There was a lot of talk about cheesecake around here recently, and I'm blaming this on whoever started that.
What happened is that I did two things yesterday:
1. I joined the new weight loss thread started by Heather, got some great advice, and became really excited about getting my weight under control.
2. I made a cheesecake.
So this cheesecake will have to be my last culinary hurrah for a long, long while. But there's good news, too! I made this cheesecake from scratch, with no recipe at all -- and it's egg-free, reduced in fat, and 'way, 'way reduced in sugar -- and and and --
-- it's EXCELLENT! (If I do say so myself.)
For anyone else who's been craving cheesecake, here's roughly what I did (I didn't measure anything... but this will be close):
Somewhat Less Lethal Cheesecake
Chocolate Grahams (not chocolate coated -- just chocolate flavor)
Finely Chopped Walnuts
Light or Regular Philadelphia Cream Cheese (not whipped; and I wouldn't try it with the Fat Free kind)
Evaporated Milk
Light Sour Cream
Splenda
Butter
Vanilla Extract
Lemon
Berries
First, put your three 8-ounce packages of cream cheese on the counter so they can soften to room temperature.
Crust
In a large ceramic or stainless steel bowl, crumble one plastic-wrapped package of the chocolate grahams. Take a smaller bowl and press it down into the larger one to crush the crackers well.
Melt most of one stick of butter (margarine might be okay -- I just avoid it because of hydrogenation) and mix that in until the crackers start sticking together.
Then mix in some chopped walnuts -- I used a little more than half of a 10-ounce package. Pat this mixture into the bottom of a springform pan if you have one. If you don't, a rectangular cake pan should be big enough, or you can use two regular round cake pans.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Filling
Stir the three packages of cream cheese together in a large bowl.
Incorporate about a half-cup of evaporated milk until it's smooth (add a little more if you feel it's not soft enough).
Then add about a cup of Splenda and stir until smooth.
Finally, dribble in some vanilla extract... I don't know how much!
Add a teaspoon or so, stir well, and taste to see if you need more. (Since there are no eggs, it's safe to taste.)
Now spread the filling over the crust, being very careful to move outward from the center, so you don't pick up crumbs. Put it into your pre-heated oven on the middle shelf and let it bake undisturbed for about 30 minutes.
Then check on it by gently jiggling the pan. If the edges seem solid, but the very center wiggles a little, your cheesecake is already done! If there's too much wiggle over too wide an area, it's not. (Can you tell this is a very exact science?
) The point is, you definitely don't want it overdone, and since there are no eggs in it, you're safe in letting it be a little underdone.
Take the cheesecake out and let it cool for an hour, then refrigerate it for a few hours or overnight.
Topping
This is so easy, and it adds so much: just dump a 24-ounce container of Daisy's Light Sour Cream into a bowl, add the juice of a small lemon, and stir in Splenda to taste (probably about a cup of it).
Spread the topping over the cheesecake, put the berries of your choice on the side, and serve. I really think you'll like it! I was amazed how well it came out, since I had absolutely no idea what I was doing!
I guess there's only so wrong you can go with such wonderful ingredients.
The only actual sugar in it is in the graham crackers (I couldn't find any sugarfree ones), and of course, there's a lot of lactose in the evaporated milk. But overall, this is pretty healthy -- for cheesecake.
Come to think of it, you could use sugar-free Oreos with the white stuff removed! That would make a great crust!
Oh, drat. Now I'll have to make another one to try that...
What happened is that I did two things yesterday:
1. I joined the new weight loss thread started by Heather, got some great advice, and became really excited about getting my weight under control.
2. I made a cheesecake.
So this cheesecake will have to be my last culinary hurrah for a long, long while. But there's good news, too! I made this cheesecake from scratch, with no recipe at all -- and it's egg-free, reduced in fat, and 'way, 'way reduced in sugar -- and and and --
-- it's EXCELLENT! (If I do say so myself.)
For anyone else who's been craving cheesecake, here's roughly what I did (I didn't measure anything... but this will be close):
Somewhat Less Lethal Cheesecake
Chocolate Grahams (not chocolate coated -- just chocolate flavor)
Finely Chopped Walnuts
Light or Regular Philadelphia Cream Cheese (not whipped; and I wouldn't try it with the Fat Free kind)
Evaporated Milk
Light Sour Cream
Splenda
Butter
Vanilla Extract
Lemon
Berries
First, put your three 8-ounce packages of cream cheese on the counter so they can soften to room temperature.
Crust
In a large ceramic or stainless steel bowl, crumble one plastic-wrapped package of the chocolate grahams. Take a smaller bowl and press it down into the larger one to crush the crackers well.
Melt most of one stick of butter (margarine might be okay -- I just avoid it because of hydrogenation) and mix that in until the crackers start sticking together.
Then mix in some chopped walnuts -- I used a little more than half of a 10-ounce package. Pat this mixture into the bottom of a springform pan if you have one. If you don't, a rectangular cake pan should be big enough, or you can use two regular round cake pans.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Filling
Stir the three packages of cream cheese together in a large bowl.
Incorporate about a half-cup of evaporated milk until it's smooth (add a little more if you feel it's not soft enough).
Then add about a cup of Splenda and stir until smooth.
Finally, dribble in some vanilla extract... I don't know how much!
Now spread the filling over the crust, being very careful to move outward from the center, so you don't pick up crumbs. Put it into your pre-heated oven on the middle shelf and let it bake undisturbed for about 30 minutes.
Then check on it by gently jiggling the pan. If the edges seem solid, but the very center wiggles a little, your cheesecake is already done! If there's too much wiggle over too wide an area, it's not. (Can you tell this is a very exact science?
Take the cheesecake out and let it cool for an hour, then refrigerate it for a few hours or overnight.
Topping
This is so easy, and it adds so much: just dump a 24-ounce container of Daisy's Light Sour Cream into a bowl, add the juice of a small lemon, and stir in Splenda to taste (probably about a cup of it).
Spread the topping over the cheesecake, put the berries of your choice on the side, and serve. I really think you'll like it! I was amazed how well it came out, since I had absolutely no idea what I was doing!
The only actual sugar in it is in the graham crackers (I couldn't find any sugarfree ones), and of course, there's a lot of lactose in the evaporated milk. But overall, this is pretty healthy -- for cheesecake.
Come to think of it, you could use sugar-free Oreos with the white stuff removed! That would make a great crust!
Oh, drat. Now I'll have to make another one to try that...
