Spicy Jalapeño Butter Shrimp

We love to switch up our seafood mid-week. 'Spicy Jalapeño Butter Shrimp' is one of our favourite ways to prepare shrimp, it is SO quick and SO easy. Perfect to make when you get home from work in a hurry to eat. We have started throwing jalapeños into the pan when we make the shrimp, but they are optional.

We often use the shrimp as a side with other things like Flatout Mini Pizzas. 

Ingredients:

-1lb Bag of Shrimp

-1/4 cup of butter

-1/2 can of Jalapeños (optional)

-salt & pepper to taste

-1 tsp. chili flakes

-1-2 tsp. chili powder

-1 tbsp. coconut oil

*season to taste, if these seasonings are too much for you reduce them

Procedure

1. Thaw shrimp (if frozen).

2. Heat coconut oil in pan on stovetop at medium heat.

3. Add butter to the coconut oil.

4. Add thawed shrimp to the pan.

5. Add seasoning to the shrimp and butter.

6. Cook shrimp for 5-10 minutes (this may vary by stove/will be different if you are using precooked shrimp).

7. Add jalapeños (optional). Let sit for 2-5 minutes. 

Nutritional Information: 

(to come)

Beer Can Chicken

Beer can chicken is a favourite in my household.

Seriously, when all else fails there is 'Beer Can Chicken'.

The best park about it is how much it meat it makes, it is perfect for a supper for two or gour (depending on the size of your chicken) and you will most likely have left overs the put in your salad the next day.

We typically feed four adults with one beer can chicken and have enough leftovers to cut up for a salad the next day!

This recipe is pretty versatile too, you can spice the chicken to enhance different flavours. We use chicken rubs to spice it up a bit, but in this posting I will stick to the basics for a great low-carb/high-fibre 'Beer Can Chicken'.

We have started making this classic in our new smoker, but you can also make your 'Drunken Chicken' in the oven or on the barbecue. We prefer the barbecue, it is such a great summer dish!


Ingredients
1 Chicken (aim for a 4-5 pounder)
2 Tablespoons of liquified (heated) coconut oil
2 Tablespoons of salt
*3 Tablespoons of your favourite spices (I like a mixture of paprika, thyme, cayenne peppers, garlic powder, chillies and a dash of cinnamon) or use your favourite rub
1 Teaspoon of black pepper
1 Can of low carb beer (I use canned Michelob Ultra)

Procedure
1. Heat your BBQ to medium-high or your oven to 350F. If you are using gas try to use only half of your burners. If you are using coals that you move the chicken to an area free of coals.
2. Mix together your spices in a small bowl.
3. Remove and discard the chicken's neck and giblets.
4. Rinse the chicken inside and out.
5. Pat the chicken dry with paper towel, inside and outside.
6. Coat your chicken with coconut oil, inside and out.
7. Give your chicken a good rub with salt, your spices/rub and pepper. Again, both inside and out.
8. Empty half of your beer.
9. Insert your beer can into your chicken. This is easiest if you have one of the devices pictured below, but if you dont you can place your beer can on a counter and then thrust your chicken into it.
10. Place your bird in the center of your BBQ or oven and let cook for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Keep your chicken away from direct heat.
11. Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Keep an eye on your chicken and make sure you test the temperature in the breast and thighs before serving.




You can buy the beer can chicken holder here:
http://www.kitchenniche.ca/beer-can-chicken-roaster-p-1061.html

Low Carb Pulled Chicken

Step One: Root-beer and seasoning! 

I make pulled every week. It is the perfect meat ingredient to have kicking around the house, we put it click here to check out that recipe).  But, we wanted to switch it up a little bit and made the switch to chicken. Now, it is a bit more expensive, but it is just as tasty and a great way to change things up a little bit. 
in everything and eat it on its own for a quick lunch (

We did not buy a jumbo pack for this experiment, one family pack of boneless skinless chicken thighs made a of shredded chicken for two hungry adults. We used chicken thighs because they are cheaper than chicken breasts and hold the flavour better than chicken breasts.

This recipe is basically the same as pulled pork, we just switched up the meat and times.

Ingredients

Fully cooked!

