Rice Pudding Protein Cheesecake w/ Berry Chia Jam Recipe Swap w/ Sensual Appeal

Happy Friday!!
Here is a summarized update of this past week and upcoming weekend...


Today I am leaving for a trip to Brooklyn to assist in a two day photo shoot for a magazine. More details to come when I return. Tim and I have had the opportunity to run the soup kitchen ourselves and luckily things have gone smoothly. We made crispy oven baked chicken, beef stew, creamed spinach and even Chef Dennis' famous bread pudding.
 Not to worry, I am still running the women's health and fitness club at the kitchen, have added new members to the club and even had the opportunity to step in as fitness instructor when the trainer could not make it. Truly an exhilarating experience. With all that volunteering I was too pooped to work out on my own last week but have gotten back on track. Back to eating my meals, drinking plenty of water and returning to my workout routine. 


**Click HERE for my Strawberry Lime Marga-chia Recipe & Interview with CEO of Nutiva John Roulac on Easy Eats! 


Today I have a special treat for you. I haven't done a guest post in a while, and decided to send out a flood of emails to some of my favorite and most interesting food blogs out there to see if they would be willing to do a recipe for me. Luckily so far they have all agreed! Fridays from now on will be guest post Friday, like the good ol' days.

My first guest post comes from one of my favorite photographers I've discovered this year. Kamila is not only unstoppable behind the lens, she also has her own food blog filled with mouth watering desserts from vegan to gluten free. Even using healthy ingredients I've longed to try out. So we swapped recipes. I redid her Chocolate Chia Pudding into Greek Frozen Yogurt Chia Truffles, and Kamila put a spin on my Rice Pudding Cheesecake w/ Maple Caramel Sauce by creating this one of a kind Rice Pudding Protein Cheesecake w/ Berry Chia Jam.

Don't forget to stop by her site, become completely enthralled with her photography and try out some of her yummy recipes. I now leave you with Kamila...

Hello there sexy Free Spirit Eater readers! Haha, yeah... Don't mind me and my failed "sexy" model expression. It's my only recent photo with a camera and I just really wanted to use it. Don't judge. HI! My name is Kammie and I am the girl behind Sensual Appeal, a healthy living/eating blog.

When I started my blog, I had absolutely not experience in the kitchen. In the recent years, I have become very concerned with healthy eating as well and I thought being 22 was about time I started becoming a bit more present in the kitchen if I was going to eat as healthy as I can, I would have to make it myself. We all know how unhealthy and fattening store-bought foods are - it's saddening that Americans don't realize this as a problem. But personally, I am just not okay with putting any artificial ingredients in my body - it's just not right. Since starting my blog in March, I have become a lot more proficient in kitchen and I have healthified a lot of recipes - mostly sweet (lots of chocolatey goodness), but some savory. I have fallen in love with the blog world because it allows me to connect with other like-minded people that I otherwise have trouble finding in the real world. A lot of people I know have coined me as the "health freak" and although they may say it semi-negatively, (like I'm some obnoxious picky girl, which I'm not - I don't think..) I wear the name with pride because it means that I care about the way I live and I want to live a long healthy happy life.

I have been a freelance photographer for 3 years now and blogging has introduced me to a different genre of photography - food photography. Although I am still learning and still on a journey to getting better, I am thoroughly enjoying the ride and my passion for photography is also fueling my ever-growing passion for healthy living.

Over the months, I have made some guilty pleasures, aka cheat meals, such as these Hard Cider cupcakes with Dulce de Leche Filling...

As well as some awesomely delicious guilt-free successes, such as these chocolate cupcakes with pudding filling and yogurt frosting...

Naturally, I was thrilled when Kym asked me to do a recipe swap. I thought it would be an awesome idea to do a recipe she has already created but make it my own with some alterations. After going through her blog there was one recipe in particular that has caught my attention. The rice pudding cheesecake with maple caramel sauce... Reason 1, I have been meaning to make rice pudding for a while now, I have only had it once in my life before (and loved it) and I have been looking for a recipe to use. Reason 2, who doesn't love cheesecake? It's only like the most delicious dessert ever (aside from chocolate, that is). Reason 3, that maple caramel sauce got me drooling, but Kym mentioned in her post that it was a rather Autumny taste so I thought it would be great to replace it with something more summery.

After a whole bunch of thinking and alterations, I have come up with the perfect altered recipe for this baby. I was pleased, but since I have never made a rice pudding before, the question was - would it come out successfully?

And successful it was... not only did this gorgeous lady taste like a wonderful mix of cheesecake and pudding, it had a nice mix of flavors enough to be called complex but simple, and delicately sweet, but enough to satisfy a sweet craving. Plus, one serving (of the three)  has a nice serving of 14 grams of protein

The berry chia jam was what really took this dessert to the next level by adding an awesome tangy twist to this unusual dessert.

Rice Pudding Protein Cheesecake with Berry Chia Jam (no sugar added/high protein)

Author: Kammie @ Sensual Appeal
Adapted from: Free Spirit Eater
Serves: 2-3

• 1/2 cup nonfat Lifeway kefir
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup jasmine rice
• 1 Tbsp xylitol
• 1/2 tsp NuStevia White Stevia Powder No Carbs (w/Erythritol)
• ¼ cup vanilla egg white protein
• 2 oz reduced fat cream cheese
• 1/8 tsp agar powder
• Pinch of xanthan gum
• 2-3 Enjoy Life Vanilla Honey Graham Cookies
• berry chia jam (recipe below)

Place kefir, milk, rice, vanilla extract and cinnamon into a saucepan and heat to a simmer, and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes until rice is soft.

Put the graham cookies into a food processor (or blender) and chop until the texture is fine and crumbly. Set aside.

Whisk in xylitol and stevia to the rice mixture and remove from heat. Mix in cream cheese and protein powder and whisk until they have dissolved and the texture is smooth. Whisk in agar and xanthan gum.

Divide the mixture into 2-3 ramekins. Sprinkle with an even layer of graham crumbs, while reserving some of the mixture for later. Place into the refrigerator for at least 4 hours until ready to serve. Take out of the ramekin and onto a plate and drizzle (or drown) in Berry Chia Jam. Top with leftover graham crumbs.

Berry Chia Jam (no sugar added)

• 1/4 cup frozen mixed berries
• 1 Tbsp chia seeds
• 1/4 cup water
• 5 drops Lemon Stevia

Microwave berries for 30 seconds. Place in blender with water and stevia. When blended smooth, transfer to a bowl and mix in chia seeds. Cover and place in fridge for 30 minutes. When ready to use, give it a stir and slather on the cheesecakes. Yum!