Tag: vegan cheese

Vegan

Homemade Chedda Chz Sauce

by Lisa Dawn6 Comments on Homemade Chedda Chz Sauce

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I like to call this Chedda Chz – funny, huh? After a few years of tinkering, this is the version I have come to love the most. I started with a much more complicated version for my nachos recipe but this is simpler. And better too. Keep it thick for nachos or tacos or thin it out for mac ‘n chz.

1/2 cup cashews *
1 roasted red pepper
1 clove of garlic
1/2 teaspoon each onion powder and mustard powder, or more to taste
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
The juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/4 cup filtered water + more for thinning
Salt, a few pinches
White pepper, a pinch **

*Soak if you don’t have a Vitamix. (But get one!)
**I like using white pepper because it is stronger and the peppercorns won’t impact the color of the chz. This is good for picky kids.

Place everything into the Vitamix and let it rip until everything is combined. Add 1/4 cup water to get it going and then a bit at a time to get the consistency you want. If it gets to thin, add more cashews! Taste and adjust salt and pepper.

Pour over nachos, tacos, pasta or whenever you feel like eating cheddary goodness. Enjoy!

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Vegan

Simple Tomato Salad

by Lisa Dawn1 Comment on Simple Tomato Salad

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Fresh summer food. There is nothing like tomatoes straight from the farmer’s market or if you are lucky, your own garden. I love to pair these with Kite Hill Soft Fresh Original Cheese.

Small heirloom tomatoes
Kite Hill Fresh Original Cheese
Fresh pepper

Cut the tomatoes in half. Press the Kite Hill cheese with the back of the fork to break it up a bit. Sprinkle it over the tomato halves. A little grind of fresh pepper. Enjoy!

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Vegan

Matzo & Kite Hill Cream Cheese

by Lisa Dawn1 Comment on Matzo & Kite Hill Cream Cheese

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I have been transported to my pre-vegan days. During Passover our favorite thing in my house was to eat cream cheese on matzo. Well, yesterday I found Kite Hill’s Cream Cheese at Whole Foods along with organic whole wheat matzo and we are back in business!

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I have to say that hands down Kite Hill makes the best “cheese” product on the market. Their number one product is their ricotta cheese which, to me, is just like cottage cheese. It is so ridiculously good I almost can’t deal with how good it is but it is almost never available. Insert sad face here.  🙁  In fact, the one time I did find it, I ate it out right of the container while we were shopping and there was nothing left for me to blog about.

Anyway, back to yesterday’s find. Kite Hill Cheeses are an exclusive product of Whole Foods. Every time we visit Whole Foods no matter where we are, I ask for Kite Hill. Any Kite Hill. Yesterday, the Lake Grove Whole Foods had the cream cheese – both the plain and chive versions. I bought both, of course.

Yahooooooooooo!

The cheese is made from almond milk so the texture is light and creamy. It is not as heavy as cashew based cheeses and the ingredients are super pure. Compared to other vegan cream cheeses, this wins hands down. Hands down. It’s creamy. It’s smooth. It’s real.

We have been planning our future cream cheese projects while munching on our matzo starting with cream cheese and jelly, cream cheese and tomatoes, and cream cheese and avocados. Not to mention cream cheese frosting, filling, and cream cheese based sauces. Oh the possibilities!

With the exception of the labels and packaging, which could use some serious help, I have only positive things to say about Kite Hill. I hope you find it soon in your local Whole Foods!

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Vegan

Cacio e Pepi: Cooking with Miyoko’s Kitchen!

by Lisa Dawn5 Comments on Cacio e Pepi: Cooking with Miyoko’s Kitchen!

 IMG_7086Cacio e pepe = cheese and pepper

A decadent, rich and deliciously simple dish. This vegan version is made possible by Miyoko’s Kitchen Aged English Sharp Farmhouse. This cheese has wonderfully complex flavors that are hard to describe but remind me of those decadent cheese sauces made with salty Italian cheeses. It turns luscious and deeply rich but not overwhelmingly any one thing.

Is it too much to say that I am in love with this cheese? I-am-in-love-with-this-cheese! Have you tried it yet?? I raved about it here and I have been ordering every since. And now the company has made it super simple to order a la carte so you can get the ones you love. My top 3 personal faves are the Rustic Alpine, the Classic Double Cream Chive, and the Sharp Farmhouse.

I know it’s only 11am but it’s lunch time around here. Pasta with cheese and pepper or you can even call this adult mac ‘n cheese!

Serves 1
Linguini, enough for one person
Miyoko’s Sharp Farmhouse, 1/4 of the wheel
Hot pasta water, 1/2 cup

Boil the water. Drop in the pasta.

Place in the cheese in a pan with sides. When the pasta is almost done, take 1/2 cup of pasta water and add it to the cheese. Whisk it together until the cheese is melted.

Use tongs to lift the al dente pasta out of the water and add it to the pan. Coat the noodles with the cheese. If it is too thick, add a bit more pasta water.

Generously top with freshly cracked pepper. Enjoy!

Vegan

Kite Hill Nut Milk Cheese

by Lisa Dawn5 Comments on Kite Hill Nut Milk Cheese

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This is the best cheese I have ever had. Seriously!

We flew down to Florida this morning for a week of sun and golf. We went straight to Whole Foods in Palm Beach Gardens to stock up and as I walked by the cheese counter, I decided to ask if they carried Kite Hill’s Nut Milk Cheese. I heard a lot about it and it turns out, I am the first person to ever ask about and the first person to buy it at this store! Go me!

I bought the White Alder which is described on the Kite Hill website as “…a soft ripened velvety cheese with a white, fluffy rind. It has a tangy mushroomy flavor profile with a rich, silky texture and pungent aromatics. This cheese is best served straight from the refrigerator and pairs well with white grapes.”

I have eaten half of this little wheel all by myself. It really is soft, velvety and slightly tangy. The perfect mouthfeel for an aged cheese. It is great on its own or with crackers and it does pair wonderfully with grapes! This is vegan heaven. Please check this cheese out. It is already legendary.