Diabetic friendly cheesecake?

Turning_Hopes_to_Habits

I have a guest coming over for dinner this weekend, and she's diabetic. She manages it well and does allow herself one dessert every Sunday at our family dinners. She's coming on Saturday, though.

My favorite cheesecake recipe is not New York style, it's less dense. It is just 2 oz cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 2 eggs, and a shortbread crust.

So, I think I can maybe work around the crust with online research using maybe a crumbled biscotti and nut kind of mixture without butter. I don't know, but the research is leading that direction.

But I don't know if 1/2 cup sugar is too much. She mentioned once that Splenda hurts her stomach so badly it feels like she ate glass and keeps her in the bathroom. I would really, really rather not ask her if Stevia works okay for her. That would be the simplest way, of course, but she's one of those people who get really shy and upset if they think they've put people out. If I can find something that works, I can truthfully say that I have another diabetic friend (who always uses Splenda so couldn't help me with this question) who will be there and I made it for her, too.

Anyway, does anyone know if the 1/2 cup of sugar is a problem or if I need to sub it out? Any ideas? Feel free to throw out advice about the crust as well. Hell, I may leave it out. Or just use the mixture to stuff strawberries. I'm pretty flexible here as long as I don't make my friend sick as a dog.

meridianova

first of all, you should never be feeding sugar to a diabetic. unless she knows EXACTLY what's in that cheesecake, it could interfere with her insulin dosages.

fat is NOT a bad thing. fat is GOOD. sugar is what's bad when you're dealing with diabetes. so butter in the crust would be fine.

My favorite cheesecake recipe is not New York style, it's less dense. It is just 2 oz cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 2 eggs, and a shortbread crust.

is this for a mini cheesecake? like a 6" crust? it sounds like it would be very small and very thin. i've got a recipe that gets rave reviews and i usually adapt it to have little to no sugar. it's a denser version, but VERY good.

CRUST:
1.5c almond meal
1T cinnamon
1/2 T ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 stick butter

melt the butter. mix everything else together, then pour melted butter in to make a mashable consistency. press into springform pan. bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

i also often melt a few ounces of ridiculously dark chocolate (like 99%), and after the crust is done baking, drizzle the chocolate onto the crust. it adds just a hint of flavor without any added sugar.

FILLING:
20oz cream cheese (2.5 packages) at room temperature
1.25c sour cream
1/3c heavy cream
2 packets of instant coffee dissolved in 2T vanilla extract
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
vanilla creme stevia OR monkfruit extract (i haven't heard of anyone with problems with stevia, but monkfruit is another option)

whip the sour cream and cream cheese together until smooth. in a separate bowl, combine eggs, yolks, heavy cream, and vanilla/stevia mix. slowly add the egg mixture to the cream cheese mixture.

now comes the touchy part... vanilla liquid stevia comes with an eyedropper cap. you'll probably need at least 2 full droppers-worth to get to the right sweetness level, maybe 3. i do it to taste, and my taste might be different than yours.

drop your oven down to 275 degrees. pour the batter carefully onto the crust and shake gently to disperse any air bubbles. if you've never done a bain marie before, put a large pyrex pan (like 11" x 15") half filled with water on the lowest rack of your oven. put the cheesecake on the middle rack. bake for an hour, then turn off the oven, crack the door for 30 seconds, and let sit another hour. store overnight in the fridge so that it sets up.

meridianova

and by the way, biscotti would be just as bad as shortbread. there's still a lot of sugar there.

simplydelish2

That's a lot of sugar for 2 oz of cream cheese. Did you mean 20 oz?

I'd make the dessert, make sure she knows what's in it, and let her decide how much, if any, she would like.

Or, how about just doing a fruit dessert?

Turning_Hopes_to_Habits

Ooops. Two 8-oz containers of cream cheese. So, a total of 16. I don't like the denseness of NY style at all.

And I'd of course give her the recipe, first.

I read several places that biscotti was a better choice for diabetics than other cookies, but I'll be the first to admit the internet is....well, what it is.

I also read that it's not just sugar that's bad for diabetics, but butter, too. But I don't know who to believe. You've got the anti-sugar people who gorge on all fats like they're water, you've got the people who act like gluten and processed flour is the root of all evil. I guess I'm looking for someone experienced who is a believer in moderation. Which probably means I'm going to have to break down and flat-out ask, lol.

But keep the ideas and thoughts and posts coming if you have a minute to type 'em up-I appreciate them all.

meridianova

if you don't like the new york style, that's fine. the key is in swapping out the ingredients.

I also read that it's not just sugar that's bad for diabetics, but butter, too. But I don't know who to believe. You've got the anti-sugar people who gorge on all fats like they're water, you've got the people who act like gluten and processed flour is the root of all evil. I guess I'm looking for someone experienced who is a believer in moderation. Which probably means I'm going to have to break down and flat-out ask, lol.

moderation is fine, except when you're dealing with people who have medical conditions. if your friend has a preferred sugar substitute, then i'd suggest using that rather than sugar. almonds are good because they also have anti-inflammatory properties and a better nutritional profile than a shortbread would. and if butter isn't an option, you could also use melted coconut oil.

psmd

I would suggest a cheese and nut plate for dessert for a diabetic, though it's very nice of you to try to make the effort.

kikityme

http://beautyandthefoodie.com/

Her recipes are great and all low carb. I've made a couple and haven't had an issue with anything (TypeII). http://beautyandthefoodie.com/lemon-raspberry-cheesecake-bites/

Also paleo friendly.

The only fake sweetener I can take is Swerve (Erythritol). But for me, it's not really the sugar that's the problem, it's the carbs. If you can keep the carbs under 15 (for a dessert) it's a pretty good bet. Since sugar is included in the carbs it's a pretty good way to control. If she "allows" herself a dessert-my guess is she's not really worried about the sugar. Maybe she relies on portions.

Oh, and your first instinct might be to opt for low-fat ingredients-but they are often higher in carbs-so no switching for light cream cheese!

hookilau

Turning_Hopes_to_Habits wrote: »

I also read that it's not just sugar that's bad for diabetics, but butter, too. But I don't know who to believe. You've got the anti-sugar people who gorge on all fats like they're water, you've got the people who act like gluten and processed flour is the root of all evil. I guess I'm looking for someone experienced who is a believer in moderation. Which probably means I'm going to have to break down and flat-out ask, lol.

But keep the ideas and thoughts and posts coming if you have a minute to type 'em up-I appreciate them all.

Moderation is not for Diabetics, unless that's how they choose to manage their illness.
Butter is *also* not bad for diabetics.

Carbs are what raises blood sugar. The nutritional profile of your cheesecake will make it either diabetic friendly or not. There are no 2 ways about it.

I make a regular cheese cake, just use granulated splenda for sweetener, and ground almonds with butter & sweetener (much like the yummy recipe listed above) for the crust.

Easy Peasy =D

PS...sounds like a really good recipe, printed out to try next weekend