Ani's Raw Food Essentials - Ani Phyo [37]
OPTIONS: Add fresh or dried herbs such as basil or rosemary, or pitted olives and sun-dried tomatoes, to create new flavors of cheezes.
CHIPOTLE CHEEZE
MAKES 2 CUPS
An example of how to add spice and a new flavor to the Basic Cheeze recipe, this is a deliciously smoky and slightly spicy cheeze.
1 recipe Basic Cheeze (page 103), made with cashews or pine nuts
½ to 1 teaspoon powdered chipotle
Follow the directions for making Basic Cheeze, adding chipotle powder to taste.
Will keep up to 1 week in the fridge.
SERVING SUGGESTION: Enjoy in South of the Border Wraps (page 180), as a dip, tossed with spiralized zucchini noodles, and in nachos made with Salted Flax Chips (page 108).
COOKED VARIATIONS: Toss with brown rice macaroni for a Chipotle Mac and Cheeze, and enjoy with organic blue corn chips.
JALAPEÑO CHEEZE SAUCE
MAKES 2 CUPS
A delicious sauce mixed with fresh jalapeño for an added kick. Adjust the amount of jalapeño per your spice preference. Removing the seeds will make the pepper less spicy, too.
To make a sauce consistency, which is runnier than a cheeze, just add a bit more water to your favorite Basic Cheeze recipe.
1 recipe Basic Cheeze (page 103), made with your favorite nut or seed
1 tablespoon jalapeño pepper, to taste
½ to ¾ cup water, as needed
Follow the directions for Basic Cheeze, adding the jalapeño and additional water.
Will keep for 4 to 5 days in the fridge.
CHEDDAR CHEEZE SAUCE
MAKES 2 CUPS
This sauce is colored orange with turmeric to look like Cheddar. Drizzle over fresh vegetables, asparagus spears, or dehydrated Battered Zucchini Sticks (page 116) or “Roasted” Bell Peppers (page 118).
Turmeric works to decrease inflammation in the body. The less inflammation we have, the better we feel, and the tighter and leaner we look.
1 recipe Basic Cheeze (page 103), made with sunflower seeds
1 tablespoon turmeric, for color (optional)
½ to ¾ cup water, as needed
Follow the directions for Basic Cheeze, adding the turmeric and additional water.
Will keep for 4 to 5 days in the fridge.
OPTION: Spread your Cheddar Cheeze Sauce on a lined dehydrator tray and dry at 104°F for 6 to 8 hours, until dried. Crumble and use like Parmesan.
RAWMESAN CHEEZE
MAKES ½ CUP
Sprinkle an extra layer of savory goodness on soups, salads, wraps, and pizzas. I use cashews for their color, although pine nuts work just as well. If you don’t mind a darker-colored Rawmesan, feel free to use your favorite nut or seed instead.
½ cup cashews, ground into a powder
½ teaspoon minced garlic
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Mix the ingredients together in a small bowl.
Will keep for 5 days in the fridge.
GENERAL TIP: Get Experimental
CASHEWS AND ALMONDS have the mildest flavors and work great in cheeze recipes. But it’s fun to experiment with other nuts and seeds, such as walnuts, sunflower, hemp nut, and pumpkin seeds, which can yield a whole new flavor profile.
CHEEZY SPRINKLE
MAKES ABOUT ¾ CUP
Nutritional yeast has a cheeselike flavor all on its own, with 8 grams of protein and 320 milligrams of potassium, and only 1 gram of fat per two-tablespoon serving. Here, it’s combined with cashews and a pinch of salt, for a rich, tangy mixture. Use as you would any cheese: sprinkle on soups, salads, or in wraps, and to garnish.
½ cup cashews, ground into a powder
¼ cup nutritional yeast
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Mix together all the ingredients in a food processor.
Will keep for at least a week in the fridge.
COCONUT KEFIR CHEEZE
MAKES ABOUT 1 TO 1½ CUPS
The young Thai coconut meat left over after making Coconut Kefir (page 54) makes a great probiotic cheeze similar to cottage cheese. Friendly bacteria, probiotics eat up the sugar in the coconut meat during the fermentation process and create a deliciously light, pungent cheeze that’s creamy, white, and delicious as a sauce, cheeze, and dip.
2 cups coconut meat (from 2 to 3 young coconuts)
¼ cup coconut kefir
Coconut water (optional)
Clean your coconut meat by running