Everything tastes better with cheese. I get. I really do. Cheese is probably one of the hardest things to cut out when transitioning to a plant-based diet. And, eating cheese in moderation can still be a part of a healthy diet. However, for those that want to remove all animal products from their diet, I gotchu!
I can't really take credit for this recipe. It was inspired by nutritionist and vegan foodie, Derek Simnett.
This vegan parm is amazing for adding some extra, healthy fats to any dish. It works great for pasta dishes that are usually high carb (from that veggi-ful sauce) and high protein (from that better-than-normal pasta), but lack fat. A generous sprinkle of healthy fats will make any dish a little more filling and often super tasty.
Here's whatcha need:
1/4 cup Pumpkin sees
1/3 cup Cashews
1/4 cup Almonds
3/4 cup Nutritional yeast
2 tsp each of Onion and garlic powder
1 tsp salt
Combine all your ingredients in a blender and pulse until a fine, even consistency is achieved. The best part about this recipe is that you can shake things up! Add different nuts, hit it with more nutritional yeast, try different seasonings, go crazy!
Okay, does this taste like cheese? Not really. Is it a good replacement for cheese? I think so! It's definitely a conversation starter! When you roll up to a potluck with your plant-based lasagna topped with homemade vegan cheeze, you can bet people will have questions!
Eat well. Live well.