Rocket-Persimmon-Salad with Vegan “Goats”-Cheese

Loveliest vegan friends! As you probably can already imagine, in a second I’ll show you a vegan dish cooked – or rather whipped up – by me. You probably already had suspected that regarding the title and/or the post’s picture. Oh well, I’ve just extra articulated again then for you 😉

I came across this dish when I was looking for inspiration for my recipe of vegan cashew whipped cream (coming soon!). As soon as you are on any recipe pages, somewhere there are always popping up these other recipes, like next to/under/on top of the actual recipe, which apparently could be of your interest. And they are always right…oh I wonder how they know me so well 😉 ! What immediately caught my attention was this vegan salad with persimmons, rocket and feta cheese. Obviously I clicked on it aaaaaaand here we are – my mouth was watering. The problem with the whole story: the recipe was with Indian cucumbers (has anyone ever seen that before?) and feta cheese (dairy – ugh!) and – in my assessment – it also was a little bit boring. But I wouldn’t be a food blogger if that wasn’t the perfect template for a new vegan salad creation à la Sanny, would I? You can see my version of this great salad right here:

Rocket-Persimmon-Salad with Vegan “Goats”-Cheese

 

 

Yeeeeep, exactly: YUMMY YUM! ‘And what exactly is in there now?’, that’s the question to ask! Here we go:


Ingredients list (for 2 people or 2 people and snack the next day, if with side dish):

  • 150 g of rocket
  • 2 persimmons / persimmons / persimmons (who knows the plural)
  • 1/2 cucumber (just a stink-normal, indian but also sells no one ?!)
  • dried berries
  • chia seeds
  • pine nuts
  • salt
  • pepper
  • balsamic vinegar
  • olive oil
  • agave nectar
  • homemade vegan cheese => recipe below

How to make it:

  • Arugula salad in a large bowl
  • Um stop, if necessary wash beforehand (I always leave that out;))
  • cut persimmons small and add
  • Halve one cucumber and halve one half lengthwise again, remove the pulp, cut the rest into small pieces and add into bowl
  • crumble vegan cheese all over
  • Sauté pine nuts in a pan (no need for oil)
  • Mix the dressing with oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper and salt (everything you like, you know your taste best!)
  • Add a small splash of agave syrup (here it is really important not to take too much, otherwise the salad gets way too sweet)
  • Pour dressing, pine nuts, a few chia seeds and dried berries over the salad
  • Enjoy!

 

 

The salad is the perfect mix of sweet & salty flavours. I really wanted to sauté onions and add them, as the caramel taste would have gone very well, but unfortunately we ran out of them. The salad was – who would have thought it – so delicious, that I just had to post it, although it wasn’t really planned to do so. My boyfriend and I just wanted to have a quick, healthy dinner together and as I said, this recipe just popped up while I was looking for the cucumber one. What was planned in the first place, however, was a post about homemade vegan cheese. I’ve always wanted to give this one a go, as most vegan people probably know cheese is so unbelievably missed in our diet. Vegan cheese can be bought in many supermarkets for fairly affordable money (emphasis is on “fairly”) ), but I – again – wouldn’t be a food blogger, if I didn’t want to try to make everything by myself. In addition, if available you mostly only find sliced vegan cheese and no “feta” -like ones in the stores. Unfortunately, you still have to go to special shops for something like that. So that’s why I tried the vegan goat’s cheese.

And well, dear people: the whole thing might look like a lot of work, but actually it’s not so bad and it’s so worth it! For real! Yes, I know, that’s what all the food bloggers say about their recipes, but even my boyfriend, who is an inveterate cheese lover (and I mean someone who always has five kinds of cheese in the fridge and eats them without bread), was so enthusiastic about “my” vegan cheese that he just could not stop nibbling on it. Of course I stopped him before everything was gone cause after all, there had to be something left for the salad. Long talk, short sense, here is the recipe for the


V
egan goat’s cheese

 

Ingredients for 2 people:

  • 200 g of unroasted (!) Cashew nuts (<3)
  • 1 teaspoon of salt, not plucked (I love salt … so really, I am salt-addicted (ask anyone who knows me!) But please do not overdo it here )
  • 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar and
  • 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar
  • some pepper
  • 1.5 tablespoons of coconut oil
  • 100 ml of warm water

How to make it:

  • First you have to soak the cashews in water for two hours (yes I know ….)
  • Then mix all the ingredients in the blender and let the blender do its thing for about two minutes to make a smooth mass
  • Put the mixture into a cheese cloth. Don’t worry guys, I do not own something like that either but I just used a thin dishcloth, which I believe is not ideal but it still works (but it had to be thrown away afterwards  :D) Google says use a coffee filter as an alternative!
    Put the cloth or filter in a strainer, which should sit over a large bowl, as there is supposed to drain off liquid. It did not work for me, probably because my tea towel was too opaque … but – remember – it works / tasted anyway.
  • Close it/Wrap it up
  • Put it in the fridge overnight (yes I know …)
  • Next day: Preheat oven to 180 degrees
  • Place cheese in small ovenproof dishes
  • Molds in the oven for 40-50 minutes. The actual indication was 35-40 minutes, with me was however I believe still too much liquid in the cheese, why it took longer, until it was crispy (stupid dishcloth)
  • Remove and allow to cool
  • Enjoy!

 

 

My tip: Just go with your feeling, taste it, do the pressure test, etc., you’ll find out when your vegan feta cheese is done. I only made this cheese once, exactly as I described it above. Consistency not really like feta, yet you could cut it, which I post as a success. The taste was just awesome, if not exactly like feta. But … it was perfect for me / us! The only thing that annoys with this vegan cheese is the long waiting hours. Unfortunately, you can’t just make it real quick. Therefore, my tip: always make some more, so there is always something in stock! 

Don’t tell him, but I’ll make the cheese again the next few days and bring some to my boyfriend over the weekend. He will be happy. So will I.

And for now I say goodbye to this freakin long post and you guys. 


B
est regards
Sanny

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