How To Make a Rustic Vegan Cheese Board

When I first became vegan, one of the things I wondered was what I would serve in place of the cheeseboard at dinner parties. That was, of course, after my initial "How will I ever do without cheese?" concern - the thing that every vegetarian says, and that you find out isn't that difficult once you've been vegan for a couple of weeks.

Now, I'm all for showing people that being vegan doesn't mean giving up anything - it actually means gaining so much, as you end up exploring many new flavours and foods (it is a real myth that vegans have a limited diet - they probably have a far more varied diet than most meat-eaters, certainly from what I remember when I ate animal produce).

And importantly, I like to show people that there are many ways to recreate compassionate versions of traditional food customs, they don't have to go 'without'. Besides, tradition is no excuse for sticking with cruelty, perpetuating suffering and maintaining archaic beliefs towards nonhuman animals, let's move things on a bit in the 21st century, already!

So this is a fabulous vegan cheeseboard that will have your guests "mmmm-ing" as much as any dairy one. Not to mention that it is about a hundred times healthier (note my very scientific estimate there) than a selection of cheeses made from animal milk, and it is also totally cholesterol-free.

It looks impressive doesn't it? Yet it's easy to put together.

If you want to try this yourself, definitely make your own vegan cheese rather than buy the commercial vegan versions. I have tried a few of the commercial ones that are available in the UK, including Sheese, Tesco 'Free From' and Vegusto, and while I liked a couple of the Vegusto ones, and the Tesco 'Free From' Soya Mild is okay for jacket potatos and mixing into things, I wouldn't actually use any of them on a cheeseboard, especially if I was serving it to non-vegans.

The cheeses here though (which are not my own recipes, I have to sadly say) have been eaten by many non-vegans, who absolutely love them. Some really (you can guess what's coming...) couldn't believe the cheeses were vegan, and I would have no hesitation in putting this board out for non-vegans, knowing that the feedback would be positive.

There are lots of vegan cheese recipes available on the internet, but looking at some of the ingredients, many are clearly a lot better than others. The ones I've used here have been tried and tested a few times, with several people tasting and liking them (very much!).

I've used two basic recipes. The cheese in the middle of my board is a vegan cashew cheese, and I discovered the recipe after my friend bought me Ann Gentry's Vegan Family Meals cookbook. The recipe for this cheese is the one she uses in her restaurants,  so you know it is going to be good. I was bowled over when I first tried it - the answer to my vegan cheese prayers had arrived.

I'm glad to say, Ann has published this vegan cashew cheese recipe on her website, so have a look in order to make it yourself. From the amount here, if you use small pudding bowls as your mould you could make around three cheeses. I used large, over-sized ramekins as my moulds.

NB: I actually use agar powder, not flakes, and approximately one fifth the recipe stipulation (you need less powder than flakes).

Just a couple of tips for making this one - take care when you are boiling up the agar and soya milk mixture. It boils over the pan very quickly, and then you lose half of the agar with the milk! So keep a very careful eye on the pan as it reaches boiling point.

Also, lightly grease your moulds before pouring the hot 'cheese sauce' in. When it comes to using the cheeses, once they are completely chilled, you can tap them out of their moulds onto a surface before serving. If you want to freeze, remove from the moulds after cooling the cheeses (overnight is good) and place them them in freezer bags.

The other two cheeses are from the same recipe - Baked Almond Feta from Maple Spice, but one is just a herb variation, and I doubled up on the recipe in order to make the herb one.

This is just so simple to make, and if you look at the ingredients, you can see there are no weird and whacky ones to include. It is basically ground almonds, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and water. Yes, that's it! And the results are incredible - a salty, crumbly and spreadable 'cheese', that is eerily reminiscent of feta.

You can use this Baked Almond Feta in all kinds of dishes, but recreating a vegan version of a Greek feta salad would be very doable, and it makes a perfect addition to the cheeseboard with crackers, as you can see from my main photograph.

You need cheesecloth (muslin) to prepare this recipe which is cheap to buy on Amazon - although the first time I made the feta, I used clean, new dishcloths!

As I say, I doubled up on the recipe for this cheeseboard. After blending the ingredients as stated in the instructions, I took out half and spooned that into my prepared cloth and bowl, and then in the remaining half that was still in the blender, I added about 1-2 tablespoons of Herbes de Provence (you can use whatever you prefer - dill would be nice in this, or maybe rosemary).

