No Bake Sugar Free Peppermint Cheesecake Bars

'Tis the season for good food and great company. My wonderful cousin and younger sister, traveling from Oregon, paid the BF and I a visit, and we showed them a few of our favorite local spots. Even though I had to work for clients while they were here, we managed to squeeze in much fun.

One day, we visited the Cantor Museum and Rodin Exhibit on the Stanford University campus. On another, we walked up and down Palo Alto's University Avenue and had dinner at a delicious Menlo Park Turkish restaurant.

The last day, we took our choco-lab Marlowe and walked around Bol Park, aka "Donkey Park" (Perry was the model for "Donkey," voiced by Eddie Murphy, in the film Shrek), and ate lunch at Thai Bistro on California Avenue. In the evening we made gingerbread cake topped with eggnog whipped cream along with spiralized celeriac latkes [Ed. note: I don't think we ate it in that order?], and watched a superb documentary called Shanghai Ghetto.

When they left, while cousin and sister went up the long escalator at a local Bart station, Marlowe let out the most woeful cries as they slowly disappeared from view. [Ed. note: We'll forward the therapy bills.]

My cousin is an expert beekeeper and gifted us with the most amazing raw honey, which we can't stop dipping into. She also gave us homemade lemongrass soap and lip balm, as well as some sinfully good Burnside Distillery small-batch bourbon, which kept everybody warm! [Ed. note: Can confirm.]

My sister is very knowledgeable and talented with rocks, stones and gems. She gave us beautiful hand-engraved stones that say "Shalom" and "DZ," which now rest proudly on the kitchen window sill that I work in front of every day. More significantly, she also gave me custody of our mom's engagement ring (we trade off every year), which was was so brilliantly polished and shiny it practically glittered. She is also adept in the landscaping arts, and got to work in the backyard well before unpacking. (She makes up for my black thumb.)

Marlowe is always a happier camper when she has a "pack," and as usual the did the nighttime "rounds," visiting the visitors as they slept.

Life is good when these girls are with us. ​

And it wouldn't be a family gathering without dessert, so for December: peppermint! It just says winter to me.​

This cheesecake is almost too easy. No baking, no sugar, low carb and comes together in about 15 minutes. With a crust that tastes like Oreo cookies, it was the most popular dessert of the visit, even though we had plenty of other desserts with real sugar. There's only a slight change to the original recipe (upped the whipping cream from 2 tablespoons to 4), as I like a fluffier mousse-like cheesecake. Also added a pinch of salt to the crust. Should also note that I used my favorite brand of sugar substitute called Swerve, but you can use whatever you like.

Adapted from: All Day I Dream About Food
Number of servings: 16

Ingredients
Crust

• 1 ¼ cups almond flour (Bob's Red Mill Super Fine was used here)
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• Sweetener equivalent to ¼ cup sugar (Swerve brand was used here)
• 4 ½ tablespoons butter, melted
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Peppermint Cheesecake

• Two 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
• Sweetener equivalent to ¾  to 1 cup sugar (I used ¾ cup)
• ½  cup sour cream, room temperature
• 4 tablespoons whipping cream, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Red food coloring to taste (use natural food coloring if possible)

Topping

• 1 cup whipping cream
• Sweetener equivalent to 2 tablespoons sugar (powdered or liquid sweetener works best)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ounce dark chocolate, melted (optional)
• 4 sugar-free peppermints, crushed (optional)

Directions
Crust

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together almond flour, cocoa powder, sweetener, melted butter and salt until well combined. Press firmly into the bottom of a 9×9-(or 8×8)-inch square pan.

Peppermint Cheesecake

1. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with the sweetener until smooth. Beat in sour cream, whipping cream, and extracts until combined.
2. Add red food coloring and beat until desired color is achieved.
3. Carefully spread filling over crust.

Topping

1. In a medium bowl, beat whipping cream with sweetener and vanilla until it holds stiff peaks. Spread over filling.
2. Chill cheesecake for at least 3 hours, until set.
3. Drizzle with melted chocolate and crushed candies, if desired.
4. Cut into 16 bars. Or cut into smaller bites for a holiday dessert tray.

NOTE: I found it worked best if you placed individual squares of cheesecake on plates and then drizzle with chocolate right before serving. This cheesecake keeps well for three days in the fridge.