Low Carb Cooking 101
By Di Bauer, CarbSmart Editor
Posted 12/15/2001
There were times in my past where the desserts of holiday meals were actually the main course. I can specifically remember holiday meals of my childhood where I would calculate precisely how much of the "boring" food I had to eat before my mother would let me hit the dessert buffet.
Times have changed, thank goodness! Now I enjoy the main and side dishes more than the desserts. The desserts are an afterthought, a "nice touch," but they do not hold forth on center stage for me anymore. I actually like creating desserts more than I like eating them.
Could it be that I'm finally becoming a grown-up? Gasp! Perish the thought! No, I think it's just that after several years of low carbing my tastes have changed. In time I think that yours will, too - if they haven't already.
All of the recipes below are simple, and yet they will add the final touch to your holiday meal that most of us crave. They can all be made ahead of time, and several of them can be made in individual portions. If you are the lone low carber and are traveling to a family dinner, you can take just one portion of your dessert and won't have to lug the entire dessert along with you. (This is also a good trick to keep from overindulging.)
Have a wonderful holiday. I wish you peace, and I wish you joy.
And now for the recipes:
Coconut Pie Crust
- 2 cups unsweetened flaked coconut
- 2 tablespoons granular Splenda (***See note.)
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
Combine the unsweetened flaked coconut, the Splenda, and the melted butter in a mixing bowl and toss to combine them thoroughly.
Turn the mixture into a 9-inch pie plate and distribute it evenly over the bottom and sides of the plate, pressing it to form a firm, even crust.
Bake at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden but not darkly browned.
Cool thoroughly on a wire rack before filling.
***Note: I don't like a terribly sweet pie crust. I suggest you taste the ingredients before baking and adjust the sweetening to your own personal taste.
Di's Coconut Cream Pie
- 1 Coconut Pie Crust (***See recipe above.)
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened flaked coconut
- 4 tablespoons granular Splenda, divided (to taste)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 3/4 cups heavy cream, divided
- 1 5-ounce package sugar free instant vanilla pudding mix
- 3/4 cup water
Prepare the Coconut Pie Crust and let cool completely.
In a small bowl, combine the unsweetened flaked coconut and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the granular Splenda. Toss to combine the coconut and the Splenda thoroughly. Set aside.
Whip 1 cup of the cream until stiff peaks form. Add 1 tablespoon of the granular Splenda and the vanilla and continue whipping to combine thoroughly. Taste test and adjust the sweetener if necessary to suit your own personal taste. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the pudding mix, 3/4 cup of the cream, and all the water. Beat until the pudding mixture thickens. Fold 1 cup of Splenda-sweetened coconut and half of the nondairy whipped topping into the pudding. Pour the combination into the cooled Coconut Pie Crust.
Spread the remaining whipped cream on top of the pie. Sprinkle with the remainder of the coconut.
Cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate until it is time to serve.
Serves 6 to 8.
Nut Pie Crust
- 2 1/2 cups ground pecans
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup granular Splenda (*** See note.)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Stir together the ground pecans, cinnamon, and granular Splenda. Pour in the melted butter and toss the ingredients to combine them thoroughly.
Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan or springform pan. Chill the unbaked crust in the refrigerator for about 30 to 45 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Place the pie crust on a cookie sheet and position on the middle rack of the preheated oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Watch it closely, because nut crusts tend to burn easily, and taste burnt even when they are not black!
Take the crust out of the oven and cool it completely on a wire rack before filling.
***Note: I don't like a terribly sweet pie crust. I suggest you taste the ingredients before baking and adjust the sweetening to your own personal taste.
Cranberry Sunset Frozen Cheesecake
This recipe looks like a long one, but it's simply making a low carbohydrate cranberry relish and then using the relish to flavor a no-bake cheesecake.
- 1 Pecan Nut Pie Crust (See the recipe above.)
- 2 12-ounces packages fresh cranberries
- 1/2 cup sugar free DaVinci orange syrup (***See note.)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon dried orange peel
- 2 teaspoons orange extract, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup granular Splenda, divided (or to taste)
- 1/2 teaspoon not/Sugar (optional)
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 16 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2 cups heavy cream
Wash the cranberries and then put them in a Dutch oven or other large, heavy pan. Add the sugar free DaVinci orange syrup and water and heat the berries over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until they begin to pop. Add the dried orange peel, 1 teaspoon of the orange extract, the lemon extract, and the cinnamon. Stir to combine all the ingredients.
Continue cooking until all the berries are popped, adding a bit more water if it is necessary to keep the berries from scorching. Stir the berries with a wooden spoon, pressing some of the berries against the side of the pot to mash them.
When all the berries are popped, add 1/2 cup of the granular Splenda and the chopped pecans. Stir to combine them thoroughly into the cranberry mixture. Taste test to adjust the sweetening to your personal taste. If the mixture is too thin and watery, the not/Starch and continue cooking until the mixture thickens.
Remove the cranberry mixture from the heat, place in a large bowl, and set aside to cool completely.
