We love the idea of a decorative holiday cheeseball, but we never want to leave out our dairy free guests when they come over for Christmas dinner. So we opt for this easy to make vegan cheeseball with pecans to make sure everyone can join in for appetizer treats!
For the Cheese:
2 scant tablespoons chickpea flour (garbanzo bean flour or 2 full Tbsp besan)
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
½ to ¾ tbsp prepared mustard
½ tbsp sliced pickled jalapeno
1 tsp onion powder
⅓ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp turmeric
¼ tsp smoked paprika
1 to 1.5 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp tahini, 2 tbsp for more texture
½ cup water
¼ tsp or more salt
a generous pinch of black pepper
Other add ins:
Sundried tomato for tangier flavor
Ground almonds with chiveInstructions
In a blender blend all the ingredients under cheese until smooth. Blend well. Pour into a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add the other add ins like pepper flakes or chili if you like. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir frequently. The mixture will get lumpy and then smooth out into a custard-ish consistency. You can taste the mixture carefully at this point and adjust salt/tang . So not add too much mustard, the mustard taste gets very strong as the cheese sits. Continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes or until the chickpea flour does not taste raw.
Grease the containers you plan to use to store the mixture in. Pour mixture in the container/s. Use greased hands to press or even it out. Let it chill for an hour. I used 2 small bowls. *The chickpea flour thickens up all the liquid in the recipe into a creamy mixture, that sets as it sits. So you get about a scant ¾ cup cheese mixture from the recipe.
Add ground almonds and chives to a bowl.
Remove the cheese from the container, place over each other to form a ball. Press slightly to stick. Roll in the bowl to coat or sprinkle the coating on the ball generously on all sides. Or press finely chopped herbs of choice all over. Place on a plate.
Arrange almond slivers along the top and sides of the cheese ball.
Serve with crackers or vegetables.