-One can of diet or stevia root beer
-Seasonings (we used paprika, chilli powder, pepper, chilli flakes)
-Hot sauce
-One package of chicken thighs

Procedure
1. Place chicken thighs in slow-cooker set on low heat.
2. Pour root-beer over chicken.
3. Spice to taste.
4. Stir/flip chicken every 2 hours (not really necessary, if you are leaving it overnight)
5. After 7 to 8 hours drain the leftover liquid from the crock-pot.
6. Pull apart chicken.
7. Season and sauce to taste. 

-Depending on what taste you are going for you can use different sauces. We have used everything from 0 carb sweet Hawaiian sauces to salsa. You can mix it up, I tend to use chipotle sauce and Kraft low cal barbecue sauce.

It is pretty hard to make pulled chicken look pretty.
But, damn it is tasty.

Low Carb Cookies & Cream Cake

Little, but mighty. 

I baked this cake the other day. I really, really liked it. It is small, but very filling. I baked mine in two layers, but you could make the mix in just one big cake. I really want to incorporate peanut butter with this cake in the future. I consider a slice of this cake a treat. It has about 7 carbs per slice and a ton of fat and protein. 

Side view

Ingredients
Cake
3 Cups of Almond Flour
3 Tablespoons of Sweetener
3 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder
2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon of Salt
5 Eggs
2 Teaspoons of Vanilla

Icing
1/4 Cup of Melted Butter
5 Oz of Cream Cheese
1/4 Cup of Whipping Cream
1 Teaspoon Coconut Oil
2 Teaspoons of Vanilla
1/4 Teaspoon of Cinnamon 
2 Tablespoons of Sweetener
3 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder
1/4 Bar of 99% Cocoa Chocolate (I use Lindtt)

Prep Work
-Preheat oven to 350.
-Grease cake pan. 


Procedure
1. Mix the dry ingredients: Almond Flour, 3 Tablespoons of Sweetener, 3 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder, baking powder and salt. 
2. Whisk eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla in a separate bowl. 
3. Add eggs mixture to the dry ingredients. 
4. Pour into greased pan (or pans).
5. My small oven baked the cake in 30 minutes. Keep an eye on it, this will vary (of course) by oven.

Make the icing while the cake bakes. 

6. Warm (but do not completely melt) cream cheese and butter together. Mix well. 
7. Add in teaspoon of coconut oil.
8. Add in 3 tablespoons of coca powder and 2 tablespoons of sweetener.
9. Add cinnamon and refridgerate. 

10. Allow cake to cool.

11. Ice cake and shave 99% cocoa chocolate over the cake. 

Inside.

Nutritonal Information (per slice, 8 slices per cake):
Calories: 460
Total Fat: 38.3g
Carbs: 13.3g
Fiber: 6.1g
Sugars: 3g
Protein: 15.2g

The Glory Of Eggs

"Messy Eggs"

When living a low carb lifestyle, one of your staple foods will be eggs. You can add eggs to many meals or have it has the main part. Eggs are amazing, they have incredible filling powers and can help you feel full for long amounts of time. Every time I have experienced periods of weight loss I have consumed eggs regularly.

One of the first ways I started integrating eggs into my diet further was to ensure I had a breakfast style meal everyday. The picture to the left is what I call 'Messy Eggs'. These eggs are fried, seasoned with cajun spices and chilli peppers and topped off with cheese.

"Chipotle Loaded Chicken Breast"

This meal was consumed as part of supper. I ate fancier sausage with bacon and "Messy Eggs". The seasoning is what helps make the meal versatile and more than just a breakfast style meal. 

Another one of my favourite ways to add eggs to my meal outside of breakfast is to add one to my burgers. Just like bacon, you can use a fried egg as garnish for a burger. Why not add cheesy scrambled eggs as a side too? 

 An egg is the prefect way to add a little something to a meal when you are really hungry but do not want to eat two servings. I recently added a fried egg to one of my favourite entrees, "Chipotle Loaded Chicken Breasts" (right photo).

"Loaded Chicken Breasts" are simple supper entrees. Cook a chicken breast in the oven, season to taste. I stick with Chipotle because I have a great PC 0 Carb sauce (left) and I season with a little Italian seasoning, grated parmesan cheese, chilli pepper and sometimes I throw a little bit of almond flour breading on. When the chicken breast is finished add a slice of bacon to the top and grate cheddar cheese on top. Above, I simply added a fried egg underneath. 

