From Julie Piatt’s This Cheese is Nuts! A terrific book and resource for vegan cheese making.
A delicious creamy non-dairy cheese that has an authentic bleu cheese look, and a rich, deep, and slightly briny umami-rich flavor! A dehydrator [mine is Magic Mill], set at 90 or 95 degrees F, is used to ferment the cheese for 24 hours.
Makes one 4 x 1 ¾” mold [mold capacity approximately 1 ½ cups]
Cheese weight will be will be close to 14 ounces
Line mold with a circle of parchment paper
*Ingredient Notes:
Irish moss – I used Organic Sea Moss Raw by True Sea Moss, 16 oz, from Amazon
Refined coconut oil – although I haven’t, you can try 2 tsp. tahini instead
Acidophilus probiotic – I used 1 ½ capsules 2 billion by Now
Aquafaba – I always save and freeze this for use in any recipe that calls for it. Home-cooked garbanzo broth is inconsistent]
Powdered spirulina or frozen live spirulina – I got organic spirulina powder from a local health foods store. You can also buy it on line
Pre-prep:
– Cover the cashews with filtered water and store covered in the refrigerator overnight.
– Rinse the Irish moss very well in a colander until all the sand is removed and the ocean smell is gone. Cover with filtered water, seal and store in the refrigerator.
Preparation:
– Drain the Irish moss, rinse, and drain again. Place it in the bowl of a Vitamix with the 1/2 cup filtered water. Blend on high speed for 1 minute or until it is emulsified. Measure out 2 tablespoons for this recipe, and reserve the rest. [I freeze 2 tablespoons in small containers for future cheese]. Clean the mixer pitcher.
– Drain the cashews. In the clean Vitamix pitcher combine the cashews, emulsified Irish moss, nutritional yeast, salt, coconut oil, garlic powder, acidophilus, and aquafaba.
– Blend on medium speed, using the plunger to evenly distribute the mixture. Mix to make smooth. Transfer the mixture to a cheese mold with parchment paper on the bottom. I always have a bit of the mixture left and put that into a 4 oz. glass dish as a “taster”.
– Sprinkle the spirulina over the cheese (start with less than 1/2 tsp.) and, using a small spatula or butter knife, gently marble it through in all directions. Turn a bit of the bottom up. Do not overmix or your cheese will turn green.
– Place the cheese mold in the dehydrator at 90-95 degrees F for 24 hours.
– When finished, refrigerate overnight. Run a knife around the edges of the mold and turn it out. Peel off the parchment paper and serve bottom side up. I think that it tastes even better if given days, or a week, to blend the flavors.
– If not served right away, store in a container that allows some air to come in. Julie Piatt said that it can be stored for up to 3 weeks. I have stored it weeks longer, and I have frozen it and been happy with the results.
– Serve with crackers, crusty sourdough toast, and on slices of vegetable like carrots or sliced watermelon radishes.
ENJOY!
