[1] Mom’s Classic Cheesecake recipe is made in 6″ springform pans (both photos © Green Valley).

[2] Green Valley Lactose Free Cream Cheese is also organic.

Want to celebrate National Cheesecake Day (July 30th) but have lactose issues?

There’s a great lactose-free cream cheese just waiting to be turned into cheesecake.

Pick up Green Valley Lactose Free Cream Cheese and bake away!

The excellent Green Valley line of organic, lactose-free dairy products also include:

 
They taste just like the conventional versions.

The products are processed as little as possible. The cream cheese, for example, has no gums or other thickeners.

The result is pure and flavorful, just organic cream and the cultures that are used.
 
 
LACTOSE-FREE CHEESECAKE RECIPES

These recipes, developed in the Green Valley kitchen, are a collection of classic cheesecakes and bars, as well as fun variations like cheesecake jars and truffles.

 
 
> How about some conventional cheesecake recipes?

July 30th is National Cheesecake Day. Last month we published a roundup of 43 cheesecake recipes, including classic, creative, full-size, individual, frozen and savory cheesecakes.

Today, we have a no-bake cheesecake. Why turn on the oven on a hot day, when you can serve a stunning, easy-to-make dessert without it?

Another bonus: this cheesecake has a gluten-free crust, made with almonds, walnuts and Medjool dates (the different types of dates).

The crust not only delivers extra layers of flavor, but nutrition, too.

And you don’t need a spring-form pan, just a pie plate.

The cheesecake sets in the refrigerator. You can make the recipe in the morning and serve it at dinner.

Thanks to Hello Fresh for the recipe.

> The history of cheesecake.
 
 
RECIPE: NO BAKE CHEESECAKE WITH FRESH FRUIT TOPPING

This recipe can be made year-round, with bright berries and stone fruits in the summer, and different-colored citrus fruits in the winter.
 
Ingredients For The Crust

 
Ingredients For The Filling

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the crust. First pulse the almonds and dates together in a food processor until well chopped. Add the walnuts, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt and blend until well combined, with only small chunks visible.

2. ADD the mixture to a lightly oiled pie plate and press down gently until even. Refrigerate at least 20 minutes, preferably close to one hour. Meanwhile…

3. BEAT the cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth, 2-3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the heavy cream. Once all are added, increase the speed to medium and beat until peaks form, about 3 minutes.

4. STIR in the lemon juice before spreading evenly into the crust. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the filling sets completely, 4-6 hours. Top with fruit just before serving.
 
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*The Medjool is a large, sweet date (Phoenix dactylifera), originally from the Tafilalt region of Morocco. Medjools are a larger date, with more caramel-like flavors than other varieties. Today it is also grown in Iran, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the U.S. Israel currently produces more than 60% of the global Medjool crop, and is the world’s largest exporter of Medjool dates. In the market, look for Medjools from California’s Bard Valley, which are lush, rich and delicious.

[1] A no-bake cheesecake topped with fresh fruit (photo © Hello Fresh).

[2] A crust made from almonds is gluten free, and adds fiber, protein and vitamins not present in cookie crusts (photo © Good Eggs).

[3] Medjool dates from California. Dates deliver a significant amount of fiber and variety of vitamins and minerals, including B vitamins, copper, iron, magnesium and potassium. The Medjool variety also has a significant amount of calcium (photo © Bard Valley Natural Delights).

July 29th is National Chicken Wing Day, celebrating a dish that rose to prominence in 1964 when a bar owner in Buffalo turned the inexpensive cut of chicken into an impromptu bar snack: fried wings, blue cheese dressing for dipping and celery stalks on the side.

The popularity of that bar snack turned Buffalo Wings into an appetizer at bars and restaurants across the country, not to mention a must-serve item for the Super Bowl and other sports games.

Here’s the history of Buffalo Wings. And here’s why you might not want to eat them very often.

In recent decades, chefs and home cooks have been putting their own spin on wings. The crispy skin is a canvas for international flavorings of any kind (here’s our recipe for Spicy Thai Chicken Wings).

How about Argentinian Chimichurri Wings, Filipino Adobo Wings, Greek Souvlaki Wings, Indian Spiced Extra-Crispy Wings, Indonesian Coconut Curry Wings, Moroccan Harissa Wings, or West African Spicy Peanut Wings?

You can find these recipes here. (And why not plan a wings party, while you’re at it?)

But with the rapidly growing interest in plant-based chicken nuggets and other formats, we’re stepping away from meat for this year’s chicken wings recipe. Instead, how about a plant-based alternative: Cauliflower “Chicken Wings.”

They’re baked-not-fried (although you can fry them), and served with the same blue cheese dressing and celery sticks as the original Buffalo Wings.

Some might call them cauliflower “bites,” but where’s the creativity in that? Carpe diem.
 
 
RECIPE: CAULIFLOWER BUFFALO WINGS

Thanks to Frigo Cheese, who created this recipe (photo #1) using their crumbled blue cheese (photo #6).

Prep time is 20 minutes, cook time is 20-25 minutes.
 
Ingredients For 6-8 Servings

For The Buffalo Cauliflower

 
Ingredients For The Blue Cheese Dressing

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil and set aside.

2. COMBINE the milk, beer, flour, baking powder, onion powder and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until everything is just combined, being sure to not over-mix.

3. DIP each cauliflower floret into the batter, allow any excess to run off, and transfer to the baking sheet. Repeat the dipping process until you’ve battered all of the florets.

4. SPRAY the tops of the florets with cooking spray; this will help with the crisping. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are lightly golden brown. Meanwhile…

5. MELT the butter in a medium saucepan on low heat, and whisk in the Buffalo Wing Sauce or the Garlic Honey Wing Sauce until butter is thoroughly incorporated.

6. MAKE the blue cheese dressing. In a food processor or high powered blender fitted with a blade*, pulse together until smooth the crumbled blue cheese, sour cream, blue cheese, milk, garlic powder, onion powder and salt, plus the optional lemon and dill. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
 
 
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*Alternatively, mix in a medium bowl with a rubber spatula until smooth.

[1] Instead of classic Buffalo Wings, go vegetarian with cauliflower wings (photo © Frigo Cheese).

[2] Here’s a second recipe for Buffalo Chicken Wings from Broma Bakery (photo © Broma Bakery).

[3] A beautiful head of cauliflower. The name derives from the Italian cavolfiore, “cabbage flower,” after the Latin caulis, cabbage and flōs, flower (photo © Good Eggs).

[4] Crumbled blue cheese (photo © Good Eggs).

[5] Crumbled blue cheese (photo © Frigo Cheese).