this was a quick and dirty mac and cheez, normally I would make the cheese from scratch but this time I used some store-bought stuff because I didn’t have much time

    • dandelion@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOP
      4·
      3 days ago

      I used two containers of Credo cashew queso, small amount of Follow Your Heart shreds, some Miyokos cheddar shreds (which melt wonderfully now when microwaved !!), a few tablespoons of Miyokos butter for richness, and added extra nooch.

      It didn’t really didn’t taste amazing until I added some salt, a few tsp vinegar, some paprika, and some garlic powder.

        • dandelion@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOP
          4·
          3 days ago

          Haha, roux is a good way to do it! I used to use roux + pea milk because that’s how I made cheese sauces before becoming vegan.

          Eventually I switched to my current method, where I make a cheez out of cashews, carrot, potato, nutritional yeast, spices (paprika, garlic, onion), some MSG, salt, vinegar - cooking the vegetables, blending that thoroughly and to the right consistency, etc. is more work than just opening some containers and dumping them into the cooked pasta.

          The only thing that required some work of me was tinkering with the flavor, so tasting and adding whatever element was necessary. Just requires less planning than cooking vegetables or running a blender (and then cleaning all those dishes!). A roux would still require more work of me - it’s an extra pot, and it requires that patient whisking and gradual incorporating of liquid to properly thicken.

          How do you make yours, what do you add to the roux to make it like a cheese sauce?

          • blindbunny@lemmy.mlEnglish
            3·
            3 days ago

            Oil, nutritional yeast, oat juice, tomato paste, lemon juice. But I’m barely consistent in how I make it. Sometimes I over steam carrots and throw them in. One time I had a old can of pumpkin puree and threw that in.

            • dandelion@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOP
              2·
              2 days ago

              nice, tomato paste is a great idea - as is using lemon juice for the acid.

              I love using squash in my cheez recipes, it’s a nice sub for carrots, for the color.

              I’m keeping notes, thanks for the tips!

  • bloubz@lemmygrad.ml
    3·
    3 days ago

    How do you normally make the cheese from scratch? I’m not from north america so I might not know every ingredients or have them here but I can probably do some research