Do you have any secret egg additions you live off of? 

Low Carb Vanilla Pudding

I worked this out to be part of my eclair recipe and had to try the pudding on its own. Not the lowest in carbs, but it is a satisfying treat.

Ingredients 

1/3 Cup of Granulated Sweetener

1 Tablespoon Liquid Sweetener 

1 Tablespoon Cornstarch 

1 Tablespoon Almond Meal

1 Cup Heavy Cream

1 Cup Vanilla Almond Milk

2 Eggs

1 Tablespoon Butter

1 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla

Prep Work

-Beat eggs in a small bowl.

Procedure

1. Mix together in saucepan on: almond milk, cream, liquid sweetener, sweetener, cornstarch and almond meal. 

2. Stir occasionally. The mixture should thicken. Once it begins to thicken cook and stir for 3-5 minutes.  

3. Pour one cup of the hot mixture into the eggs.

4. Pour egg mixture into the saucepan and cook for 2-4 minutes. 

5. Remove from heat and melt butter into the mixture.

6. When the butter is fully melted add in the vanilla.

7. Chill in fridge for 2-3 hours.

Nutritional Information (for 1 of 4 servings)

Calories: 302

Fat: 27.1g

Carbs: 5.2g

Fiber: 0.4g

Sugar: 0.6g

Protein: 4.0g

How To Start A Keto Lifestyle

I thought my boyfriend was crazy when he cut the carbs. My university roommate was a nutrition major and she also did not recommend eliminating carbs. After watching him drop weight quickly I changed my mind. 

1. I cut carbs completely. When I changed my eating habits I did not ease into it as some people do. The main reason I made the clean cut was because I know some people go through withdraw and have cravings if they continue to eat carby foods (even if they eat smaller portions). 

2. Throw out (or give away) all sugary, gluten packed foods. The basic (and I mean very basic) conversion I started to live by was subtracting fibre from carbs. I lived by on the notion that fibre carbs are good carbs, stay away from sugar and other avoid sweeteners. I aimed to stick under 20 grams of carb everyday, without any exercise. 





3. Check out the nutrition info on everything you buy. Some things vary in carb content. Chicken wings are a good example of a food that change depending on the brand. Honey ham may also surprise you, depending on the brand. Fresh meat is always better than processed meats. Go to the grocery store with a list of theses key items:
-Eggs
-Unsweetened Almond Milk
-Nuts, I prefer almonds (they are perfect to grab by the handful for a snack.
-Heavy cream
-Cheese
-Boston lettuce (you can use this instead a bun)
-Your favourite fresh meats: chicken, pork, beef, turkey
 -Favourite specialty meats: bacon, sausage, certain chicken wings
-Salad Dressings
-Mustard (a core part of my first few weeks of keto)

4. Treat yourself. Find recipes online for things that match your cravings. Jump in, learn new keto recipes and keto treats you can eat from Day 1. Don't deprive yourself. Set your carb limit per day and then stick within it, eat as much as you want of foods with little to no carbs. If you want ice cream, make it. If you want cake, figure it out. There are a tonne of great resources online to help you make something that will satisfy your dessert cravings.

5. Pack your lunch everyday. Have one special lunch a week. This will save you money. Pack leftovers in your lunch from the supper you make the night before. This way you control what you have to eat, the temptation to grab a slice of pizza won't be there.  

Another thing I did when I started keto was drop breakfast. I make a protein shake in its place and have two big meals. I eat "breakfast foods" (eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, omelettes) as main courses now. I make meals now, not just food. I don't scramble to eat the quickest, easiest foods now and put love into the meals I make. 

I think it would be interesting to see how other people got started and what they recommend for newcomers, please comment below and let me know what you did to get started and any tips for newcomers. Let me know what your thoughts are! 

Thanks For The Support!

I would just like to thank everyone who has been following my online cookbook and sending feedback on my experiments in the kitchen. I am currently 40 lbs lighter than I was at this time last year and I am loving every minute of it! In the following weeks I will be posting more great content including my all-time favourite keto/low carb pizza crust! 

