For many years, I lived with a man who detested cheese and because money was in short supply, I hardly ever bought this treat for myself. I missed it, but its lack was tolerable, although I really enjoyed eating it when I had a chance. Then I lived with someone who loved cheese and, moreover, we had a little more money, so we generally had it on board.
When I decided to live on my own in New Zealand, I could finally eat exactly how I wanted to. However, my budget was again pretty limited and I found that New Zealand, in spite of being awash in dairy cows, has no tradition of its own cheese. Most of the affordable cheese made here, is a pastiche of Camembert or Brie, of Gouda and Edam and of course, the ubiquitous so-called Cheddar. I had hoped for so much more, remembering the open markets of my English youth, where I could buy several different versions of my local cheese. While there is some superb artisan cheese in this country, not only is most of it beyond my financial means, but most of it is beyond my physical means, only being sold in the major cities. Over recent years, the plight of dairy cattle (particularly calves) and of the planet overall, has inexorably inched me towards veganism. However, I still succumbed to the lure of Parmesan or Pecorino cheese. It was a very happy day, therefore, that I stumbled across a vegan alternative on the Internet.
Not only is vegan "Parmesan" a genuinely acceptable alternative to the real thing, it even emulates it sufficiently accurately, that friends have tipped generous amounts of the food I've served them, without even noticing that it's not the 'real thing'. Often what you taste is what you expect!
Many people use cashew nuts: I prefer Brazil nuts. (In this blog I am not generally going to discuss the various ethical pros and cons of one nut/grain/legume over another. Suffice it to say that the worst of them is probably less unethical than most animal products.) You will need a blender or good mouli-grinder to make this.
Brazil nuts are one of those that tend to go stale quite quickly - like walnuts - so I have assumed that the 'cheese' would also lose its flavour and freshness quickly. I therefore limit its production to 1/4 cup at a time. The recipe is so simple that it's extremely easy to make larger quantities. However, I do find that a small jar will keep happily for at least two or three weeks without refrigeration, which is another of its great virtues.
- Roughly chop the Brazil nuts into about 1cm pieces
- Put the chopped nuts, the nutritional yeast and the salt into your blender or mouli and process until you get the consistency of finely grated cheese.
- Serve over pasta, etc, as you would Parmesan cheese.
Adjust the salt according to your personal taste.