Eggplant Gratin with Herbs and Creme Fraiche | Low Carb | Keto

Happy Valentine's Day! There's nothing more romantic and heart warming than Italian food. There are so many Italian dishes to prepare that are comforting, good for the soul and great to share with your loved ones. Eggplant is one of my favorite ingredients when cooking Italian cuisine. Eggplant can be bought any time of year at your grocery. Of course summer fresh from the garden is the best. During the winter months, eggplant purchased from the produce section will still produce a fantastic dish.

This Eggplant Gratin is absolutely delicious. It is made with fresh herbs and a combination of red and creamy white sauces. It's quite easy to prepare but do leave yourself some time to prep the eggplant. Enjoy!

Eggplant Gratin with Herbs and Creme Fraiche | Low Carb | Keto

Eggplant Gratin with Herbs and Creme Fraiche

Recipe adapted from: Winslow & Co

Ingredients:

2 medium to large eggplant, sliced 1/2″ thick

1 quart simple tomato sauce

3 Tbs. minced chives

3 Tbs. minced parsley

1 Tbs. thyme leaves

12 oz. creme fraiche or heavy cream

4 oz parmesan cheese, grated

salt & pepper

olive oil

1/3 cup mozzarella cheese (optional)

Note: you can substitute dry herbs (I used just a few sprinkles of dried Italian herbs and some fresh parsley)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Season eggplant slices with salt and pepper. Brush lightly with olive oil. Heat a large skillet or griddle pan over med-high heat and fry eggplant slices in batches until golden on both sides. Set aside while you prepare the creme fraiche. Place creme fraiche or cream in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce to about 1 cup, then stir in half of the grated parmesan and all of the chopped herbs. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper and set aside. Oil a 9″ casserole or gratin pan and place eggplant inside in a single layer. Cover with a thin layer of simple tomato sauce and a sprinkle of parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Make two more layers of eggplant and sauce, covering the top with tomato sauce. Ladle over the reduced creme fraiche or cream and sprinkle on a final layer of parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered until browned and bubbling, about 25-30 minutes. Let rest briefly before serving. Also delicious at room temperature.

Instant Pot Mini Raspberry Cheesecakes |Low Carb | Keto | Sugar-Free

Love is in the air. Make these Instant Pot Mini Raspberry Cheesecakes to share with your sweetheart. Or treat your family and friends with this delightful dessert. This recipe makes three mini cheesecakes, so there is plenty to share with loved ones. Cheesecake is the one dessert that I have found to be very easy to transform into being a a perfect low carb treat. I use my traditional cheesecake recipe and just substitute the sugar with your favorite sweetener. Such as Swerve, Monkfruit, Allulose, etc. Instant Pots are the rage right now. So of course I recently purchased one and have been experimenting with a variety of recipes. I've read in many places that cooking an cheesecake in the instant pot makes the best, creamiest cheesecake. Well, it's true! And it only takes 6 minutes (cook time).

Don't fret, if you don't have an instant pot it's okay, I've given you oven-baked instructions as well. We don't want you to be without.

Instant Pot Mini Raspberry Cheesecakes | Low Carb | Keto

Instant Pot Mini Cheesecakes | Low Carb | Keto

Instant Pot Mini Cheesecakes | Low Carb | Keto

Instant Pot Mini Raspberry Cheesecakes | Low Carb | Keto

Cheesecake:

Ingredients:

12 oz. Cream Cheese, full fat (softened, room temperature)

1/2 cup Swerve Sweetener, confectioners style (or Monk Fruit Sweetener, powdered)

1/3 C. Sour Cream

2 Large Eggs

1 Tsp. Vanilla

3 Mini Springform Pans (each measuring 4in by 1 3/4in)

Directions:

1. Line each mini springform pan with foil so that the foil goes up the sides of each pan.

2. With a mixer, cream the softened cream cheese, add Swerve/sweetener, mix well.

3. Add in sour cream and vanilla and mix for one minute.

4. Add eggs and hand mix with a spatula. Be careful to not over mix.

5. Pour the cheesecake batter into the springform pans evenly. Cover each with foil.

6. Pour one cup of water into the bottom of the Instant Pot.

7. Put the trivet on the bottom of the Instant Pot. Two of the springform pans should fit on the bottom of the Instant Pot. You can lay another trivet on top of the two springform pans and put the last springform pan on top. If you don't have an extra trivet you can cook in two batches (that's what I had to do).

