Pumpkin Cheesecake with Honey, and Almond Crust

 

As I noted in my Thanksgiving Dinner Survival Guide, personal happiness at Thanksgiving means having a fabulous dessert which I can eat -- meaning, no flour, no grain, and no sugar. Seems impossible I know! When faced with a challenge, I try to make the best of the situation. This led me to my new love -- Cheesecake! There are so many cheescake variations it's really endless. And cheesecake can be made succesfully, and awesomely, without sugar or grain. I must say, it's not necessarily quick or cheap, but for me it's well worth the payoff to have a great dessert at Thanksgiving (or really anytime.) Here's what I do...

For the crust, instead of the typical graham cracker recipe, I make a crust using chopped Almonds or Almond Meal. Trader Joe's has Almond Meal for a good price, but I prefer to chop whole Almonds in the Cuisinart Food Processor because it makes the crust crunchier. Either works well. For sweetener, instead of sugar I use honey. Pretty simple switches! Here is a cheesecake recipe I found on Food Network, which I modified to be hypothyroid friendly:

Ingredients

Crust:

• 1 3/4 cups ground almond and/or almond meal
• 3 tablespoons honey (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 stick melted salted butter

Filling:

• 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 (15-ounce) can pureed pumpkin
• 3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups honey
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

For crust:

In medium bowl, combine almond meal, honey and cinnamon. Add melted butter. Mix well. (If the crust seems too dense, just add a little more almond meal). Press mixture down flat into a 9-inch springform pan**. Set aside. 

For filling:

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, honey and the spices. If it needs more honey add more as needed. Add vanilla. Beat together until well combined. Note: The batter may seem sweet but it loses some sweetness in the baking. So better to add a little more honey to be safe.) 

Pour batter into crust. Spread out evenly and place in oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours.

** I divide my cheesecakes into pie and muffins, mainly because I want to try the cheesecake right when it's done! So I use a 6" springform cheesecake pan, and a muffin tin with 6 cups. I line both with crust and batter. The mini-muffin cheesecakes take less time to cook.

Thanksgiving Dinner Survival Guide

Vermont CremeryThanksgiving is one of those holidays that's all about carbs and sweets -- pretty much the foods which make me feel bleh because of hypothyroidism. That's why I developed my own way of eating with the Miss Lizzy Diet.

At Thanksgiving everyone is eating what they want, so I wanted to find a way to survive Thanksgiving where I felt great and totally satisfied with foods (as well as not gaining weight!). Here's what I do:

1. Thanksgiving morning, eat a good breakfast with protein and veggies (this really helps with carb cravings and holds me over until dinnertime)

2. Bring an appetizer that makes me happy and that I can eat -- like cheese! -- have I mentioned I really love cheese? Cheese really helps with my carb and sugar cravings because its rich and satisfying. Pretty much anything from Vermont Cremery is heaven for me. I skip the crackes and just eat the cheese straight.

3. At mealtime, I fill my plate with any food that don't have carbs (a little breadcrumbs or flour in the gravy won't hurt) I am always suprised that there's a lot of non-carb dishes to choose from -- like salads, vegetable side dishes, Turkey, gravy, even some potatoes. I'll have seconds if I am still hungry, but again avoiding all carbs. Maybe at the end I'll try a little stuffing, but at this point I am usually full I can have a little carb without overeating.

4. For dessert, bring a super awesome treat specifically for me (I am going to post my special cheesecake recipe shortly!)

So that's pretty much it. Eating this way on Thanksgiving helps me avoid the brain fog and lethargy of carbs, but still enjoy the day, feel great, and not gain weight (!)

xxoo

Lizzy

Latest Update on My Medicine for Hypothyroid and Adrenal Fatigue

Hi my friends,

It's been a while since I've posted about my medicine, and it's been an interesting year! So I wanted to share what I've learned. First, I want to say wow - it's all a big experiment! And that's tough sometimes because I want the answer right now. But the only way to learn is try, test, observe and somehow be patient along the way. So my dear friends, keep at it and you will find answers too. Here is my medicine and general update...

Update on Thyroid Medicine

For a year I have been on the Thyroid compound prescription I special order from Collier's Pharmacy (details below) in Arkansas. I continue to love it. On the new compound medicine, I take 180mgs day which seems like the right dose for me. On Naturthroid, when I raised above 130mgs I had super freaky hyper and hypo symtpoms. Yet on the compound I can take 180mg beautifully. Weird, isn't it? So I am super happy to report feeling great now though on the compound. We affectionality call it "The Miss Lizzy Compound" -- you can ask for it by name at Colliers. Neat. 

