Best Low Carb Dessert -- Mascarpone Cheese

I thought I died and went to heaven when I found this low carb item: mascarpone cheese. I always want to pronounce this and spell this marscarpone cheese, with an extra "r".

Think of the center filling of a cannoli, which is the best part, only better and quicker.

You can buy mascarpone cheese at BJ's and Costco. Costco gives you two containers, BJ's gives you one container. But be CAREFUL! This stuff is packed with calories, and, despite what others tell you, calories do count. If you are looking to lose weight, you can't eat 4,000 calories a day. I make sure that I use a very small bowl and only eat this, at MOST, a couple of times a week on "special" nights. It is a good thing that this cheese lasts in the refrigerator for months.

Take 1 to 2 oz(s). mascarpone cheese, mix with your favorite liquid sweetener (I am currently using amaretto, but butter rum sounds like something I should try), put on a dollop of no sugar/low sugar whipped cream, and enjoy! This is very rich, and truly assuages any sugar craving you might have.

Furthermore, if you use Dr. Atkins' plateau buster method of eating lots of fat for a few days, this can certainly be added to the regimen to alleviate the monotony of cream cheese. (Although, since it is so heavy, it might take me months and months before I tried it again after that.)

The nutritional information is below, and I love the simplicity of the ingredients list.

If you have more low carb recipe ideas for Mascarpone cheese, please let me know!

Update: Karen told me that she uses Eggo Low Carb Waffles in place of the lady fingers to make tiramisu with the mascarpone cheese.

Another Update: Laura from Turtleway (a great blog) writes -- I LOVE mascarpone! It's true that it's rich, but perhaps due to that you can be satisfied with a small amount. Try it with a bit of vanilla, and unflavored sweetener mixed in atop some berries! (You may need to thin it out with a bit of water.) HEAVEN!!!!!

	Mascarpone Cheese by Belgioioso
Serving Size	1 oz.
Calories	124
Total Fat	13g
Saturated Fat	7g
Cholesterol	36mg
Sodium	16mg
Total Carbohydrates	.5g
Dietary Fiber	0g
Sugar	0g
Protein	2g
Ingredients	Pasteurized milk, cream and citric acid.

Comments

[Laura]

I LOVE mascarpone! It's true that it's rich, but perhaps due to that you can be satisfied with a small amount. Try it with a bit of vanilla, and unflavored sweetener mixed in atop some berries! (You may need to thin it out with a bit of water.) HEAVEN!!!!!

[Karen]

Marscopone cheese is the cheese used to make Tiramisu...and oh soo good...
Now that I have found the Eggo low carb waffles I am going to use them for my lady fingers...
I always have marscopone cheese in fridge...and it has a long shelve life.

[Natalie]

Here is a great low carb tiramisu recipe with almonds used for the "ladyfingers". It is lots of work, but it lasted two weeks in my frig and I reached for it when my sweet tooth was calling. I am still losing, not gaining weight!

Tiramisu (low carb)

Makes 10 servings.

"Ladyfingers":
unsalted butter
4 oz. ground almonds
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 large eggs
1/2 cup Splenda
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Grease a 15x10x1-inch pan with butter. Line with parchment paper and grease with butter again. Preheat the oven to 350 ° F (175 ° C).

Combine the almonds, baking powder and salt. Separate the eggs. With an electric mixer, beat the yolks and Splenda with an electric mixer until thick and lemon coloured, 3-4 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. Fold in the almonds. With a clean bowl and beaters, beat the egg whites to firm peaks. Stir 1/4 into the almond mixture. Fold in 1/2 of the remaining whites until barely combined and then the remaining 1/2 until thoroughly combined. Spread evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top springs back when pressed lightly. Let cool.

Filling:
5 eggs
5 Tbsp. Splenda
1 500 gram Container mascarpone
1/2 cup strong coffee
3 Tbsp. rum
1/2 cup cocoa

Separate the eggs. Beat the yolks with the Splenda until thick and lemon coloured. Add the mascarpone and beat it into the yolk mixture on low speed, scraping down the bowl. Do not overbeat or the mixture will curdle.

With clean bowl and beaters, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. Stir 1/4 into the mascarpone mixture. Fold in the remaining 3/4. Choose a large straight-sided dish, such as a soufflé dish to assemble the Tiramsu in.

Cut the almond cake into 16 fingers by cutting in half crosswise, then lengthwise. Cut each half crosswise into 8 fingers. Combine the rum and coffee in a shallow dish. Place the cocoa in a sieve over a bowl.

Sprinkle the bottom of the dish lightly with cocoa. Quickly dip a few of the fingers into the coffee mixture and line the bottom of the dish. Do not get them too wet or your tiramisu will be runny. Spread on 1/4 of the mascarpone mixture and dust the top with cocoa. Repeat the process 2-3 times so you have 3-4 layers. End with a sprinkling of cocoa. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Total Carbohydrates (whole Tiramisu): 91.81
Carbohydrates per Serving (10): 9.18