 oz unsweetened baking chocolate
10 TBS heavy cream
1/4 cup powdered* erythritol (or Organic Zero)
1 tsp stevia glycerite
Place the butter and chopped chocolate in a double boiler (or in a heat safe dish over a pot of boiling water). Stir well until just melted (don't burn the chocolate!), add in the cream, and sweetener. Stir until smooth and thick. Smooth all over the top of the cooled cheesecake and set back in fridge to set.
CARAMEL SAUCE:
1 cup Just Like Sugar (or xylitol)
6 TBS grass fed butter
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Before you begin, make sure you have everything ready to go - the cream and the butter next to the pan, ready to put in. (If you are using Xylitol click HERE for directions). If you don't work fast, the sweetener will burn. Heat butter on high heat in a heavy-bottomed 2-quart or 3-quart saucepan. As soon as it comes to a boil, watch for specks of brown (this is brown butter....SO GOOD on veggies!). Immediately add the Swerve and the cream to the pan. Whisk until caramel sauce is smooth. Let cool in the pan for a couple minutes, then pour into a glass mason jar and let sit to cool to room temperature. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Use to drizzle all over the cheesecake just before serving. You can also top with pecan pieces. Makes 12 servings.
NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON (per serving)
Traditional Turtle Cheesecake = 760 calories, 53 carbs, 0.5 g fiber (52.5 effective carbs)
"Healthified" Turtle Cheesecake = 584 calories, 7 carbs, 2.4 g fiber (4.6 effective carbs)
*Powdered erythritol will create a smoother texture. All you have to do is grind a bunch in a coffee grinder and keep it handy for recipes.
