Saturday, February 8, 2014

Who moved the cheese? Well, I did....

My partner is German and as such, I have had the opportunity to visit Germany two times in the past five years. Prior to my departure on the first round, I mentally prepared my vegan body and mind of the landscape I was to embark upon. I had heard, through unnamed and anonymous sources, of their cuisine laden of meats, bread, and a variety of overly boiled vegetables, mostly potatoes. So on my first trip, I cherished an apple like a pot of gold, I stocked up on dark chocolate, and ate seeded breads. Truth be told, I’m not giving the cuisine much credit, but this much holds true: on my most recent trip to Germany, I was quite astonished as to how much meat was consumed in one day by my partner and my partner’s parents. Being a vegan chef, I welcome the opportunities to broaden my culinary landscape in both the omnivore and vegetarian world. But, hole-mole, there was meat at every sitting – breakfast (cold meats), lunch (stewed or some other variation of cooked meat served warm), and dinner (more cold meat). I do not push nor shove my vegan habits on anyone, not even my partner or family. I honor what people choose for themselves and I only try to lead by example.

On a detour from their around-the-world cruise, my partner’s parents were going to make an overnight pit stop at our home. Rather than a night out on the town, it was suggested that I cook for them. Whoa. Wait a minute. Actually, can we wait a few minutes? How was I supposed to feed people who are so accustomed to consuming meat at every meal? I panicked silently for quite some time. Then the light bulb went off. This was an opportunity to show how glorious and naturally delicious vegan cuisine can be. My whole being began to stir with excitement. A myriad of ideas of dishes and flavors rummaged through pen and paper. I finally settled on the following menu for the big day:

~ Curried cauliflower and potato soup puree with ginger and fennel ~
~ Citrus marinated beets stuffed with herbed cashew “cheese” ~
~ Seared polenta squares with balsamic arugula and peppercress ~
~ Button mushroom and lima bean paella with smoked paprika ~
~ Raw chocolate mouse with fresh sliced strawberries ~

And just for comparison – I added fire roasted bell peppers stuffed with organic scallion goat cheese (yes, it was real dairy)


Needless to say, and I won’t bore you with the details, I spent quite some time in the kitchen to make this happen. I can honestly say I enjoyed every single moment of it. As in karma yoga, we take in the spirit of the action without any attachment to results.

When all was done and everyone was gathered home, I served the meal and explained what was what – except I did not divulge what was stuffed in between the marinated beets. I was watching like a hawk, but without attachment to what they would opine. After I witnessed that they all had a sample of everything, I asked my partner if he liked the layered beets. He nodded, as he was still chewing.

“Do you know what’s inside?” I inquired.

He took another bite and confidently declared, “It must be quark.” Quark is a soft spreadable cheese that is a staple dairy product in Germany.

“Hmmm… try again,” I said.

He asked him mom. His mom also declared, “Quark.”

Side by side, next to goat cheese, the herbed cashew cheese was mistaken as quark by cheese aficionados. Wow. From all my heart, all I can is “wow”.

I won’t leave you hanging, so here’s the recipe for you to share with your family and friends.

Herbed cashew “quark”
½ cup cashews, soaked in filtered water overnight (they will expand), drained
½ tb nutritional yeast
juice of 1 lemon
sea salt to taste
1 TB extra-virgin olive oil
1 TB Italian flat leaf parsley, finely minced

In a food processor, process cashews to chop until fine.
Add nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and salt.
With the processor still running, slowly add in the olive oil and process until smooth.
Remove mixture from vessel and stir in chopped herbs.
Let the mixture sit and meld together for about an hour before serving.
Serve on crackers, cucumber slices, or marinated beet slices.