Tag: cheese

Grate Expectations

Tempeh has more in common with cheese than you may think. Moldy soybean cakes and buttery curds look nothing alike on the surface, granted, but look deeper. Fermented, full of good bacteria, they’re both naturally funky, umami, and sometimes pungent. For years, I had the hazy idea to make tempeh into cheese by blending it with cashews, though it turns out I was vastly overthinking things. Tempeh is already halfway to cheese-ification, straight out of the package.

Brine and Dine

Inspired by Vegan Scratch Kitchen, it turns out that the only thing separating tempeh from becoming a wedge of genuine cheese is a simple brine, as basic as if you were making refrigerator pickles. Mesmerized by the golden shreds raining down in the dappled sunlight of a cozy kitchen, I knew I had to try it… With modifications, of course.

The Secret Ingredient: Time

Though easy to a fault, it is time-consuming, only in the sense that you can’t plan on having cheese ready for your spaghetti dinner that same day. It’s all passive, waiting for the tempeh to soak, and then dry, requiring minimal effort at every step. For someone with low energy and a limited attention span, it’s a boon to realize your timer is going off and you’re already done.

Falling Short of Grate-ness

Admittedly, the one thing my tempeh cheese (AKA tempeh Parmesan, though not to be confused with the Italian dish typically involving eggplants or chicken) falls short on is its grate-ability. It just crumbles under pressure, which is honestly not a terrible thing. You can use the chunky crumbles in salad like little hunks of cheese, or pulse the whole thing in your food processor to make a fine powder like you’d find in the green cans. I came to prefer this approach, since you can add in extra nooch in this step and boost the cheesy flavor accordingly.

Top This

For a cheesy topping that imitates dairy-based Parmesan, you can’t do any better than this novel, plant-based approach. Made from only whole foods, it’s a high-protein, gluten-free dynamo packed with probiotics, and most importantly, bold flavor!

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Hannah (BitterSweet)8 Comments

Terribly Toothsome

Sitting at the dinner table, surrounded by the familiar chatter of family, it’s the start of another ordinary meal. Your plate, piled high with a vibrant green salad, glistens under the soft tungsten light. As you reach for a forkful of crisp lettuce, a sudden jolt of panic shoots through you. Your teeth feel loose, wobbling precariously inside your mouth, as the urge to clench your jaw intensifies. With a sickening crunch, like a bolt out of the blue, your front tooth snaps off, leaving a gaping hole in your fading smile.

Horror washes over you as you examine the broken tooth, its white enamel glistening on the ceramic plate. Your heart races as you realize the nightmare has only just begun. One by one, tooth after tooth tumbles down, leaving a mouthful of jagged stumps in their wake. The once-inviting salad now seems like a grotesque mockery, its vibrant colors marred with the shrapnel of ruined molars and canines.

Desperation grips you as you try to salvage the meal, but every bite is a painful reminder of your crumbling reality. The lettuce sticks to your toothless gums, the dressing drips down your chin, and the once-familiar taste of food is now a bitter, metallic sensation.

The room around you fades into darkness, replaced by a cacophony of screams and the echoing sound of your own teeth clattering to the ground. You are alone in this nightmare, trapped in a world where even the simplest act of eating is a terrifying ordeal.

For anyone wishing to recreate this delightful nightmare for their friends, these “teeth” are easily made using your favorite vegan mozzarella or provolone recipe, set in a realistic human teeth mold. Go forth and terrify.

Hannah (BitterSweet)6 Comments

A Pretty Big Dill

Vegan cheese is booming. Long viewed as the final frontier for plant-based diets, the last holdout for hesitant omnivores, the choke-hold that Big Dairy has had on the industry is finally losing its grip. Still, the gap between accessible, everyday melting cheeses and gourmet cheeses fit for a charcuterie board is a wide, cavernous divide. When you want something nicer than generic cheddar-like shreds but not quite a triple cream brie, where’s there to turn?

Your own kitchen, of course.

Anyone who claims it’s impossible to make remarkable plant-based blocks and wedges at home clearly hasn’t even tried. There’s a hundred ways to go about it, but I happen to think that my latest approach especially is a pretty big dill. Dill Havarti, a soft, mild, and buttery cheese that originated in Denmark in the 19th century, is still a rare find in the dairy-free space. Distinctively fresh, herbal, and slightly tangy, it’s a timeless flavor combination and yet at the same time, an ideal option for celebrating spring.

It Slices! It Shreds! It Spreads! Yes, It Even MELTS!

