If someone told me last year that you could make cheese at home think I would have laughed. And if someone told me you could make cheese out of nuts I would’ve thought it was a joke.

And now here I am making homemade cheese and not just out of nuts but TOFU.

I definitely did not see this one coming.

After turning completely dairy-free, lactose free I discovered that I was very limited in my diet options. It made things more difficult simply because every single meal that included milk or dairy – I could not touch. If I wanted to eat well with this diet, if I wanted to enjoy good food again, I needed to start venturing out.  I could’ve purchase store-brought vegan or dairy-free cheese, but as you know cheese isn’t very healthy and most of the time lots of preservatives are added. If I’m going to spend money on good quality cheese – I would rather spend money on making it myself if I’m going to have it healthier, tastier and more wholesome.

I’m not from Italy. I’m not a professional chef. I don’t even think I’ve seen anyone make cheese before. I didn’t even believe in making cheese at home. Now I am not even a cheese lover either. I can’t eat cheese on its own. I can only eat it on pizzas or in salads when it adds something to a dish. My roommates all have bags of kraft cheese stocked up in their fridge. For me, I just have my almond milk and my miso paste.

But now I can add his tofu feta to my fridge. This is an absolute necessity that everyone should have in their fridge. Not to mention MUCH CHEAPER and AFFORDABLE than even normal feta cheese. Remember how tofu feta cheese should taste like? I think I still remember? But all I can say is that this tofu feta is creamy, salty and tangy. The marinade flavors this perfectly giving it that classic salty, but soft bite that is characteristic of feta cheese.

Now I won’t promise that it is exactly the same but it is delicious in its own way. Homemade feta cheese that  you can serve to non-vegans and they will love it too.

Top this on salad, pizzas, pasta, spread it on a sandwich or even better yet…we topped this on our beet hummus with some toasted walnuts (coming soon!). Now I must say that that this a winning combination. It adds a tangy, creaminess with a smoky crunch from the walnuts.

So here it is our homemade gourmet feta cheese for vegans, non-vegans and for all you daring cooks out there.

Vegan Tofu Feta Cheese (GF, Nut-Free, Oil-Free)

 

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Adapted from Hotforfood

Author: Unconventional Cooks

Ingredients

• 150g Firm Tofu
• ¼ cup Almond Milk (or non-dairy milk of choice)
• ¼ cup Rice Vinegar
• ½ tbsp Lemon Juice
• ½ tsp Dried Basil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Set a heavy pan or dish over the tofu. Then place something heavy on top of it to weigh the pan down. This is to squeeze all the water out of the tofu.
2. Leave it for around 20 minutes. Pour off the liquid.
3. Dice your tofu into ½" cubes.
4. In a jar, mix together all the remaining ingredients.
5. Add your sliced tofu in. Mix gently and make sure all the tofu is submerged in the brine.
6. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or even better overnight before using!

Notes

Herbs: You can season the cheese with whatever spices you like - even adding some chili powder to make it spicy! We added basil since it gives a more authentic Italian flavour. A mixture of Italian Spices with oregano, rosemary would work great as well!

**CHECK OUT OUR BEET HUMMUS with VEGAN TOFU FETA and WALNUTS**

3.5.3226

Traditional Method: Feta Cheese is a type of firm, crumbly, salty cheese that is made out of Goat or Sheep’s milk. It is known to have Greek origins and is often found in Mediterranean and Italian dishes. This soft, white cheese is brined to give its classic tangy, salty flavour. Feta has a strong, salty and tangy taste to it which is why it is often served in small amounts compared to other cheeses.

Our Method: Tofu Feta is definitely not something we invented. In fact, tofu is probably the most economical, easiest and similar way of making a vegan replica of this popular cheese. You can use it like regular feta cheese and put on salads, pizzas, lasagnas. You can even serve it on top of hummus or any other dips.

LOVE,

Zoe & Mia

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