This recipe is a little different today, as I’ve been dabbling with ketogenic recipes. A recipe that calls for a brick of butter?? Go on….
A pecan pie fudge recipe… that’s also low carb? How can that be? Enter, the ketogenic diet.
What is a ketogenic diet?
Basically, the ketogenic diet is super-ultra low carb and super high-fat. Like, no fruit no starchy veggies low carb, and all things bacon and butter. Macros on a ketogenic diet look something like this: 70% fats, 25% protein, and 5% carbohydrate.
People report all sorts of benefits of the ketogenic diet- including weight loss, blood sugar regulation, increased mental focus, and is even used to control childhood epilepsy.
There is no sugar on a keto diet (not even honey, maple syrup or coconut sugar!). But, there is a product called Swerve out there that claims to be just as good as sugar… with no carbs and no calories.
What are the ingredients in Swerve?
The secret to our zero-calorie sweetness is a combination of erythritol, oligosaccharides and natural flavors that provide just the right amount of sweetness with excellent baking and cooking functionality. Swerve can even brown and caramelize. There are many
How can Swerve be zero calorie and contain carbohydrates?
The carbohydrates in Swerve come from the erythritol and oligosaccharides. Erythritol is somewhat of an anomaly in the carbohydrate world, since it’s non-caloric. Erythritol is absorbed in the small intestine and then eliminated by the body, so it’s never metabolized and can’t contribute calories. Erythritol is rapidly absorbed, with very little making its way to the large intestine. For this reason, it’s less likely—compared to other sugar alcohols like xylitol and maltitol—to cause gastrointestinal distress. (Not the nicest topic, we know, but we’re glad to be on the right side of it.)
I actually prefer to use other no calorie sweeteners like monk fruit extract and stevia, but they aren’t ideal for baking. Other than no calories, the appeal of Swerve is that it looks, cooks and measures out just like real sugar.
I’m sure larger health food markets carry Swerve… but our local store does not. 🙂 So, I fired up the old Amazon app, and bought a pack to try!
Between the 2 pound bag of pecans I scooped up on my last trip to Costco and the quickly approaching holidays, a craving for pecan pie hit me, and thus a recipe for keto friendly pecan pie fudge was necessary!
Keto Pecan Pie Fudge
PrintKeto Pecan Pie Fudge
Ingredients
- Unbleached Parchment Paper
- 9×9 Baking Pan
- 8 oz (1 Brick) Full Fat Cream Cheese- I use Philadelphia. Don’t use the whipped or lite, your fudge will not set up correctly!
- 8 oz (1 Brick) Kerrygold Butter
- 3 + 1 tbsp Swerve (or granulated sweetener of choice)
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 1 pinch Pink Himalayan Sea Salt.
- 4 tablespoons Organic Coconut Oil
- Dash or two of Cinnamon
- 1/4 Cup Pecans– crushed
Instructions
- Soften the butter and cream cheese. Mix together thoroughly until there are no lumps and it is silky smooth!
- Add vanilla, swerve, and salt
- In a saucepan, heat the coconut oil until melted.
- Add 1 tbsp Swerve, Cinnamon and Pecans to sauce pan. Simmer on medium-low until the pecans begin to soften, about 5 minutes.
- While the pecans are cooking, spread the cream cheese and butter mixture in a 9×9 pan lined with parchment paper.
- Pour pecan mixture evenly over the top.
- Let the fudge set up in the freezer for about half an hour. After that, keep refrigerated! I prefer it chilled in the fridge to frozen. Enjoy!
Notes
A note about counting carbs and swerve- I did not include the carb count of swerve, which is about 3 grams of carbohydrate per square. In my research, I found:
“It is true that Swerve contains carbs, but these carbs are coming from the sugar alcohol Erythritol, which is not absorbed by the body (similar to how fiber is not absorbed). Therefore, you would not “count” these carbs towards your total carb intake for the day.”