Thanks for the great year, if you are interested in helping with my pursuit of keto/low carb foods please click a featured ad link on this page! 

Kate

Almond Meal Brownies

Pictured Here With Cookies & Cream Homemade
Protein Powder Ice Cream 

Yet again I could not find a pan so I used a pie pan. This recipe makes 8 equal pie pieces, nutritional information is based per piece. 

Ingredients
3/4 Cup of Almond Meal
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
1/2 Teaspoon baking powder
40 drops of liquid sweetener 
3 eggs
1 Tablespoon Vanilla 
1 Tablespoon Granulated Sweetener
1/4 Cup Butter
2 Tablespoons Heavy Cream
1 Tablespoon Chocolate Almond Milk 
1/2 Bar (25 g) Lindtt 99% Cocoa Chocolate

Prep Work
Grease an 8x8 pan or pie pan.
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
Procedure
1. Mix together in medium bowl: almond meal, salt, cocoa, granulated sweetener and baking powder.
2. Melt together in a small bowl: chocolate, butter, 10 drops of sweetener.
3. Mix together in another medium bowl: eggs, the rest of the sweetener, almond milk, heavy cream, vanilla.
4. Pour melted mixture from Step 2 into mixture from Step 3.
5. Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
7. Cool before cutting 


Nutritional Information (Per Slice)
Calories: 146
Fat: 14g
Carbs: 3.2g
Fiber: 1.8g
Sugars: 0.4g
Protein: 3g

Keto Pancakes

I never post recipes that include Carb-Qic and special foods. In one of the pictures my pancake does have 0 carb maple syrup as a garnish. I recommend finding something like this or using raspberries and blueberries to garnish too.  

Ingredients
1 Cup of Almond Flour
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons of Coconut Oil
Dash of Cinnamon 
1/4 Cup of Water
1 Tablespoon of Vanilla 
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Sweetener


Prep Work
Heat oil (I use coconut) on medium high in pan.

Procedure
-Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
-Scoop mixture out into hot pan. The mixture makes four pancakes. 


Nutritional Information (Per Pancake)
Calories: 245
Fat: 23.1g
Carbs: 6.3g
Fiber: 3g
Sugars: 1.3g
Protein: 9g

Where Are The Pork Rinds?

If you would have told me at this time last year I would be craving pork rinds I would have said one of two things:

1. "I need to stop watching American Horror Story because weird cravings are not my style."

or, more likely...

2. "What the hell are pork rinds?"

Keto has opened my eyes to some new foods, things I never thought I would eat. Like miracle noodles. Granted, I never will eat Miracle Noodles again, there is one thing I truly miss now that I am back in Nova Scotia that is impossible to find. Pork rinds. 

Living in the arm pit of the universe makes it hard to find certain things you grow accustomed to eating beyond the boarder. Pork rinds are the first example, they common place in any convenience store in other provinces and in the United States but impossible to find in Nova Scotia. My boyfriend and I joke about the reasons why these 0 carb snacks are "illegal" on the peninsula, but I would seriously like to know why we are not allowed to buy pork rinds. 

In general, we do not have a diabetes store or anything of the sorts that we can find. This obviously does not make keto/low carb living impossible, but it does add a few challenges. When living in Calgary we were able to by 0 carb, sugar-free foods pretty conveniently.  Here, it is a completely different story. Pete's Frootique carries some sauces that have made life a little easier, but lines like "Guy's Barbecue Sauce" and "Walden Farms" sauces simply do not seem to exist here. 

Have you run into these problems? This is a problem for me, I do not have a credit card. I would much rather buy local than order things online, but right now that is looking pretty impossible. I try to cut frankenfoods as much as possible from my diet, but sometimes a syrup or sauce is just nice to have. And, pork rinds are the perfect snack for nachos or just on their own. I much prefer them to Beanitos (which we do have in Nova Scotia). 

Believe me, if I had money to spare (if I wasn't a poor student), I would open a Diabetic store in Nova Scotia. 

Keto Banana Bread

Next time I make this recipe I will double all ingredients. The picture shows just how thin this recipe makes a loaf, a good snack but I would like a little more next time. Also, you can use the recipe to make muffins (adjust times of course).

Definitly going to double the recipe next time.

