I wasn't a huge cheesecake fan growing up because I was always obsessed with Turkish desserts like baklava or kadayif. If I couldn't get my hands on one of those, I was an ice cream gal. Well, apparently I just hadn't had good cheesecake. I remember about 5 years ago when I tried the cheesecake at a famous Cincinnati steakhouse and oh, my, God! Well shortly after I ate this delicious cheesecake I looked up the nutritional info...350 calories, 15 grams of saturated fat, 30 grams of sugar... in one slice?! I decided to go back to not liking cheesecake, which successfully lasted a solid week. After that, I decided to experiment with some "healthier" options. These are my favorite thus far!
Ingredients for Cheesecake:
7 Graham Crackers (I used low fat Honeymaid)
2 Tablespoons of Coconut Oil
8 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
6 oz fat-free vanilla Greek yogurt (I used Light and Fit Greek vanilla)
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon of white whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 tbsp + 3 tsp of Truvia
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place graham crackers in a food processor with the coconut oil and blend until there are no large chunks. Then take 12 cupcake liners and place in a cupcake tin. Use a spoon to evenly distribute the graham crust in each section and gently press down with fingers to even out.
Then in a large bowl or kitchen aid, gently beat cream cheese, truvia and vanilla. Gradually adding in the yogurt, egg whites, and flour. Do not over mix. Pour mixture into cupcake liners and fill about halfway. Place in over for 20-25 minutes. Then bring to room temperature and place in fridge.
Ingredients for Strawberry Topping
Pint of fresh strawberries
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 tbsp + 1/2 tsp of Truvia
Directions:
Wash and remove stems of strawberries then cut into cubes. Place cut strawberries, vanilla, and truvia in a small pan on medium heat (not too high!) Gradually stir. Mash a few strawberries with a wooden spoon help produce the syrup. Stir and cook until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Then you can take a hand blender to mixture if you prefer a runny sauce or leave as is. Place in fridge to cool down the sauce, about 15-30 minutes.
Once both the cheesecake and sauce has cooled down, drizzle desired amount of topping on to your mini cheesecake and dig in!