No Bake Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake

 

I LOVE cheesecake! So I was super excited when I found this recipe for Pumpkin Pecan Cheesecake!! Being that fall is right around the corner, I figured this would be the perfect dessert to make for a girl's night.

Here is the original recipe but I made several tweeks to try and make it a little lower calorie. I'm not sure how many calories I'm saving myself, but with the holidays coming up, saving a few calories is always pretty sweet! However, if you prefer the full fat version, just substitute the ingredients accordingly.
Here we go.

Topping

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1 pinch kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

Crust

2 ½ cups reduced fat graham crackers
1/3 cup baking Splenda
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick butter – melted

Filling

1 – 8 ounce package low fat cream cheese at room temperature
1 – 15 ounce can of pure pumpkin (do not use pumpkin pie filling)
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup baking Splenda
8 ounce container of fat free whipped topping thawed

Directions

Prepare the topping. Line a baking sheet with a silicon baking mat or piece of parchment paper. Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pecans, salt and brown sugar and stir well. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour the coated nuts onto the prepared baking sheet in a single layer and refrigerate until cooled, about 10 minutes.

Spray a 9 inch springform with gluten-free non-stick cooking spray and line the bottom with a piece of parchment or waxed paper. Spray the paper with some more cooking spray. Combine the crust ingredients, mix well and press firmly into the prepared springform covering the bottom and going up the sides of the springform.

Beat the cream cheese with a mixer until smooth. Add the pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, salt and sugar and beat on medium speed until combined, scraping the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl at least once.

With a spatula, fold in the whipped cream or whipped topping.

Pour into the crust.
Top the cheesecake with the pecans.
Refrigerate the cheesecake for 3 hours or up to 24 hours.

**As you will notice, it is a little runny. It was still AMAZING but you could probably freeze it if you prefer a harder texture.

Best App Ever!

Several months ago (February to be exact), my brother-in-law introduced me to the MOST amazing app ever! I was really struggling to lose my newlywed/baby weight (about 30 pounds) and I was really not happy about the way I looked.  

He had started using My Fitness Pal and so that evening I downloaded it. I figured I would maybe lose a little bit but didn't have much hope that I would get back to the weight I wanted.

Well, here I am 7 months later and I'm down 25 pounds with only a few more to go. Actually, I haven't been this weight since before Kevin and I met. I am wearing clothes that I never thought I'd wear again and feeling so much better about myself. Not to mention, I have so much more energy than I used to. (Sorry the before pic is a little fuzzy. I had to download it from my blog.)

Weight: 149 pounds

Weight: 174 pounds

So how exactly does this app work, you ask? Great question! It helps you count your calories but in the easiest way possible. When you start, you enter your weight, height, goal weight, and how many calories you'd like to lose per week.

Then, it gives you your calorie amount per day. You input the foods you eat and it counts them for you. It also has the entire menu from pretty much any restaurant. So, when I go out to eat, I just type in the restaurant name and then choose from the list which foods I've eaten.

You can also put in the exercises you do and then it adds calories to your day. At the end of the day, you submit your day and it tells you how much you will weigh in 5 weeks if you eat that amount each day. Very motivating to see those lower numbers!!

So here's the best part about this app. It's FREE! I know it can be downloaded on iPhones and I think Droids. Also, you can use it online too at myfitnesspal.com.

If you are trying to lose weight or just want to start keeping track of your eating, this app is definitely a must have!

Kevin's Big 3-0

 It's been a big summer here in the Stidham house. Blakely turned one, Mommy said good-bye to her 20's, and now it's Daddy's turn!

Kevin's 30th birthday is today and I first of all want to wish him a very happy birthday!!

Yesterday, we celebrated with his family. Kevin likes things pretty low key so we had steaks and baked potatoes at his parent's house. We were also able to have some time for family pictures.

After dinner, we took Blakely and Lexie Kate (her cousin) outside for pictures. It's been a while since we've had pictures of them together.

Nee Nee and Eli (Lexie's baby brother)

Then we did presents and Kevin was quite excited to get his parent's gift! He looked like a kid on Christmas morning.

Lastly, we celebrated with cake. Kevin really wanted Betty Crocker Funfetti so I swallowed my pride (I like to make cakes from scratch) and made a Funfetti cake with Rainbow Chip icing. The cake was a lot harder to make than I thought it would be. I definitely have a whole new appreciation for cake artists.

 We had a great day celebrating and helping Kevin kick-off his 30's.

Happy Birthday sweetheart! I love you very much!!

Blakely 14 Months

I've said it before and I'm going to say it again..and again...and again...

Blakely is growing WAY too fast and getting so big. She has learned so many new things this month I just don't know where to begin. Oh wait, yes I do...

SHE'S WALKING! (I think that milestone deserves all caps)

About two weeks ago, Kevin came home from work and said, "Blakely, walk to daddy." And so she did! Then over the next few days, she started taking more and more steps. Now, she pretty much walks everywhere (with a few tumbles still of course). She's still a little unsteady on her feet but she's trying so hard. However, when she decides she needs to get somewhere quickly, she'll immediately get down and just take off crawling.

• Her vocabulary is still mostly comprised of her own invented words but she's gotten some new ones down.  Nana and Papa, milk, juice, play and cheese have been added this month.

• When you ask her what a bear says, she goes, "Raaaar." Actually, she does that with any animal but the bear is the cutest because it actually makes sense.

• She is learning to play by herself which is great! She can entertain herself with the remote, uh I mean her toys, for a while and it frees me up to get things done.

She's ready to go walking with Mommy!

• She spent her first...and second and third nights away from Kevin and me this week. Actually, she's been away from Kevin before but never me. It was hard but also great to get away. Our second anniversary was this week and so we decided to take our first vacation since our honeymoon together for a few days. Blakely had a great time with Nana and Papa while Mommy and Daddy went to Atlantic City. We missed her so much and were racing each other to the front door when we got back to see who could get to her first. 

• She has learned what "inside voice" means. We'll be riding down the road and she'll start screaming. I'll say, "Blakely, inside voice," and then she starts whisper screaming. 

 

• She has learned to click her tongue and loves doing it. She knows it gets a laugh from others so she does it quite frequently.

It has been so wonderful being with her everyday during my summer break. I go back to work next week and will miss her like crazy during the day. But I know she will have a great time with her Nana and cousins while Mommy is at work.