While on a recent holiday to Tasmania we popped into a shop selling vegan cheeses for Mr Incredible. They were delicious and he could eat them ALL… the price though was extreme. $20 or so for a small round. Crazy right? Especially when you can make it sooo much cheaper with very little effort at home. Thanks to the blog at Minimalist Baker I’ve adapted the recipe to be quick and simple with the aid of a thermal cooking machine, like the Thermomix (which I love!). Hooray!!!
Ingredients
- 2 cups (240 g) raw cashews
- 2 garlic cloves – slightly crushed with a knife
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder, plus more to taste
- 1 lemon peel (no white pith)
- 1 lemons, juiced (1/4 cup)
- 180 grams water
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 Tbsp (around 25grams) olive oil
To serve
- 2 Tbsp (8 g) finely minced fresh dill
Method
- Place cashews in a bowl and cover with cool water. Soak for 4 hours on the bench or overnight in the fridge
- Once soaked, drain cashews thoroughly and add to thermie. Add minced garlic, garlic powder, lemon zest, lemon juice, water, nutritional yeast, salt and olive oil.
- Process speed 5 for 30 seconds, scrape down sides
- Then taste and adjust seasonings as needed, adding more lemon zest for tartness, nutritional yeast for cheesiness, garlic for zing, or salt for flavour and balance. Depending how large your lemon was, you may need to combat the extra zest with more yeast flakes.
- Process on speed 9 for 20 seconds until very creamy and smooth
- Drain ingredients through a nut bag/cheese cloth over a bowl and squeeze
- While in bag/cloth form the cheese into a “disc.”
- Place in refrigerator to set for at least 6 hours, preferably 12, or until excess moisture has been wicked away, and it holds its form when released from the nutbag/cheese cloth.
- To serve, unwrap from bag/cheesecloth and gently invert onto a serving platter. Reform with hands or cheesecloth as needed, then coat with chopped herbs and a bit more lemon zest (optional). It is fragile, so handle gently.
- Enjoy chilled with crackers or vegetables. Cheese will hold its form for 1-2 hours out of the refrigerator, but best when chilled. Leftovers keep well covered in the refrigerator up to 5 days.
Cooking Notes
*If you’re in a hurry, you can quick-soak the cashews by covering with boiling hot water and letting soak for 1.5 hours. Drain and proceed with recipe as instructed. However, for this recipe long soaking (for 12 hours in cool water) is best because the cashews slowly soften rather than being shocked, yielding a softer, creamier cheese.
*Recipe adapted from Maple Spice and RawMazing.
* Garlic powder and fresh garlic are both used because they offer different flavors (dried is more intense while fragrant, fresh is more intense/spicy).
*Recipe adapted from Maple Spice and RawMazing.
* Garlic powder and fresh garlic are both used because they offer different flavors (dried is more intense while fragrant, fresh is more intense/spicy).
a life of less regrets 