Smoked Cheddar with Aleppo pepper
I used smoked paprika to make this cheese and swirled in some Aleppo pepper into the final product. It added a subtle heat and tasted just like smoked cheddar. The cheese can be sliced but is soft enough to be spreadable.
Servings: 10
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 Cup Raw cashews
- 1/4 Cup Water
- 5 TBSP Lemon juice
- 1 TBSP White balsamic vinegar
- 1 TBSP Apple Cider vinegar
- 2 TBSP Coconut Oil
- 1/4 Cup Tahini
- 1/2 Cup Raw butternut squash
- 2 1/2 TSP Himalayan Salt
- 1/2 TSP Smoked Paprika
- 1/4 TSP Turmeric
- 1 TBSP Dijon mustard
- 1 TSP Garlic Powder
- 1/2 TSP Aleppo pepper May sub Chipotle
- 1 Cup Water
- 1 1/2 TBSP Agar agar powder
Instructions
- This recipe made enough for a 4" ramekin with 2" sides and a second 2" ramekin with 2" sides (Photo). Use a little coconut oil to grease the ramekins. set aside.
- Add all but the last three ingredients to a blender. Pulse three times them blend until smooth. You may have to stop, push ingredients down and restart several times. Let the blender run on low for a few minutes while you heat the water and agar agar.
- Add the agar agar and COLD water to a sauce pan. Use a whisk to incorporate the agar agar into the water. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. The water needs to boil at least 2 minutes for the agar agar to set.
- Moving very quickly, pour the agar agar water into the blender with the cheese and blend about 30 seconds to incorporate the agar agar mixture. IMMEDIATELY pour into the ramekins. Sprinkle the top with Aleppo pepper then use a little spoon or knife to swirl the pepper into the cheese mixture. Press the cheese into the dish to eliminate air pockets.
- The mixture will start setting up rapidly so get everything in water for clean up immediately after filling your ramekins.
- Refrigerate until firm. (6 hours or overnight).
- Loosen from the sides with a knife and invert onto a plate. Enjoy.
Notes
This is a Snap Pea Sheep adaptation of the sliceable Cheddar Cheese from lovingitvegan.com.
Although I have seen a lot of recipes for cheese using cashews and agar agar but Lovin it Vegan nailed the technique. Boilng the agar agar separately then blending it in with the cheese mixture is much easier and safer than cooking the cheese mixture on the stove top.
I like spicy so the Aleppo pepper and smoked paprika was my contribution. Smoked serrano, chipotle, jalapeño, Urba Bifer, the list is endless! You can also dust the cheese with the pepper once you invert it on the plate.