Wednesday, August 23, 2017

Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake, gluten-free from author @DarylWoodGerber


Sparky is a sensitive soul and he often has irregular stomach issues. Poor guy. Poor me. He might simply be a nervous nellie and, therefore, his stomach clenches, but before I accept that fate, I’ve been trying to figure out if his diet is to blame. I took him off all his kibble and changed his diet to white rice and chicken with a little chicken broth. That worked pretty well. I added in white sweet potatoes. He has finally taken to those, though he won’t go near an orange sweet potato. Ick.



Okay, good. Next step. Add in some vitamins. Yep, all good. He can have his biscuit treats (Iams) and peanut butter and some bison chips. All good.

Then someone suggested I add a little pumpkin to his diet because it helps a sour stomach. 

Hmm.  Pumpkin is orange. If he wouldn’t take to orange sweet potatoes, would he take to pumpkins? No, absolutely not! I tried for a few days, but he turned up his nose and walked away from every bit of food.

So what was I supposed to do with that pumpkin? I wasn’t going to throw it out. It's not the fall and there are so many lovely fruit things I could make while the fruit is in season, but I had pumpkin. Luckily, I adore pumpkin. 

I considered making a pumpkin bundt cake and pumpkin muffins, but then as I surveyed my refrigerator, I realized I had a few more foods that needed to be used…ASAP.  Cream cheese, cottage cheese, and more. Plus I had some gluten-free cookies that had to be eaten, too.

Well, here’s what I came up with—I considered this a test run for a Thanksgiving dessert—and it’s a winner. FYI, I might consider melting the chocolate chips next time and mixing it with 1 cup of the batter and then swirling that chocolate into the cake. More experimentation ahead. Yum!

PS Sparky is doing much better, without the pumpkin. So, crossing my fingers…



CHOCOLATE PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE
Gluten-free
For crust:
6 gluten-free double chocolate chip, crumbled
2 tablespoons butter, melted

For filling:
12 oz. cream cheese, softened
12 oz. cottage cheese
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup canned pumpkin
4 eggs
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/3 cup chocolate chips, if desired


Line a spring-form pan with parchment paper.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. 

Make the crust by combining the cookie crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl.  Press the mixture into the bottom of an 8-inch spring-form pan.

Bake the crust for 5 minutes, then remove from oven and set aside until ready to fill.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, cottage cheese, sugar, vanilla, pumpkin, eggs, cornstarch, and spices. Beat on HIGH until smooth and creamy.

Stir in chocolate chips (if desired).

Pour into the spring-form pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes. The top will be a bit darker by this point.

Turn off oven and let stand in oven for 1 hour to SET. Remove from oven and let stand on wire rack until room temperature. 

Top the spring-form pan lightly with foil. Put the cake, still in the spring-form pan, into the refrigerator.


When the cake is chilled (about 2 hours), run a knife around the outer rim of the cake, and then remove the spring-form pan sides. 

At this point, if you like, you can decorate with crème fraîche and more chocolate chips.

The cake is ready to serve. Refrigerate whatever you don't eat.

















Savor the mystery!

*
Friend Daryl and Avery on Facebook
Follow Daryl on Twitter
Follow Avery on Twitter
Follow both of us on Pinterest
Plus check out my website.



A DEADLY ÉCLAIR, the 1st in the French Bistro Mysteries, is coming November 2017. Can Mimi clear her name before the killer turns up the heat? Click here to order.










GRILLING THE SUBJECT, the 5th Cookbook Nook Mystery, is out!
The Wild West Extravaganza has come to Crystal Cove.
Click here to order.









FOR CHEDDAR OR WORSE, the 7th Cheese Shop Mystery is out!
Finally there's going to be a cheese festival in Providence!
Click to order.










GIRL ON THE RUN
                                a stand-alone suspense
When a fairytale fantasy night becomes a nightmare, 
Chessa Paxton must run for her life...but will the truth set her free? 
Click to order




DAY OF SECRETS

my new stand-alone suspense
A mother he thought was dead. A father he never knew. 
An enemy that wants them dead.
Click here to order.



11 comments:

  1. So glad Sparky is feeling better! And I love this cheesecake recipe - perfect for the autumn season. EMS591@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Liz. It's always a test with him. He's a hyper, darling doggie. ~ Daryl

      Delete
  2. Glad to hear Sparky is coming around to his new diet. Hopefully it will help with his stomach. They are so particular about what they eat sometimes. Looking forward to trying the cheesecake recipe! Just in time for fall! Dspinlexo@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Dee. What's so amazing is we are the only ones who can figure it out for them. Oh, if only he could talk! LOL ~ Daryl

      Delete
  3. Tonka is sympathetic with sensitive souls with sensitive stomachs:). Glad you made something delicious out of Sparky's leftovers! xo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lucy, give my love to Tonka! Sensitive souls. That's totally the case. ~ Daryl

      Delete
  4. Reg loves pumpkin and sweet potatoes! Maybe try green beans? Those are another favorite of Reg's. We also give him barley and for treats, raw carrots. But those are orange so Sparky would probably turn up his nose!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Peg, gack, green? He hates anything green. And carrots? He puts them in his mouth, chews and spits out. I find little pieces of carrots everywhere. Gave those up. LOL ~ Daryl

      Delete
  5. Glad to hear Sparky is doing better. That looks like a wonderful pumpkin cheesecake recipe to try.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Cheers to you for taking such good care of Sparky. So glad he's doing better. And your trial run for Thanksgiving looks wonderful, especially for family members who must eat gluten-free! ~ Cleo

    ReplyDelete
  7. What we do for love! Dogs can be such picky eaters too. Or the total opposite. Anyway this pumpkin cheesecake looks good. I hadn't thought about pairing it with chocolate.

    ReplyDelete