Low Carb Cheesecake (Take 1)

Okay, so it collapsed but it still tasted good! Too many berries I reckon. Overberried.

On the plus side- the low carb almond and chocolate base was perfect. I'll post the recipe once I've perfected the top part and it holds.

Low Carb & Gluten Free Brownies

This recipe comes courtesy of the lovely Breffney over at A Pinch Of Ginger. She's training to be a chef and is a total a whiz in the kitchen, so I was delighted to see this recipe pop up on her blog.

I made these gorgeous butternut squash brownies last night and S declared them to be some of the best he has ever tasted. These decadent treats are gluten free and paleo-friendly and absolutely delicious- they're still moist the next day!

You can see Breffney's original blog post (with ingredients and method) here and you can also find her on Facebook.

Mixed Dry Ingredients

Chocolate & Butternut Squash Mix

Served Warm With Cream

Low Carb Ice Cream

I need to ask you a question. Do you like ice cream? I'm sorry, that was stupid of me. Of course you do.

What if I was to tell you that you can eat low carb and still have fabulously flavoured frozen food? Well, I'd like to introduce you to Wheyhey Protein Ice Cream. Nope, it's not April 1st- this is as real as it gets.

I happened on these little pots of nirvana in Holland & Barrett in Wilton Shopping Centre a couple of weeks ago, and I've just recently seen them in the newly refurbished Quay CoOp on Sullivan's Quay. They come in the traditional flavours of strawberry, vanilla and chocolate and are available in 150ml and 500ml size tubs- though I've only seen the small sizes in stores so far. The small tub will set you back just under €3.

So, how do they taste? The vanilla flavour is quite creamy and very like 'real' vanilla dairy ice cream. The strawberry is my least favourite. It's very sweet and my tastebuds just don't like sweet things as much as they used to. However, sweet-toothed people should find it scrumptious.
For me, the chocolate flavour is hands-down the winner. It's more like a dark chocolate than a milk chocolate and it tastes very like Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream.

Here's the best part- there is just 1g of net carbs in a 100ml serving. Yes, you read that correctly. One gram. Compare that to 21g per 100ml of Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream- well, there is no comparison.
Here's the full nutritional breakdown, as seen on the Wheyhey website:

Wheyhey ice cream contains xylithol- one of the best sugar substitutes out there. It's considered very safe by the FDA, is suitable for diabetics and has also been shown to help with dental care- so you could say eating this ice cream is good for your teeth!

Might I suggest adding a large dollop of vanilla to a warm slice of my chocolate almond cake? Or a scoop of chocolate wrapped up in a crepe? Or just grab a spoon and dig in!

The website also teases a soon-to-be-available protein ice lolly- hopefully just in time for summer!

You can find Wheyhey on Facebook and Twitter, and their huge following seems to suggest I may be alone in only just discovering this awesome product. Better late than never.

Pssst! While you're on Twitter, why not give Low Carb Cork a follow?

Chocolate Almond Cake

This gorgeous chocolate cake is adapted from my Mother's gluten-free recipe. Have it warm, with a big dollop of double cream, or use Homemade Nutella mixed with mascarpone as icing.

Ingredients

8oz dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)
4 large eggs
2oz stevia
3oz sugar-free drinking chocolate (ie Options)
1 tbsp coconut flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp vegetable oil
4oz ground almonds

Method

1. Melt chocolate and leave to cool slightly.

2. Beat eggs, stevia, drinking chocolate, coconut flour and baking powder until blended.

3. Fold in the oil, almonds and melted chocolate.

4. Pour into a lined baking tin- this recipe makes enough to fill an 8 inch round tin.

5. Bake for 40-45 minutes at 180C/360F degrees. Pierce with a skewer or knife to check that the centre is fully cooked.


Of course, if you are trying to lose weight make sure to do the carb math based on the ingredients you use.

However, a good size slice of this after dinner with some double cream or a spoonful of homemade nutella icing has never kicked me out of ketosis.

Homemade Nutella

This simple chocolate spread is great to dip strawberries into, or serve warm with mascarpone and crepes. It's a lovely dessert option, and tasty enough to give to carb-eating friends. It will keep in an airtight container for up to a month.

Ingredients

6oz Hazelnuts
6oz Dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)
3/4 Cup soya milk
3 Tablespoons sugar-free maple syrup or stevia

Method

1. Spread the hazelnuts out on a roasting tin and oven bake for 15 minutes at 180/350 degrees.

2. Let the nuts cool for 5 minutes then blitz them in a food processor until they have the same texture as smooth peanut butter. It will take a while for the oil to come out of the nuts and give the mixture a smooth consistency, but give it time and it will work.

3. Melt the chocolate.

4. Add the melted chocolate, syrup and milk to the hazelnuts and blend until smooth.

5. Pour into a jar, refrigerate or leave in a cool place for it to set. Can also be nommed immediately.

Pro-Tip: Use a spoonful as 'icing' on low-carb chocolate almond cake.

Of course, if you are trying to lose weight, make sure to do the carb math based on the ingredients you use. The last batch I made used 85% chocolate, and contained about 28g of carbs in the whole jar (about 400g). Real Nutella has 57g of carbs per 100g.