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A while back I mentioned that I had found a vegan cheese that was pretty damn good. I’ve spent some time playing around with it, and I finally have a post ready for you all.
I don’t often use vegan cheese. Vegan cheese usually sucks, and I’ve found that the longer I’m vegan (just over four years now), the less I want to eat things similar to cheese (or any other non-vegan product). Now, that doesn’t mean that it’s not good every once in a while. But I don’t feel like I need it anymore. I don’t require it to be satisfied, which is a great thing.
But I’m always interested in new vegan cheeses. When I first went vegan I bought all the different brands I could find and taste-tested them. I was very disappointed. I coudn’t believe that no one could come up with a better vegan cheese. Sure, it’s definitely possible to develop a taste for some of the products out there, but they don’t win you over on the first bite. And they’d never, ever fool someone.
So when Scott from Black Duck Imports contacted me to ask if I’d like to try some Sheese vegan cheese, I was definitely curious. Surely someone, somewhere, had made some improvements on the vegan cheese front. I told him I’d be happy to try it, but I wasn’t going to mention a peep about it on the blog unless I really liked it.
And I really like it.
The taste, especially in their various cheddars, is great. The texture is perfect for grating, shaving, or slicing. It doesn’t feel oily or wet like some other cheeses out there. It’s very flavorful, so you don’t need a lot to flavor a dish.
The downsides? It doesn’t really melt, so it’s better mixed into something than on top of something. It comes in a wide variety of flavors, but the cheddars taste the best to me; the mozzarella is fine but it doesn’t taste like mozzarella, and I downright disliked the gouda. My favorite is the smoked cheddar. I often use a vegetable peeler to shave some off onto pasta.
So now to the recipe. When I think I cheese I usually think pizza (a side effect of growing up in Chicago, the land of perfect pizza pie), but since sheese wouldn’t really melt all that well, I had to come up with an alternate plan. Then it hit me: if you use phyllo, you can easily put the cheese inside the pizza. Like so:
This dish makes a perfect starter, and besides the little bit of stress phyllo causes, it’s really easy.
Special notes for phyllo dough: Located in the freezer section of your grocery store. Keep frozen, placing unopened package in the refrigerator the night before to defrost. Do not defrost at room temperature. Once defrosted, move dough from refrigerator to counter two hours before use. Keep any opened dough covered with a damp kitchen towel and/or plastic wrap to prevent drying. Re-wrap unused portion immediately and refrigerate for 1 week, or refreeze.
Flaky Pizza Purses
Makes 6 Starters
1 Recipe 6 Minute Tomato Sauce (below)
5 Sheets Phyllo Dough
1/4 to 1/2 Wheel of Sheese, any flavor, shredded
Fresh Basil Leaves
5 Tbs Melted Earth Balance Margarine
Six Minute Tomato Sauce
1 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Pint Sweet Grape Tomatoes
1/4 tsp Salt (more to taste, if desired)
1/2 tsp Dried Italian Herbs
Begin by making the tomato sauce. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a saute pan and add tomatoes. Toss in oil and cook until tomatoes begin to soften and burst. Add salt and herbs. You can help the tomatoes along by popping them with the tip of a knife as they expand. Gently mash the tomatoes, but not enough to loose their basic shape. Total cooking time approximately six minutes until the sauce is ready to go. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 400º F.
Get your work station ready with everything you’ll need (photo) to make the purses. You’ll need a large area to spread the dough out on, tomato sauce, shredded sheese, basil, melted earth balance, a brush, and a damp kitchen towel/plastic wrap.
You’ll want to open the dough, unroll it, remove 5 sheets, cover the 5 sheets, re-roll and re-package the remaining dough….all as fast as you possibly can.
Once the leftover dough as been put away, you’ll begin brushing and stacking each of the five sheets. Always re-cover the sheets you’re not currently working with, or else they’ll dry out.
Remove one sheet from the stack of five and lay it out in front of you. Brush with melted Earth Balance, starting at the edges and working in to the center (the edges will dry out the fastest, this prevents that). If you get some rips or tears, don’t worry–it won’t be noticeable by the time you’re done. Just repair them as best you can and move on.
Once covered in Earth Balance, place the second sheet on top. Brush. Repeat this process until all 5 phyllo sheets have been stacked and brushed. Using a pizza cutter, cut dough into six squares (one cut lengthwise, two cuts widthwise).