There is A LOT more to say about the ketogenic diet, and if it is something that interests you, check out these resources:
By my favorite Primal guy, Mark Sisson: The Keto Reset Diet: Reboot Your Metabolism in 21 Days and Burn Fat Forever
Bacon & Butter: The Ultimate Ketogenic Diet Cookbook
And as the winter months are on us: Keto Comfort Foods
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This recipe for keto fudge is so so easy, and I’m pretty impressed with how good Swerve is! We are so conditioned to the taste of sugar that alternative sweeteners can taste … off. I was really pleased that this is not the case with this recipe!
While this pecan pie fudge was really, really, REALLY good- it is still a sweet treat. My instinct is to use Swerve sparingly, for special occasions and holidays, and not for everyday consumption. To me, Swerve is a good compromise between eating clean, natural ingredients, and navigating a more mainstream society.
Need More?
Need more inspiration? Check out my recipe for primal peach cobbler in the Instant Pot- make it as is, or use swerve for a keto friendly peach cobbler.
Or turn my Keto French Silk Mousse into a delicious keto pie for the holidays! Just add a crust made of crushed macadamia nuts and butter- YUM!
Armed with this pecan keto pie recipe, you can enjoy the holidays- pecan pie (fudge) and all!
18 comments
Hi Amy,
I know this is Keto and your suggested sweetener for this fudge which looks absolutely delicious is Curve however, do you think coconut palm sugar would work out with this recipe? It must be a new post because I do not see any comments listed. Thanks so much!
Heidy
Hi Heidy! I would think coconut sugar would for sure work! You may want to melt it with a little bit of butter, otherwise the texture may be grainer. Also, coconut sugar will likely knock you out of ketosis, but if you aren’t tracking that, you for sure can sub a different sweetener. Let me know how it goes!
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Is the nutritional information figured out for these?
It is! I’ve just updated it, thank you!
I made the pecan pie fudge today… gotta say, I’m fighting my grandkids over this!
Love it Marie! 😀
What is the total amount of servings this makes and how many net carbs is it per serving?
Hi Kristy! 16 squares, and 1.3 carbs each. Thank you!
Hi Amy, I’m just starting keto and want to know how many pieces this makes and what is the nutritional values ? I’m tracking everything so it would be helpful. Thank you.
Hey Susan! I just updated that information, it makes about 16 squares, with 1.3 carbs each! Good luck!
[…] Keto Pecan Pie Fudge […]
Can’t find the amount of carbs in the pecan fudge
Hi Letha! I updated the nutritional info – there is just over 1 gram per square (makes about 16 squares) Thanks!
Hi Amy, I am going to be trying this recipe tonight and super looking forward to see how it turns out. My husband is a huge fan of pecan pie and I love cream cheese bombs, so a perfect marriage to say none the less ;P
Could you please clarify not only in a comment but adjust in the recipe the addition of swerve. Your recipe requires 4tbsp’s of it. Step 2 says “add swerve” etc. Step 4 says add swerve to a pot to cook down, so is there only 3 tbsp’s in the cream cheese/butter mixture or is this in addition to the listed 4tbsp’s?
Thanks!
Hey Jaz! Thanks for the comment! I’ve updated the confusing part- it is 3 tbsp swerve, and 1 tbsp in the topping. Thanks! Amy
This recipe tastes extremely salty. I used stevia as the sweetener and used an extra liquid stevia to try to sweeten it, but still taste not like I was imagining it. The Kerrygold butter brick didn’t state it was salted or unsalted. Not sure…..is this how it’s supposed to taste?
Hey Mechelle! Thanks for the feedback! I know I have trouble sweetening larger recipes like this with stevia- I find it takes a LOT for it to taste sweet. I like to use stevia in drinks and fat-bombs! So, yes, that likely would affect the taste, swerve is a 1:1 replacement. I used salted Kerrygold- but I do know they have unsalted as well. If you used the gold package- it was salted 😀