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Karen’s vegan cheeze –
I must apologize for not posting for a while!
Karen and I are on the European inland waterways on our motor cruiser Shangri La,
on a trip from Netherlands to France.
I am somewhat preoccupied with running the boat and all that goes with such a voyage.
Read about our boating here
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However, the boat has a well equipped galley (kitchen) and Karen has been producing the most amazing vegan food.
We have been wanting to make vegan cheeze for a while now, and Karen has done it!
Here is Karen’s guest post on this –
Vegan cheeze
The thing about vegan cheeze is well, why bother. Cheese is highly addictive with casomorphins
And it tastes so good.
Cheese is a big hurdle for wannabe vegans. It was a tough one for us. We were told that we would get over cheese but I never believed it for a second.
But you actually do get over cheese. I think eating cheese is a habit. Not helped by the fact that there is so much of it in food all around us.
Once we started buying alternative things to eat – veggie pates, hummus, other bean dips, guacamole, salsas, pestos, tapenades, etc cheese
kind of dropped from our minds.
We do try vegan cheeze substitutes when we find them. They are unfortunately very expensive. I’ve been wanting to make a vegan cheeze and
my first attempt was a bit of a flop. This attempt was a whole lot better. And I made it on the boat – no less.
We had Internet at one of the stops and I watched this video
Anja shows exactly how to make this cheeze and what texture to expect.
Her key tips are – Simmer don’t boil the cheese.
Cook the Agar-Agar for a full 10 minutes to make sure it’s activated and will set.
And get it in the moulds pronto as it sets while you are pouring it
Tricky ingredients like Agar-Agar and Miso are available from most Asian food shops or Health Food shops.
Her recipe is written underneath her You Tube video. I was careful to follow it more or less but I made a few tiny tweaks to accommodate what I had on the boat.
Here’s the recipe –
1/2 C Soaked Cashew nuts/Macadamia nuts
3 Tablespoons Almond flour/Ground almonds
1 + 1/2 C Soy milk
3 Tablespoons Mild flavoured vegetable oil
1 Tablespoons Lemon juice/Apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons Miso paste – any colour or kind
1 Teaspoon Vegetable stock powder/Onion powder
1/2 Teaspoon White pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Himalayan salt
2 Tablespoons Agar-Agar soaking in 3/4 C boiling water for 10 minutes
I also added –
2 Tablespoons Nutritional yeast
1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric
You can add other flavours. Think along the lines of Garlic powder, Dried herbs, Liquid smoke, Smoked salt, Smoked paprika, Tomato paste, Mustard, Beer, Tamari, Soy sauce.
Here’s how you make it –
Boil the kettle and soak the Agar-Agar for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile mix all the other ingredients and blend until smooth. I only have a stick blender on the boat and it worked fine. Check the taste and add more flavourings or salt if needed.
Add the Agar-Agar to the cheese mixture, and again, blend well.
Now add the mixture to a pot and bring it to a simmer.
Do not let it burn or boil.
Keep it at a simmer for 10 minutes stirring constantly and scraping down the sides of the pot.
After 10 minutes, remove pot from heat and quickly pour into a heat proof mold. Allow to cool at room temperature and then place in the refrigerator.
So the question you may ask – is it like cheese? I don’t think so. But I like it. The closest I can compare it to is a really firm savoury mousse. It slices nicely. The flavours are up to you. You can add more or less of what you like.
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It’s perfect for a cracker biscuit or a slice of bread. With some pickles or a relish? Maybe mustard or vegan mayo and a slice of tomato? I loved this particular cheeze but I’m definitely going to try different flavours.
And it packs a protein punch with nuts and soy milk as the main ingredients – which is always handy for vegans.
Thanks to Karen for absolutely delicious vegan cheeze!