Update on Hydrocortisone

The other super big change...I weaned off Hydrocortisone! This was a huge step. I started Hydrocortisone three years ago to help with low cortisol and adrenal fatigue. And Hydrocortisone definitely helped me. But I was always a little worried that the Hydrocortisone was causing some weight gain, and perhaps had something to do with hair loss, though I wasn't totally sure. This summer I decided it was time to try weaning off Hydrocortisone. Here is what I did:

1. On STTM Janie felt she had avoided adrenal fatigue because of the high doses of Vitamin C she took daily. So I increased my Vitamin C to 2k mgs a day along with 1k mg Bioflavonoid (per Dr. Wilson's suggestion). And btw -- chewable vitamins really make it much more fun!
2. I started the process of decreasing my Hydrocortisone by 2.5mgs a week. 
3. If I was stressed during the process, I would hold the dose, and then continue when I felt ready. The idea was to take care of my body and not cause shock.
4. If had I felt any adrenal fatigue symptoms, I would have stayed on the Hydrocortisone but luckily it seems my adrenals are really well healed now! YAY!!!

It took about 3 months to fully wean off the Hydrocortisone (long time, I know!). And I happy to report, I feel great. It was definitely worth it for me to be on the Hydrocortisone but it was time to try without. It's been two full months, and so far I seem to be keeping my weight down with greater easily. Over the coming months I will be observing weight gain/loss and hair volume/regrowth to see if the Hydrocortisone might have be related. And of course I will share what I learn!

xxoo

Lizzy

~~~~

Here is the info for Collier's. The pharmacist Rodney at Colliers is SO awesome. He gave us his direct phone extension for ordering the compound (479) 935-4336. Ask for "The Miss Lizzy Compound" and he will hook you up. (A doctor's prescription is of course needed and he can explain what to do.) 

The Hair Saga Continues: My Hair after DHEA

Hi my friends,

I wanted to share a new update on my hair (after the Great Hair Disaster of 2010). My hair is definitely doing better, but the regrow stage is slow going and the volume is slowly coming back. Hair grows about 6 inches a year, and considering the trimming, it just seems to take forever! But the most amazing thing has happened...my hair has turned curly!

For months I noticed my hair was misbehaving and becoming unruly and I didn't know why. I would blow-dry my hair straight, and ten minutes later I would look in the mirror and it would start to curl up. After having Marcia Brady-straigh hair my whole life, the curls are really funny. 

It's actually kind of cool because I literally don't have to do anything to my hair now, just wash my hair towel dry and go. This photo shows my hair without any styling. So after the initial shock of the curly hair change, I am finding it really funny. I don't know if my hair turned curly because of the DHEA, or other thyroid and hormone changes. But certainly it all started around the time of the DHEA incident. Wild.

Through this whole hair experience -- having severely damaged, dry, thin hair -- I've learned some other great tips which I am excited to share. After years of spending tons of money on hair products, now I am doing the super simple, natural and totally inexpensive routine and loving it. Last winter I stopped using shampoo, and switched to Conditioning only (that's right, no shampoo!). After I towel dry, I use a very tiny bit of coconut oil (but this can go on dry hair too for shine). Here is Conditioning Only method... 

Conditioning Only

This is a method for washing hair without shampoo, just using conditioner to cleanse the hair. Anyone can do it, its for all types of hair (not just curly hair, or hyporthyroid people). The idea is that shampoo dries hair and prevents the hair's natural sebum from doing its job so the hair gets dry and brittle over time from shampoo. Conditioner is able to clean hair without the harsh chemicals in shampoo. Steps:

• Use a Silicone-free conditioner (silicone flattens the hair!). Cheap conditioners can work just as well as expensive ones. I like the new conditioner from Garnier called Pure Clean because I can get a huge bottle at Target for about $6. I also like the Nature's Gate line from Whole Foods.

• Shower as usual, wet hair thoroughly using warm hot water 

• Apply conditioner to roots (user conditioner liberally, I used about 1/4 cup to wash). Massage in like you would with shampoo (but there will be no lather) 

• Rinse and style 

• Avoid other styling products if possible, use a tiny tiny bit of coconut oil for added shine and silkiness

• It can take 3-4 washes before the natural oils in the hair start to work on their own. And every few months, a gentle shampoo is okay.

• If hair starts to get a little dull, use a silicone-free clarifying conditioner like Suave.

Several friends have converted to conditioning only and really like it. If you try it, I would love to hear what you think and what conditioner works for you. Happy hair everyone!

xxoo 

Lizzy

2 Days Left until the Big Event!!

Saturday morning is the BIG EVENT -- Fight Gone Bad! -- and this here photo is going to be ME (except for the short-shorts and six pack abs).

Weeks of hard training and I'm doing it baby!! Please help me reach my goal for this fantastic fundraiser. If everyone made a donation of just $5 that would help a lot of kids. 

Check out my fundraiser page!

xxoo

Lizzy