Ingredients
1/4 Cup of Almond Flour
1 Tablespoon Sweetener
1/8 Teaspoon Cinnamon 
1/8 Teaspoon Baking Soda
Dash of salt
1 1/2 Tablespoon of Shortening
1 Egg
1/8 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Tablespoon Banana Extract
1/4 Banana Mashed

Prep Work
-Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
-Grease a loaf pan.

Procedure
-Mix all wet ingredients together in a bowl.
-Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.
-Mix contents of the two bowls together.
-Add in mashed banana. Mix until smooth.
-Pour batter into a loaf pan. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool. 

Nutritional Information (Per Loaf)
Calories: 429
Fat: 38.3g
Carbs: 13.3g
Fiber: 3.8g
Sugars: 5.1g
Protein: 12.6g

Low Carb Cauliflower Brownie

Brownie Mix

I figured I would try a recipe I found online that used cauliflower to make keto brownies. I was really skeptical, but I had some cauliflower that needed to be used in my fridge so I thought I would give it a try. I am so happy I did. 

It was my boyfriend's birthday this week and when I started telling him about my plan to make the cauliflower brownies he told me not to tell him what was in them. He soon forgot that I had ever mentioned cauliflower and I was so excited after he approved them. I thought they were great, but I was really unsure about what he would think. 

I made this in pie form, instead of a birthday cake. Normally it will make about 36 brownies. 

The result, in pie form. 

Ingredients:
3/4 cup of pureed cauliflower
3 teaspoons of brewed coffee ***optional***
1/2 cup unsweetened chocolate almond milk
1/2 bar Lindt 99% chocolate
1/2 cup butter
1/4 bar of cream cheese (2 oz)
3 eggs
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 teaspoon sweetener
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt


Prep Work:
-Puree cauliflower.
Cut off cauliflower florets and throw out the cores. Steam the florets for 8 to 10 minutes. Puree in food processor for 2 minutes. Instead of using water for texture I used brewed coffee, but this is just a little something extra I did. Water is perfectly fine to use. 
-In a medium bowel melt butter, chocolate, and cream cheese in the microwave for 1 minute. 
-Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
-Grease a 9x9 pan.

Procedure:
-Add almond milk to the pureed cauliflower mixture and puree together until smooth.
-Add butter and chocolate mixture to the cauliflower and almond milk mixture in the food processor. Puree until smooth.
-Add eggs to the mixture and blend.
-Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowel. Add wet ingredients to the dry mixture and then stir until smooth.
-Spread mixture evenly in pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Cool and then cut.

Using my ingredients this is the nutritional information per brownie (36 in total).

Nutrition Info (Per Brownie):
Calories: 53
Fat:  4.8g
Carbs: 1.1g
Fiber: 0.8g
Sugar: 0.2g
Protein: 1.4g

I recommend these brownies with sugar free caramel sauce or ice cream (or both) for garnish. 

Keto Jalapeño Poppers-> Four Different Types

This recipe makes 10 poppers.

Originally, we started making this recipe using the standard bacon to wrap the poppers. But, we found they were greasy and looked for a way to solve this. 

Don't get me wrong, the bacon was delicious, but here are three other alternatives to the bacon recipe. 

1).  Cheesy Poppers-> can be crispy if you allow the cheese topping the stuffed jalapeño to firm

2).  Prosciutto Poppers-> these do not leave the jalapeño as soft and greasy as bacon, lighter and easier to handle as well.

3).  Ham Poppers-> not as much taste, I used Piller's Simply Free Breakfast ham. They are not as greasy, but are thick and can absorb the jalapeños heat. 

Cheesy Poppers (crispy option)

Ingredients

5 jalapeño peppers

1/2 cup of grated marble or cheddar cheese

4 tablespoons of cream cheese

Procedure

-Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

-Cut jalapeños in a half and remove the seeds from inside.

-Stuff each jalapeño with cream cheese.

-Sprinkle grated cheese on top of each stuffed jalapeño.

-Bake in oven for 15 minutes.

Cheesy Poppers and Ham Poppers

-Briol for a few minutes to crisp cheese further.