Now you can relax. The dough won’t dry out so quick now that it’s coated in Earth Balance. Place 1/6 of the sauce in the middle of each square. The add cheese and a few basil leaves. I left mine whole because I’m lazy, but you can chop yours up if you want.
Gather the edges of the squares into the center, twisting to seal and form a purse. Place the completed purses on a baking sheet.
Give the purses one final brush of Earth Balance before going in the oven.
Bake for 10-15 minutes (I did 15) until the purses turn golden brown along the edges and the body feels cooked and flaky. Top with fresh basil leaves and serve warm.
Click here for more information on where to purchase Sheese. I usually purchase it online through Vegan Essentials. I hope you like it as much as I do! And hey, if you’re looking for a mozzarella that really melts, check out the newest vegan cheese on the block, Teese. I had it on a pizza in Seattle and it was great!
May 3rd, 2008
There are innumerable recipes for vegan mac and cheese on the internet. I’ve tried a lot of them. Some of them simply call for “slices of soy cheese” and some vegetable stock to be mixed over pasta. The majority, however, require nutritional yeast, and they usually also require making a roux. The recipe below is from my upcoming cookbook, and it’s one of my favorites. However, if you’ll indulge me for a moment, there are some things about vegan mac and cheeze I want to talk about.
Now, I’m the first to admit “Mac and Yeast” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. That’s why I tend to call it “Mac and Cheeze”. But I’m also the first to admit that these recipes, even the best of them, don’t really taste all that much like mac and cheese. Some get much closer than others, and a lot are downright tasty. But it’s not cheese. Your omnivore or veggie friend/spouse/child may love it as much as or even more than the real stuff (if you’re lucky), but they probably love it on its own merits, not because they really can’t tell the difference.
But you know what? It doesn’t have to taste exactly the same for me to love it.
A lot of people, myself included, are really interested in making vegan food that’s indistinguishable from the “real” thing. It’s a fun challenge, and oftentimes, a challenge where you can really and truly be successful. But there are many instances where you don’t create something identical, but what you do create is actually good. Different, but yummy. While vegan mac and cheese doesn’t taste exactly like non-vegan mac and cheese, it satisfies the same craving. It’s rich and creamy and salty and vaguely cheese-like. It’s a yummy, thick creamy sauce to top noodles with.
I think that sometimes it’s enough to satisfy your cravings with something similar, if you can’t find something identical. After three years of being vegan, I don’t even crave mac and cheese anymore; I crave mac and yeast.
I think expectation is important with food. If it looks like a grape, you expect it to taste like a grape. If I hand you a glass of sparkling wine and tell you it’s gingerale, you might be put off when you take a sip. You might even like wine, but you expected it to be, well, not wine. If I say, “here, try this mac and cheese” and give you mac and yeast, you might be disappointed when you tasted it. If you’ve never tried a mac and yeast recipe before, and you want to try this one, keep in mind that it doesn’t taste like cheese.
It just tastes like yummy. Well, it does to me and the vegans that tested the recipe for me!
Mac and Cheeze
Serves 2-3
1/3 Cup Earth Balance Margarine
1/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
2 1/2 Tbs Low Sodium Tamari or Soy Sauce
1 Tbs Lemon Juice, fresh
1 Tbs Sweet/White/Mellow Miso
1 Tbs Tahini
1 Tbs Tomato Paste (not sauce!)
1 1/4 Cup Soy Milk
1/3 Cup Nutritional Yeast
1 Pinch Salt
Black Pepper, to taste
Begin by heating a sauce pan and adding the earth balance. Once melted, add flour and whisk vigorously until a smooth paste forms, called a roux. Be careful not to add flour to a pan that is very hot, or your roux will be lumpy and you’ll need to start over. If you mix in the flour as soon as the margarine is melted and you should avoid any problems.
To this paste, add tamari, lemon, miso, tahini, and tomato paste and whisk until well incorporated. The mixture should still be paste-like. Then slowly pour in the soymilk, whisking constantly, until it is completely incorporated. Add the yeast and mix well. Cook the mixture until it thickens, whisking often. This should take approximately 5 minutes, but it’s flexible. Add salt and pepper to taste.
I like this the most baked. Cook 3 cups of dry, small pasta (like elbows or shells or rotini) and toss with the finished cheezy sauce. Add steamed broccoli (pictured) for a real treat. Top with fresh breadcrumbs and bake at 400º for 25 minutes, or until browned and bubbly.
