No-Bake Key Lime Cheesecake!!!

After putting you all off regarding the Key Lime Cheesecake recipe, because it was promised for the cruisers, it turns out I got the recipes to Becky Gandy too late for them to go in the cruise program. So I can give you recipes without waiting till summer! Here's the Key Lime Cheesecake, and fabulous it is, if I do say so myself.

No-Bake Key Lime Cheesecake

When we started talking about recipes for this cruise, Jimmy suggested key lime pie. Since key lime pie classically includes sweetened condensed milk, it seemed a pretty rough go. So he suggested a cheesecake instead, and here it is. Particularly nice for summer, since you don't have to heat up your kitchen baking it for an hour.

3/4 cup cold water
1 1/2 tablespoons gelatin powder, unsweetened
1 lime
1/2 cup erythritol
1 1/2 pounds cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons stevia in the raw
Coconut Crust

Measure the water into a small saucepan, and sprinkle the gelatin over it. Let that sit for five minutes on a cold burner.

In the meanwhile, grate the zest from your lime, and reserve. Roll the lime under the palm of your hand to loosen up the juice, and reserve.

Now add the erythritol to the water and gelatin, and turn the burner on to low.

While that's heating, put the cream cheese and sour cream in a mixing bowl. Now go stir your gelatin mixture! You want both the gelatin and the erythritol to dissolve completely.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and sour cream until completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl from time to time.

Now add the lime zest, and squeeze in the juice from the lime. Add the water/gelatin/erythritol mixture, and the 1/4 cup extra lime juice, too -- I used bottled, and it worked fine. Add the Stevia in the Raw, too.

Beat till everything is very well combined, again, scraping down the sides of the bowl from time to time. Then pour the filling into your prepared coconut crust. Cover the springform with foil, and refrigerate for at least 12 hours before serving, and overnight is wonderful. Keeps well in the fridge, actually; the leftovers were still great a few days later.

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Assuming 12 servings, each will have: 366 Calories; 34g Fat; 10g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 4 g usable carb

Coconut Crust

What better crust for a cheesecake with a tropical flavor like lime or Mexican chocolate?

2 1/2 cups shredded coconut meat
3 tablespoons erythritol
1 tablespoon Stevia in the Raw
1/4 cup vanilla whey protein powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons water

Preheat oven to 350.

Coat a 12" springform pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Measure all the dry ingredients into a big mixing bowl, and, using a whisk, stir till everything is evenly distributed.

Add the butter to the dry ingredients, and use the whisk to work it through the dry mixture, till everything is evenly mixed.

Now add the vanilla and water, and once again mix till it's all evenly damp.

Turn the mixture into the springform, and pat into an even layer, just a tiny bit thicker at the edges if you like. Press just hard enough to get it to cohere -- the first time I made this crust, I pressed it in firmly, and while it tasted fine, it was tough.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, till lightly golden. Remove from oven, and cool before filling.

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Assuming 12 servings, each will have: 121 Calories; 11g Fat ; 4g Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 1 g usable carb

NOTE: I have learned that no matter what sweetener I use, someone will complain. The anti-artificial sweetener set will object if I use Splenda. The anti-sugar-alcohol set will object if I use erythritol or another sugar alcohol. I'll complain if I use only stevia, 'cause straight stevia is just plain problematic to work with. And honestly, I don't have the time or money to try every option.

That said, Splenda works beautifully in cheesecake filling, so if you'd like to substitute an equivalent quantity of Splenda for the erythritol and Stevia in the Raw -- that would be 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons in the Key Lime, I suspect it will turn out fine. You can also try Splenda in the crust, but it may come out a little more crumbly. Will still taste good, though.

I also see no reason why you couldn't swap xylitol for the erythritol. I just won't have it in the house because it's so poisonous to dogs, and Dexter the Pug is a talented, athletic and resourceful food thief.