When enjoyed within the first few hours, the texture is soft enough to use a schmear on bagels and toast. Once rested overnight, it solidifies into a proper soft block, fit to be sliced, shredded, and cubed at will.

Naturally, this beautiful block is 100% vegan and thus:

  • Dairy-free

But also made of pantry staples that make it affordable, accessible, and:

  • Oil-free
  • Nut-free
  • Seed-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Sugar-free

What About Carrageenan?

Don’t fall for the negative press surrounding this unnecessarily controversial ingredient. Carrageenan is derived from red seaweed, commonly used for its gelling, thickening, and stabilizing properties. Despite some health myths circulating, scientific studies have shown that carrageenan is perfectly safe for consumption. Agar, beloved by the vegan community for decades, has a lot in common.

Kappa carrageenan specifically is unique in making a stable gel that can be melted again after being set, creating something much more similar to dairy cheese. The structure itself is softer and creamier, as opposed to an agar gel that has a short, stiff bite. There’s nothing I would recommend as a reasonable substitute; it’s worth buying a bag online, especially when you consider how much money it can save you compared to buying artisan vegan cheese.

Better, Healthier Cheese For All

After going through untold amounts of pricey cashews and coconut oil, I can’t imagine going back. There’s nothing wrong with craving a better plant-based cheese than what’s on the market, no matter how many choices already exist. Until someone else steps up their dill Havarti game to produce something dairy-free on a larger scale, this is the only game in town. Luckily, it’s a win-win every time.

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Hannah (BitterSweet)6 Comments

How to Build a Vegan Cheese Board

For any gathering big or small, a well-appointed cheeseboard has always seemed like the height of sophistication. Arranged just so over a distressed wood plank, discrete piles of sweet and savory morsels sparkle like jewels in a treasure chest, waiting to be plundered. Carefully curated selections manage to dance in step no matter the pairing, as if they were all destined for this stage. How is it possible to create such a winning cheeseboard at home, with little experience, limited budget, or particular tastes?

If you’ve ever enjoyed cheese and crackers together, believe it or not, you’re already an expert. Putting together a selection of snacks for grazing isn’t rocket science. Start small and keep building as the occasion demands, breaking it down into five distinct categories for easy execution.

1 – 3 Types of Vegan Cheese

This is the star of the show here so don’t hold back. Plan on at least 1 – 2 ounces per person as an appetizer or snack. For a small party, it’s perfectly fine to focus on just one superlative cheese, but it’s always nice to offer different options to compare and contrast. Think of them in three categories while shopping or cooking:

Something Sweet

Personally, I wouldn’t go with desserts like cookies or truffles, but a more moderate, natural source of sweetness. The idea is to help balance the savory notes of the cheeses, rather than overpower them. That means relying on nature’s candy with no added sugars:

  • Fresh fruit (grapes, sliced apples or pears, berries)
  • Dried fruit (apricots, dates, figs)
  • Jam or preserves

Something Salty

There’s a lot of potential overlap in this category with the following, so you can pick one or the other for a smaller spread. For concentrated pops of salty contrast, I’d suggest at least one of these:

  • Pickles
  • Marinated artichokes
  • Olives
  • Capers

Something Crunchy

Texture is critical! It’s especially important to have something crispy when you have a soft, spreadable cheese on deck. There should be a vehicle for any schmear, and maybe even a crunchy topper to finish it off:

Something Neutral

There’s a whole lot going on with the rest of the board, so it’s nice to provide some blank space as a palate cleanser. These are also great options for those that really want to put the cheese first, but not just shove a whole plain wedge of it in their mouths. Use these as fillers when you have blank space:

  • Soft bread
  • Carrot or celery sticks
  • Cucumber slices

BONUS: Charcuterie

If this was a genuine charcuterie board, you’d want to go heavy on the sliced plant-based meats. That, however, is a whole separate topic in and of itself. Consider it a wildcard addition if you want some extra protein to make it more of a meal.

Don’t Forget…!

There’s plenty of overlap that exists and you shouldn’t let these simplified lists restrict your creativity! Consider candied nuts for a sweet, salty, and crunchy component, for example, or a spicy pepper jam that’s more hot than sweet.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with paring it down to the bare essentials; all you need is a really great cheese and hearty crackers to start a party on the right foot. Perfect for the holidays or everyday entertaining, a plant-based cheeseboard offers a little bit of something for everyone.

Hannah (BitterSweet)4 Comments