8. Lock the lid of the Instant Pot. Program your Instant Pot to cook for 6 minutes. When six minutes have passed, turn the pressure cooker off and let it sit for 10 minutes. After ten minutes do a pressure release and take the springform pans out of the pressure cooker. The outer edge of the cheesecake should be firm, while the center will be just slightly jiggly.

9. Let cheesecakes cool on a wire rack until cooled.

10 .Once the cheesecake is completely cool, place the cheesecake in the fridge. It will set up and become firm. Note: I cover each pan with a paper towel and foil before putting in the fridge (this helps from condensation building up on top of the cheesecake).

11. Serve plain, or top with your favorite topping. I suggest you try out my Raspberry Dessert Topping (below).

Oven method: Preheat oven to 350°. Follow recipe, but skip step 6 through 8. Instead, place springform pans in the oven. Bake for 22 minutes until the edges are lightly golden and the middle still has a wiggle to it. Turn the oven off and leave the cheesecakes in with the door closed for a half hour. Proceed with steps 9 through 11 of recipe.

Raspberry Dessert Topping:

Ingredients:

1 cup Raspberries (fresh or frozen)

2 -3 tsp Swerve Sweetener (or your favorite artificial sweetener)

1/2 tsp Water

pinch of Xanthan Gum, optional

Directions:

Slightly mash berries in a heavy bottom sauce pan. Simmer all ingredients over low heat for 5-10 minutes. For a thicker sauce, add xanthan gum.

Enjoy!

Nutritional Information per 1 Mini Cheesecake: Calories 519.3 Total Fat 47.9 g Total Carbohydrate 11.7 g Dietary Fiber 2.8 g Protein 14.0g Net Carbs 8.9g Nutritional Information per 1/2 Mini Cheesecake: Calories 259.7 Total Fat 23.9 g Total Carbohydrate 5.9 g Dietary Fiber 1.4 g Protein 7.0 g Net Carbs 4.5g

Pizza Pie!

I know I just posted about pizza, but heck it's National Pizza Day!! So saying once I again I will tell you "I love, love, love pizza"!

I recently came across a new (to me) No Dough Low Carb Pizza Crust that has blown me away. There are all kinds of low carb / keto friendly pizza recipes out there, and I'm always willing to try them all. My goal lately is find the lowest carb, simple to make, and most delicious pizza. This Pizza Pie is high up on the scale for a simple and delicious way to get my pizza fix without the carbs. The crust is made from cheese and eggs only (no flour at all). I know what your thinking - no way can that taste good. Please try it out - it is delicious. I think you will be pleasantly surprised. The crust is not your typical chewy brick oven pizza crust, but boy, it totally fixes my crazy craving for pizza. It is best eaten with a fork - remember, it's pie!

The recipe I'm sharing with you makes one Pizza Pie, making it a perfect personal pizza. But it is large enough to share that is. The pizza pie is approximately 8g net carbs for the entire pie (depending on your sauce and toppings). I made mine with my favorite pizza sauce, pepperoni, sausage, onions, and green peppers. Enjoy!

Mix mozzarella cheese and egg

Spread mixture in pie plate

Bake until edges are golden brown

Top with favorite toppings and bake until cheese melts. Eat!

Pizza Pie!

Ingredients:

PizzaCrust:

1 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (whole milk)

1 tbsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 Egg

Toppings:

Shredded mozzarella,

Pizza sauce or Tomato Sauce (low carb of course)

Meats (pepperoni, sausage, ham, etc.)

Vegetables (green or red bell peppers, onion or green onion, mushrooms, olives, etc.)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2. In a mixing bowl, mix together the shredded cheese, Parmesan cheese, and egg.

3. Prepare a 9 inch pie plate by spraying the bottom with olive oil

4. Place the cheese mixture in the pie plate and spread with a spatula or the back of a spoon.

5. Place into the oven on the center rack and allow to bake for about 15 minutes or until the edges are deep golden brown and the center is a very light golden brown. The center should be firm and should not jiggle at all but shouldn’t be too brown.

6. Remove the cooked pizza crust from the oven.

7. Top the pizza crust as you desire (with sauce, cheese, toppings) and place back into the oven for approximately 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and melted.

8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before slicing.

Note: Allow to sit about 10 minutes so it will set. It maybe a little sloppy when you take out the first piece and you may need to eat with a fork and knife. However, as it cools it will set nice. And it makes great leftovers and reheats very well.

Optional: You may add some Italian spices to the crust mixture (such as basil, oregano, etc.)

Enjoy!