You will need to make this cheese up the night before so it can do the soaking and draining that it needs to do, and then bake it the next morning. In fact - it's probably best to make both the types of cheese the night before, as the cashew one will need a good few hours to set and chill properly anyhow.

When you are ready to put your cheeseboard together - you may as well go all out to impress after the effort you've already gone to, and have some nice accompaniments!

Serve the cheeses with a good quality chutney (be open-minded - I found a papaya and lime pickle that works beautifully with this). Don't forget a full bunch of grapes, and maybe some melon slices too. And a dish of olives tends to work well, also.

As for the what to lay it on - I salvaged a piece of slate after I had a natural slate floor put into my kitchen, so I sealed it and now use that! If you can get hold of some slate (I've seen people offering unused bits on Freegle - try putting a request on there!) then it works wonders for a rustic look. A 'butcher's block' wooden chopping board would look good too (mine is salvaged from my kitchen worktops!).

Finally - don't forget some tasty crackers. If you're not making your own, take care to check ingredients as they sometimes contain milk or dairy cheese. And then - enjoy with a glass of good wine!

Comments

[Nik12darwen]

Wowzers! Well done you - again. There really is *no* excuse to eat dairy, or from sheep, goats and water buffalo. None whatsoever. Brilliant post Andrea!

[Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond]

Thanks Nik :) I persisted eating dairy for a long time, but I realise it's only since going vegan that it's not actually that hard to give up. The perception is very much a bigger obstacle than the actual doing it!

[Jon Law]

These recipes look stunning. I've had vegan cheese occasionally and do like the smokey commercial ones BUT, as you say, you barely think about the stuff after being vegan for even the shortest time.

I will try these recipes though, I've never had feta so am interested in this vegan version as I do love an interesting salad.

Your point that becoming vegan opens up so many possibilities rather than being restrictive is soooo true.

Great stuff

[Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond]

Jon thanks so much for your comment.

The great thing about the almond feta is that it is so versatile. Today with leftovers, I made a Greek 'feta' salad using olives, tomatoes, cucumber and basil - it was so fresh and made such a lovely, light lunch.

The feta keeps well in the fridge too :)

[Tor]

This looks wonderful. I've missed cheese boards, not in a day to day kind of way but in a 'once I see one I want one' way. There's a kind of rustic charm to making your own cheese - I'm a country girl but never got that far, though it's always been tempting. I'm also glad you're not a big Sheese fan, either - I KNEW I couldn't be the only one!

[Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond]

Tor thanks for commenting and I know what you mean about missing cheese boards in that way - and they are attractive, there's no denying!

I have to say, I haven't tried all the Sheese varieties so there may be one there I like - but from what I've tasted, I'm not a huge fan. However, each to their own! I know some people do like them.

But I have to say, these cheeses are really easy to make, so I'd say go for it on giving them a try :)

[Julia]

I have a question regarding the cashew cheese. Before you fill it in the models to cool down the cheese sauce has what kind of consistence? Is it more like a cream or a thicker soup?

[Andrea]

Hi Julia - I would say it should be like a thick soup, or a thick cheese sauce! You can in fact also use it as a cheese sauce at that stage.

[Gülden Gençoğuz Bickerstaff]

Hi Andrea,
I seem to be coming back to this post. I am quite new in this vegan cheese making business actually. Just made the cheese sauce for a faux chicken bake but this is what I really want to master. With your help of course. Thank you for the recipes :)

[Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond]

Hi Gülden! I am definitely due to make some more myself soon :) I have bought a couple of commercial cheeses to try and these seem to be better than ones I have tasted before, but still, these home-made recipes beat them. Have you allowed the recipe to set into the cheese yet?

[Gülden Gençoğuz Bickerstaff]

I agree; home-made ones are always better. I haven't made a "block" of vegan cheese yet but used a melty, cashew based one in one of my recipes.
By the way, I have my own recipe site if you want to check it out. www.vegfusion.org

[Priscilla]

At what temperature do you bake the cheese with?

[Alex]

What did you use to mould the cashew cheese shown in the center?

[Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond]

Alex, it was just a large ramekin pot :)

[Lucy Charlotte Brand]

Absolutely fabulous post, thank you. I can't wait to get cheese making. ;-)