As Promised…A Treat. Almond Butter Cheesecake. #YourTurnChallenge #MFRWAuthor

With the last blog of the My Turn Challenge I promised a yummy dessert recipe. This is easy to put together but difficult to resist.

mmmmmmmmmmmmm

Fortunately this first time I used small glass ramekins, so I could share with friends. And also so I could avoid that trick of ‘just a tiny slice’ that ends up devouring the entire pie. I’m sure I’m not the only person to try that.

The original recipe was on Buttoni’s wonderful website Buttoni’s Low Carb Recipes, a go to place for delicious low carb ideas.

INGREDIENTS:

½ c. (2 oz) Emerald brand roasted cocoa almonds

24 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 c. heavy (whipping) cream

Sweetener of your choice to equal 1½-2 c. sugar  (always add a little at a time & taste)

½ c. water

1 envelope Knox unflavored gelatin

1½ tsp. almond extract

2 T. almond butter

DIRECTIONS:  Process or crush cocoa almonds until evenly crumbly.  Spread all but 1 T. (for topping) onto the bottom of a pie plate as evenly as possible.  Place softened cream cheese into large mixing bowl. Place water in a small saucepan, sprinkle gelatin over the water and heat on medium heat until gelatin is completely dissolved.   Pour gelatin over softened cream cheese and whip with hand mixer until creamy.  Add in almond extract and almond butter and whip another couple seconds until well blended. In a separate bowl, whip whipping cream until thick.  Gently fold that whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.   Now gently dip up the filling mixture and gently place atop the crumb bottom crust.  Try not to disturb the crumbs any more than is absolutely necessary.  Smooth the top of the cheesecake with a rubber spatula or spoon.  Sprinkle the reserved tablespoon of crushed cocoa almonds over the top and chill for 3-4 hours.  Cut into 8 pieces and serve with or without cherries or strawberries for garnish.

crust with a touch of cocoa

Nutritional information is available on the link above. I saw this recipe a while back but didn’t get around to trying it until the last heavy snow fall. I didn’t have any of those roasted cocoa almonds in the cupboard (really, how long do you think they’d stay?) But I remembered making a sort of graham cracker crumb crust with almond flour. So my crust was 1 cup almond meal, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and some Truvia (what I had in the cupboard…your choice which sweetener you want to use) The proportions I read called for 2 tablespoons, I used one. I also added about 1tsp of cocoa powder. Press this crust into your pie pan or in my case the ramekins. Bake at 375F for 8 to 10 minutes…keep your eye on it, you want it to begin to brown. Let it cool completely since this is a no bake cheesecake.

The touch of chocolate in the crust was an extra yumminess. I plan to make this for an upcoming writers’ meeting so I’ll do something extra pretty for the topping.

I like preparing my own foods. Not only do I avoid the cost and taste of prepared foods I can also control the ingredients. I’ve been known to plot how to adjust standard recipes into something that fits my low carb way of life but this recipe has the advantage of easy adjustment to sugar. You could use a store bought crust (graham cracker or chocolate) and sweeten to taste with your choice of regular sugar. I didn’t use the amount advised since I’m not near as fond of sweetness as I used to be.

And as a friend pointed out, with cream cheese and heavy whipping cream, how can you go wrong??

I love New Mexico