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| You should chill your cheesecake overnight as it makes the texture creamy and wonderful. I cannot EVER wait and always have a piece warm... so this photo is of it still warm. |
This is a cheesecake very similar to the first cheesecake recipe I was given a copy of in the early 90's, by the wife of the Pastor I worked for in Tennessee. She always made hers in a cake pan though. I use the traditional springform pan. She used sugar of course, while I use a natural sweetener. In this cake, I was using Lakanto Monkfruit Sweetener - which I've been thrilled with so far in everything I've been making lately.
- which I've been thrilled with so far in everything I've been making lately.
Basic Low Carb Crust:
2 c almond flour, other nut flour, ground pecans, fine sugar free cookie crumbs, a mixture of any/all
1/2 c natural sweetener, confectioner's style (like So Nourished, Just Like Sugar, etc.)
1/4 t salt
4 T butter
Mix or blend the almond flour, ground nuts, sweetener and salt in a small bowl. Add the butter, and mash/mix with a fork, your fingers or a rubber scraper until it starts to come together, place in your pan (for pie or bars). Press evenly all across the bottom of a springform pan. Bake for about 12 minutes at 350. Remove and let cool while you make your cheesecake.
5 packages cream cheese, softened
4 eggs
1 1/2 c sweetener of choice that is not liquid drops (adapt the amount for the brand/style you are using*)
1 c sour cream
lemon juice
vanilla
*I used a mixture of Lakanto and Swerve - the confectioner's or 'powdered sugar' style. Sometimes I use the granular, but it can make a less creamy texture. You can also just whirl your granular sweetener in a food processor or blender.
Beat the cream cheese smooth, then add your sweetener, followed by the eggs, sour cream and lemon juice and vanilla to taste. Start with about a tablespoon of lemon juice and 2 teaspoons of vanilla but if you want a more lemon flavor, don't add the vanilla. And if you wish, just switch to 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and a tablespoon of vanilla. (You can add other flavors, add fruits, mix about a cup of the batter with cocoa and swirl it in, add sugar free candy pieces like crumbled peanut butter cups, add swirls of sugar free jams or jellies, etc. But I'm a weirdo I guess. I like plain, vanilla cheesecake best of all).
Pour your batter into a well greased 9 or 10 inch springform pan (or a large cake pan like my bosses wife used to use). Bake at 325 for about 1 1/2 hours for the springform pan. Remove and let it cool completely then cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight. This changes the texture. Serve with a drizzle or dollop of whatever you wish. Caramel, chocolate, fruit, whipped cream, peanut butter sauce, crushed candies, crumbled cookies - using all sugar free and low carb options of course!
*I sometimes use a water bath and sometimes half this and use a small sprinform pan to make this in my InstantPot pressure cooker. I don't typically bother with the water bath though. It makes cheesecakes a bit more of a pain to make. I had my pizza stone heating in the oven this time and just put the springform pan on it and baked it that way. Turned out great. If you do get a cheesecake that develops a crack during baking or cooling, just add a nice topping! Covered with a sugar free jam, lemon filling, crumbled sugar free cookies or candies or even just covered in sweetened whipped cream, it is beautiful and no one would ever know.
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| This time I used a mixture of almond flour and ground pecans leftover from Christmas baking for the crust |
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| Pressed into the bottom of the pan (and just a tiny lip up the side) |
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| Baked for 12 minutes in my oven, until starting to turn golden on the edges |
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| A yummy smooth cheesecake batter |
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| In the pan and now... into the oven! |
