Finally, Cheesecake!

It has been a very long time since I was able to make myself cheesecake that was safe for me to eat! So, when I found a cream cheese substitute that I liked, I needed to find a way to use it! I found a recipe to make GF graham crackers, but was hesitant to try it.

 

Finally, I found S'moreables! I knew they existed, but had never found them in the store. I was very nervous about how they would taste, but I've had great experiences with this brand. I decided to buy a bunch of them so I would definitely have enough for a graham cracker crust.

 

 

 

I ate one cracker just to test it out and I was so happily surprised. So I got started with the crust by crushing the rest of the package in a ziplock bag. They are thicker than graham crackers, so I had a harder time getting them crushed up as much as I would prefer. I let MMM try one of the bigger chunks left and he was also surprised at the similarity to glutinous grahams!

 

 

 

 

 

I added sugar and melted DF butter to the crumbs to make the crust. I did the best I could to make the crust evenly spread out in the springform pan, but the larger chunks unfortunately did make it more difficult.

 

 

 

With the crust ready, I started working on the filling. "Better than Cream Cheese" is the cream cheese substitute I mentioned earlier. It is made from tofu! I was so surprised the first time I tried it with bagels. I was thrilled to get one thing back on my food list. I was, however, less than convinced that it would make a decent cheese cake. Lo and behold, I actually found a cheesecake recipe specifically using this brand!

I used two containers of Better than Cream Cheese. I really could have used at least four, but it is pretty expensive so I opted for a thinner version for my first try at this recipe.

 

 

The website I found with the recipe really just gave general concepts without specific measurements. So, according to the website, I added some lemon juice, vanilla extract, sugar, and a little salt and mixed it all together with my blender. I tasted it quickly and was so beyond happy with the result. It was sweet without being overwhelming. And so light and fluffy!

 

 

 

 

 

After 30 minutes!

With the filling in my springform pan, I put it in my toaster oven for just over 30 minutes at 325 degrees. I could see it gently bubbling through the oven door.

 

I let the cheesecake cool on the counter for a few minutes before allowing it to chill in the refridgerator for an hour.

And here is the result! I am so pleased with the outcome. Both MMM and my mom were delightfully surprised as well. It has been such a long time since I've eaten real cheesecake, it would be impossible to say if it tastes relatively similar. My mom declared that while it might not taste exactly like a cheesecake, it was still a delicious dessert! I think I'll be doing a happy dance for the rest of the night.

The Worst Day

During my clinical rotation as a surgical tech, I've had the opportunity to see so many things. I'm constantly amazed at how our bodies function. I've seen the amazing transformation of one organ being surgically changed to function as another. Medicine is truly miraculous. I'm in awe of the intelligence that God has given to surgeons.

Some surgeries that I have helped in have been so encouraging! It is so wonderful knowing that the patient will wake up to hear that the bump that has caused so much anxiety is not cancerous. I've been able to assist patients with chronic health problems that surgery was able to fix! To be able to legitimately say I was part of changing someone's life for the better... it's impossible to beat that!

But there are the days that the outcome is not so good. I've have been in the room when babies have been born. I have been in the room when babies have died. Nothing could truly prepare me for being in that situation after going through my own experience. The likelihood of these patients actually remembering that I was there is very slim, but I remember them. I know that I was in the room for what may be the worst day of their life. I was in the room where I learned their diagnosis before the patient did.

It's hard to find the balance between feeling too much empathy and desensitizing yourself to the situation enough to function. It's difficult for me to know that I'm going to be in the room for heart wrenching situations and I'll have to be able to hold it together. I wish I could personally empathize with our patients and show them that they aren't alone.

One thing that I have really appreciated about my second rotation (and my upcoming job) location is how often I have talked to patients. Almost every patient gets introduced to the team operating before surgery begins. It makes it so much more personal.

I need to find the balance of still caring deeply and yet protecting myself from falling apart. I still have so much to learn. I want to be someone that they can look back on and say I was the good part of their worst day.