If there is anything I miss since going 99% plant-based then it is cheese. I have never been a huge meat eater, but oh boy I loved my cheeses.

Though I have made vegan cashew mozzarella cheese before to make a cheese sauce or to add to my pizzas, lately I have been obsessed with other cheeses too. Though the food industry has jumped on the vegan hype, providing a ton of processed cheese options, making your own is a far better idea.

Why? Well, these ready-made cheeses we find in the store are jam-packed with yucky chemicals such as colorants, preservatives and other nasty ingredients we don’t want to put in our body.

If you look at their food label many questions arise, making real cheese actually the better option. But does that mean we plant-based muncher can’t enjoy a lovely piece of “faux’ cheddar or aged camembert?

Not at all. Still perfecting most recipes and waiting for friends to visit me here in Cambodia with some of the missing bacteria needed to make aged cheese.

But the good news….. One recipe is ready to share with all of you cheese lovers.

And what a better day than to share this wonderful recipe on #fruitsandveggiesmonday, a weekly contest made possible by these to gorgeous and inspirational women @lenasveganliving and @plantstoplanks.

HOW TO MAKE VEGAN CHEDDAR CHEESE

FYI: Though this cheddar cheese was perfectly sliceable. If you want one that is gradable too, add more agar agar to the mix to make it more firm.

Though there is nothing wrong with eating nuts - I absolutely love them - many people seem to be allergic to them. That’s why I decided to make a nut-free cheddar recipe.

Soy, however, is true poison if you ask me. Unfermented soy was never meant to be eaten in large amounts. Want to learn more about the health dangers of soy? CLICK HERE

INGREDIENTS

1 cup water
½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
¾ cup sweet potato mash
¼ cup nutritional yeast
½ T smoked paprika
1 tsp Himalayan pink salt
¼ to ½ t ground black pepper
½ t onion powder
½ t garlic powder
1 T lemon juice
2 bags agar agar (4 grams or about 1 T) + ½ to ⅔ cup water

DIRECTIONS

Cook sweet potatoes until tender, drain, and mash. Allow to cool.

Add all ingredients, except 2 bags agar agar (4 grams or about 1 T) + ½ to ⅔ cup water, to a powerful blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Small tip: to make sure all is well blended pour ½ cup of the water in your blender first, then add all other ingredients and finish with the other half of water. When smooth, taste and add more salt or other flavorings if needed.

In a small pot or saucepan, heat water and agar agar. Bring to a gentle boil. Stir constantly. When boiling, turn down the heat and keep stirring until the mixture has a thick molasses type of consistency.

When the agar is ready you need to handle fast, Quickly pour the agar agar, using a spatula, in the blender with the cheesy mix and blend about 20 to 30 seconds to make sure the agar is well incorporated.