Nutritional Information (per popper)

Calories: 54

Total Fat:  4g

Carbs:  3.7g

Fiber:  1.5g

Sugar:  1.9g

Protein: 2.1g

Ham Poppers 

Ingredients

5 jalapeño peppers

5 pieces of breakfast ham 

4 tablespoons of cream cheese

Procedure

-Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

-Cut jalapeños in a half and remove the seeds from inside.

-Stuff each jalapeño with cream cheese.

-Cut each strip of meat in half.

-Wrap each stuffed jalapeño with a piece of ham.

-Bake in oven for 15 minutes.

Nutritional Information (per popper)

Calories:  47

Total Fat:  2.6g

Carbs:  4.1g

Fiber:  1.5g

Sugar: 1.9g

Protein:  3.2g

Prosciutto Poppers (my favourite)

Ingredients

5 jalapeño peppers

5 pieces of prosciutto  

4 tablespoons of cream cheese

Procedure

-Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

-Cut jalapeños in a half and remove the seeds from inside.

-Stuff each jalapeño with cream cheese.

-Tear each strip of meat in half.

-Wrap each stuffed jalapeño with a piece of prosciutto.

-Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes.

Nutritional Information (per popper)

Calories: 47

Total Fat:  2.9g

Carbs: 3.6g

Fiber:  1.5g

Sugar: 1.9g

Protein: 2.7g

Keto Pulled Pork

This is one of my favourite recipes. 

I make it and used pulled pork in everything.

Pulled Pork and eggs, pulled pork omelettes and as a garnish on burgers. 

Most of the time I eat it as an entree. 

This recipe makes 8 servings.

Ingredients:
2 lbs of pork shoulder (or tenderloin)
1 can of diet pop (root beer or Dr. Pepper)
a dash of cinnamon 
chipotle sauce 
hot sauce 
4 oz of low carb/sugar free bbq sauce

Procedure:
-Place pork in slow cooker and heat on low. 
-Pour diet pop over meat.
-Add dash of cinnamon.
-Let cook on low heat for 6 to 7 hours.

-After 6-7 hours drain the slow cooker well.
-I then add sauces to taste. I try to use as little bbq sauce and as much of the other sauces as possible to reduce the carbs. An alternative to this is using a 0 carb bbq sauce. 

Nutritional Information (Per Serving):
Calories: 148
Total Fat: 6g
Carbs.: 1.8g
Fiber: 0g
Sugars: 1.1g
Protein: 20.1g

Here is a pic from my latest Slow Cooker Sunday. I bought the biggest shoulder I have ever seen and cooked it over night. It was amazing to wake up to! I like to let it sit sauced before I eat for a few hours, but today I could not resist using some in a pulled pork omelette!

Mini Keto Cheesecakes (with chocolate garnish)

    

Again, I apologize for the ugly plates.
New dishes are on my Christmas List.
Also, I drizzled this one with Smucker's
sugar free caramel sauce.

I had quite a few problems with this recipe, I am 
going to have to try it again. Below is my recipe, it is modified as I thought was needed. I will update this post as I work on perfecting it.

I found the recipe I started with way too sweet and buttery, this is the modified recipe I will now us. The following nutritional info varies by specific ingredients used. 


Yeild: 12 Cupcakes
Calories (Per Cupcake): 228
Fat: 20.5g
Carbs: 4.2g
Fibre: 0.8g
Sugar: 2g
Protein: 5.2g

Ingredients 
2 teaspoon of  vanilla
1/3 stick of butter
1/2 cup of almond meal
1/2 cup of splenda
2 eggs
2 8oz portions of cream cheese'
6 pieces of 90% Dark Chocolate


Prep Work 
-Pre-heat your oven to 350.  
-Soften the cream cheese.
-Melt the butter.

Procedure
-Stir almond meal into melted butter.
-Place a small amount of this mixture in each section of the pan, pat down to create crust. 
-Mix vanilla, eggs, splenda and cream cheese at medium speed until smooth. 
-Fill each part of pan with cheesecake mixture, until each is nearly full. 
-Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. (While baking) Cut chocolate pieces in half.
-Let pan cool and then remove cupcakes. Place a piece of chocolate on each cheesecake. This should melt on top. I added the chocolate to calm the sweetness of the initial recipe. 
-Chill cupcakes, it is worth the wait to leave them in the fridge overnight.