I’ve spilled so much ink so far (well, pixels) telling you that vegan cheese doesn’t taste like cheese, so I figured I’d close the entry with this: vegan cheese that, to me, tastes like mother forkin’ cheese! It deserves an entire entry devoted to it, so I’ll just leave you with this until part two of my vegan cheese post:
October 17th, 2007
Summer means lots and lots of berries. Stuffed banana berry french toast is a good way to use them! I’ve been thinking about stuffed french toast for a while now, and this is really a very simple, but supremely satisfying version. Most stuffed french toasts call for for a cream cheese filling, but why bother with that when you have perfectly ripe bananas and berries begging to be used? Topped with fresh strawberry orange sauce, maple syrup, and powdered sugar, and I certainly can’t refuse this breakfast.
This french toast recipe is going into the book/zine, so you’ll have to wait a bit for the recipe, but I think it’ll be worth it!
May 4th, 2007
My mom and my sister got me a Lodge griddle/grill and a 10″ skillet for my birthday. I’m so excited to have some cast iron cookware at my disposal now, especially a griddle and grill! I spent most of yesterday seasoning it (they came “foundry seasoned” but I’ve read they can use a bit more before the first use) so I could make my first dish, grilled tofu.
A simple dish of tofu, greens and rice really gets fancied up with a few grill marks, doesn’t it? It was easy to do and faster than baking. I think I’m going to have to apologize in advance for the proliferation of grilled things that I’m sure are about to appear on this blog
The recipe for the tofu is from Vwav, so I don’t have a recipe to post. If you don’t have the book (buy it already!) you can use any tofu marinade you like or can find on the web - this one has a mirin and soy base. I do have a few tips though!
I used to be silly and toss my tofu marinade out, wishing I could do something with it. Here are two ideas that I used in this dish.
1. Place greens in a heated saute pan and dribble with a little of the marindate - use this for your flavoring, and you have a dish that goes very well with your tofu!
2. Remove the greens from the pan and add the rest of the marinade. It should start simmering quickly because there probably isn’t that much of it - don’t worry about the small amount. Mix a little bit of cornstarch with some water and pour into the pan, whisking constantly until a glaze forms. Drizzle this over the tofu and greens.
Since marinades are usually strong, you’ll only need a little bit for the greens and just a drizzle of sauce.
March 22nd, 2007
I have a tendency to let lunch sneak up on me. All of a sudden it’s 12:30 and I’m starving. This is a super quick lunch or side dish, even though it looks like it has a lot of ingredients. If you have these spices standing by, it takes all of a minute to measure everything out. Chopping the carrots doesn’t take that long either, but you could always just pulse them a few times in your food processor if you want.
If you want, feel free to used steamed cauliflower instead of tofu in this dish. I think it’d be great that way!
Indian Spiced Tofu
Serves two, but I almost at the whole thing!
1 Block Extra Firm Tofu, pressed*
2 Small Carrots, finely chopped
1/4 Cup Frozen Peas
2 tsp Lemon Juice
2 tsp Earth Balance
Spices
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds (brown/black)
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
1/4 tsp Turmeric
1/4 tsp Paprika
1/2 tsp Coriander
1/2 tsp Pepper Flakes (scant)
1/2 tsp Salt
Heat vegetable oil (1-2 Tbs worth) in a skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot, add spices and stir. When mustard seeds begin to pop, add lemon juice. Let the juice bubble for a a few seconds, then add carrots and saute until just tender, 2-3 minutes. Add tofu and stir to coat, breaking up large pieces until you get a consistency you like. Taste and adjust seasonings (you might want more salt or lemon juice).
When mixture is hot again, add peas and mix gently until thawed. Add earth balance and stir until melted and evenly distributed. Serve immediately!
*You can press your tofu like a normal person (i.e. for a while with weights, letting it drain into a sink or a bowl) or you can do what I do when I’m just going to crumble the tofu anyway:
1. Drain off excess liquid from tofu.
2. Place tofu at the short end of a clean terry cloth rag
3. Roll up the tofu!
4. Squeeze the dickens out of it, allowing yourself to crush it a little.
5. Unroll into a bowl or directly into your pan.
Voila! And it already starts the crumbling process, which makes it a great way to press the tofu for this dish.
March 21st, 2007
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