This rich cheesecake is from Eat, Shrink & Be Merry by Janet and Greta Podleski, sisters, TV hosts, and authors of two other low-fat cookbooks, Looneyspoons, which was a Canadian bestseller for 85 weeks, and Crazy Plates.

The sisters specialize in creating new recipes that don’t sacrifice tastes or sabotage waists and present them with useful and practical lifestyle information.

Eat, Shrink & Be Merry is known to American audiences through the sisters’ appearances on QVC. The book can be purchased from www.eatshrinkandbemerry.com. Everyone who buys a book will receive a second copy free.

 

Shocklate Cheesecake
Rich-tasting, double-chocolate cheesecake with a chocolate brownie crust
Makes 16 servings

1 box (about 1 lb) low-fat brownie mix, such as
Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies
2 cups 1% cottage cheese
1 cup light sour cream (not fat free)
1 pkg (8 oz) light cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
6 oz semi-sweet (not unsweetened) chocolate squares,
melted and cooled slightly.
1 cup fat-free egg substitute or 4 whole eggs
1 tsp vanilla
Chocolate sauce for drizzling (optional)

Spray a 10-inch springform pan with cooking spray. Prepare brownies according to package directions, baking in springform pan instead of regular cake pan. Brownies should bake in about 20 minutes. Remove pan from oven and reset temperature to 325°F. Set brownie crust aside to cool slightly while you prepare filling.

To make filling, whirl cottage cheese, sour cream, and cream cheese in a blender until perfectly smooth. Scrape out mixture into a large mixing bowl.

In a small bowl, sift together sugar, cocoa powder, and flour. Gradually add sugar mixture to cream-cheese mixture and beat on medium speed of electric mixer until well blended. Add melted chocolate and beat again, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.

Add egg substitute and vanilla. Beat just until eggs are incorporated into batter.

Before pouring batter over crust, lightly grease sides of pan. This will help prevent cheesecake from cracking as it cools. Pour batter over brownie crust and smooth top. Place on middle oven rack and bake for 60 to 70 minutes. Cake will be puffed up and center will jiggle slightly when pan is shaken. Turn off oven, open oven door halfway, and leave cake in oven to cool for 1 hour. Remove from oven, run knife around edge of pan to loosen cake from sides, and cool completely. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

To serve, remove sides of pan, slice thinly (it’s rich!), and drizzle chocolate sauce over individual pieces, if desired.

Makes 16 servings

Nutritional Information
Per serving: 291 calories
9.3 g total fat (4.6 g saturated fat)
10 g of protein
44 g carbohydrate
1.3 g fiber
13 mg cholesterol
208 mg sodium