When the cranberry mixture is completely cooled, whip the softened cream cheese in a small mixing bowl.
In a large, separate mixing bowl, whip the cream until soft (not stiff) peaks form. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of the granular Splenda and the remaining 1 teaspoon of the orange extract. Continue whipping briefly to combine the ingredients thoroughly.
Gradually add the whipped cream cheese to the whipped cream mixture. Add the cooled cranberry mixture and continue beating until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
Turn the cheesecake mixture into a large, ungreased springform pan. Smooth the top of the cheesecake with a spatula, and cover with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap directly onto the top of the cheesecake so that no air can get to it.
Freeze until firm, a minimum of three hours.
To serve, remove the cheesecake from the freezer at least 1/2 hour before you want to serve it.
Serves 8 to 10. (Cut small slices. This is very rich!)
If you have extra cheesecake mixture that will not fit into your springform pan, simply freeze it in small plastic containers in individual portions.
***Note: If you don't have the DaVinci orange syrup, you may substitute additional water for the syrup, but you will need to add additional orange extract to make up for the flavor of the missing syrup.
*** Optional Garnish Idea: Before adding the cranberry mixture to the cheesecake mixture, take about 1/3 of the cranberry mixture and run it through a Foley's Food Grinder or a sieve to separate the liquid from the solids. Set the liquid portion aside.
Return the solids to the rest of the cranberry mixture and continue on with making the cheesecake as the recipe directs.
Heat the liquid you have pressed out of the cranberry mixture. If it is too thin, add a small amount of not/Stach to thicken it; if it is too thick, add a little water to thin it. Taste test to adjust the sweetener.
Place the syrup in a small plastic container and refrigerate until it you bring the cheesecake out of the freezer to thaw. At that time, take the syrup out of the refrigerator to warm up so that you can drizzle a small amount over each slice of cheesecake before it is served.
One mandarin orange segment looks very pretty if placed in the center of the drizzled sauce, too.
***Special Carb-Cutting Note: If you are determined not to go overboard at your holiday meal, just make the cranberry mixture for yourself and skip the whole cheesecake! Serve it warmed up with some artificially sweetened whipped cream on top.
Di's Low Carb Custard Pie
I adapted this from a low carb cup custard recipe sent to me by a friend. (Thanks, Khrystah!) There are only 17.6 grams of carbohydrates in the entire recipe!
- 5 eggs
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup sugar free DaVinci Vanilla or French Vanilla syrup (*** See note.)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- additional ground nutmeg for garnish
- pinch salt
Take out your pie plate and find a larger baking dish, casserole, or roaster which the pie plate will fit into which touching the sides.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all the ingredients except the nutmeg for the garnish in a blender and process to blend the ingredients for 15 to 20 seconds.
Pour the blended ingredients into an ungreased pie plate. Sprinkle with additional nutmeg.
Place the pie plate in the baking dish, casserole, or roaster and add water to the larger container to a depth of 1/2 to 3/4 inch.
Place the pie on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the center is set and the top is lightly browned.
Take the pie out of the larger container and cool on a wire rack. When cooled, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time.
This pie is good either hot or cold. (It can be warmed up in the microwave.)
***Note: If you don't have the DaVinci syrups, you may substitute water for the syrup.
I have also made this with 1/2 cup French Vanilla and 1/2 cup Caramel sugar free DaVinci syrups, which is quite good.
***Optional Garnish Idea: If you would like to jazz up the looks of this plain Jane pie, apply rosettes of artificially sweetened whipped cream around the edge of the pie just before serving and place a sugar free chocolate-coated espresso bean on the peak of each whipped cream rosette.
Di's Chocolate Mocha No-Bake Cheesecake
I make this crustless, although you could put it in either the coconut or nut crusts if you wish to. Another alternative would be to serve it in tall parfait glasses.
- 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 2 tablespoons instant coffee crystals
- 12 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 3 packets sugar free hot cocoa mix (*** See note.)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 6 packets Splenda
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
Dissolve the gelatin into the water and stir in the coffee. Put the mixture in the
freezer for 5 minutes to cool down.
Whip the cream until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whip the cream cheese, Splenda, and cocoa mixes together. Add the cooled gelatin mixture and continue whipped until the ingredients are thoroughly combined. Fold in the whipped cream gently and pour the mixture into a pie plate.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time.
***Note: Diet Swiss Miss (NOT Sugar Free Swiss Miss) is the instant cocoa with the lowest carbohydrate count.
*** Optional Garnish Ideas:
- Using a pastry bag, apply rosettes of artificially sweetened whipped cream around the circumference of the pie. Place a sugar free chocolate-covered espresso bean at the peak or each rosette. If you don't have any of the espresso beans, you can dust each rosette peak lightly with unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Freeze a sugar free, low carbohydrate chocolate bar and use a vegetable peeler to peel thin chocolate curls onto the top of the cheesecake. Or you could melt the chocolate car and drizzle chocolate over the top of the cheesecake. (One of those squiggly looking Christmas trees or stars would be pretty.)
|
