Roasted Garlic and Sun Dried Tomato Vegan Cheese
Roasted Garlic? That’s not raw! No, it isn’t. But in this post I am going to show you one of the ways I incorporate cooked elements in my raw recipes to make over the top delicious bites to dine on. For me, food isn’t just about putting nutrients into your body. Food is about delighting your senses with wonderful, healthy edibles.
Cashew cheese is a great entry recipe for making raw, vegan cheese. It takes a couple of days but the actual “hands-on” time is minimal. You just have to be a little patient. I love using rejuvalac to make my cheese because it works great and is very cost effective. But you can substitute a probiotic powder if you don’t want the hassel.
You can make this recipe with roasted garlic (not raw) or raw garlic, which would keep it’s raw status. But I encourage you to live a little and try the roasted garlic version.
I have had a lot of people asking me for recipes that use left over nut-milk pulp. So, I am including a raw recipe for BBQ crackers (shown), which I made with nut-milk pulp.
My favorite nut milk is an almond and cashew blend. I use it 95% of the time. The nut milk pulp I used was this blend. Pure almond pulp would be fine also. Just make sure you are using pure nut milk pulp…with nothing else (ie dates) added. I will note that raw crackers made with nut milk pulp tend to have a little chewier and tougher texture than the ones I make from ground nuts. But they are still tasty and a worthy way to use the pulp.
You can find truly raw cashews here: Raw Cashews
*A note about the pulp. I collect my nut milk pulp over the course of a month or two. When I make the milk, I just throw the pulp in a glass container in the freezer to batch dehydrate (dry) later or immediately dehydrate it and store it. When I have enough saved up and dried, it gets a quick whirl in the high-speed blender and presto! Nut milk pulp flour.
Roasted Garlic Sun Dried Tomato Cashew Vegan Cheese
Cheese
- 2 cups cashews, soaked overnight, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 cup rejuvelac (recipe here)
- 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, diced (you want softened tomatoes)
- 1 head roasted garlic* (2 cloves if using raw)
- Himalayan salt and pepper to taste
- Blend cashews and rejuvelac in blender until smooth. Spoon mixture into cheese cloth lined strainer, cover and let sit on the counter overnight. It may release liquid so have something to catch that.
- Remove cheese to bowl. Squeeze garlic cloves out of their skin and stir the cloves along with the sun dried tomatoes into the cheese mixture.
- Form into desired shape and refrigerate 12-24 hours to set. (You can use a ring mold
for this step.)
- If a rind is desired, dehydrate at 115 for 3-4 hours.
*To roast garlic, cut the top off of a garlic bulb. Pour in a little olive oil and wrap the bulb in foil. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until garlic is soft.
BBQ Nut Milk Pulp Crackers
- 3 cups nut mik pulp flour
- 1/2 cup ground golden flax seeds
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon BBQ spice mix (make sure yours doesn’t have sugar in it)
- Himalayan salt and pepper to taste
- Mix all ingredients together. Let “dough” rest for 10 minutes.
- Roll out 1/4 inch thick on non-stick dehydrator sheets and score.
- Dehydrate at 145 for 30 minutes, then 115 until dry (8-10 hours) removing the crackers to a screen half way through the drying.
Clau wrote on August 11, 2013
Susan, My rejuvelac and almonds were ready this morning, I had everything ready to go and then my food processor didnt turn on! I tried to use my cheap blender and off course it didnt work. So know I have 1/4 of the almonds chopped and the others whole with the rejuvelac already mixed sitting in a bowl in the fridge until sometime today I go exchange my food processor for another one. Can I still use this “have chopped mixture” tonight or tomorrow to make the cheese? I dont want to waste it and since its already mixed with the rejuvelac I guess its technically fermenting already.
Margi wrote on August 10, 2013
Hi Susan
Your recipes look great! I wondered if I could substitute cashew nuts for another type of nut? My husband doesn’t seem to tolerate cashews
Thanks
Susan wrote on August 13, 2013
Please check the FAQ page. There is quite a bit of information on substitutions.
Dave wrote on August 10, 2013
I was too lazy to roast the garlic so I used some lacto-fermented garlic that had been aged four about five months. The cheese came out awesome!
Clau wrote on August 9, 2013
I am making quinoa rejuvelac and my quinoa has sprouted so it seems like I might be making this cheese sooner then I thought 🙂 I want to buy a food processor in order to make your cheeses, and honestly I dont know who to ask and im not familiar with this item, can you use any food processor to make nut cheese or does it need a special function? I saw some in target for under 30 that I am interested in, I just want to know that I will be able to use it for making your vegan crackers and breads and your cheeses. I guess the question is, does the food processor need a special feature to make this? Or any would work. Thank you 🙂
Susan wrote on August 9, 2013
If you are planning on using you food processor quite a bit you should invest in a decent machine. I think you will be very disappointed in a 30.00 one. The stronger the motor, the better it will be. I tend to like Kitchenaid. There isn’t a special attachment needed.
Clau wrote on August 8, 2013
Thank you so much Susan for all the info and super fast responses. I love your site and I love how you help us newbies in the kitchen. 🙂
Susan wrote on August 8, 2013
Hi, Clau,
Nutritional yeast is used for flavor. It is not a probiotic and is not for the fermentation process. You can read more about it here: http://www.rawmazing.com/raw-food-and-nutritional-yeast/
Clau wrote on August 8, 2013
Thank you Susan for the response, I am attempting to make rejuvelac. If I am successful with it , I will start with the cheese. I have seen a lot of recipes that use nutritional yeast. Is nutritional yeast a substitute for rejuvelac or probiotic powder? Im guessing its for the fermentation process. Could I make this with nutritional yeast? If so, do I have to add water and how much should I use. Thank you Susan
Clau wrote on August 8, 2013
Susan I love your recipe, I really want to give it a try. Can I make the rind in the oven? Im not raw vegan so im not worried about the temperature. Thank you
claudia wrote on August 8, 2013
Hi Susan, I really want to make the cheese. And I would love the cheese to have a rind but I dont have a dehydrator since im not vegan or raw vegan. How can I make the rind in the oven?
To make the rejuvelac, I dont have any fancy jars like the one you have. Do I have to use a jar with a screen on top or can I just use a regular water jar and place a stocking on top or a pillow case? (i use pillow cases as cheese cloth and they work amazing even for making tofu)
Susan wrote on August 8, 2013
I have not tried to make this in the oven, as it is a raw food blog. You can certainly try. Would love to hear how it turns out.