You can make nut cheese from almond pulp which remains after making almond milk. However you can start with whole almonds before making the nut milk and you can use different nuts for different flavors.
Almond cheese will give you a clean, grainy flavor. Macadamia will be smooth and cashew cheese – smooth and almost sweet.
Basic recipe:
1 cup soaked almonds (soak for 4 hours or until skin becomes easy to remove) ¾ cups of water 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 3 tbsp lemon juice 1 clove of minced garlic (optional) pinch of sea salt and pepper to taste
Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend to a smooth consistency. Place the mixture into a colander lined with cheese-cloth or muslin (or use a milk bag), to remove excess water. Keep it in a refrigerator overnight. In the morning you will have a delicious cheese, ready to use.
If you would like a slightly drier consistency with a classic rind on the outside of the cheese, shape the mixture into small round patties and place them in a dehydrator for additional 6 hours.
Nut cheese with rejuvelac
You can add fermented ingredients to further improve the nutritional benefits and taste of cheese.
Rejuvelac is a slightly fermented water from sprouted wheat berries. Place the wheat berries in a sprouting jar and cover with water. Leave for 24-48 hours or until the berries form a small tail.
Use this water in the recipe above but instead of placing the mixture in the refrigerator overnight, put it in a warm place for 24 hours. Shape the cheese- cakes and sprinkle some black pepper or chili flakes. Put in the refrigerator to set. The cheese cake can keep up to one week in the refrigerator.
If you want to have fermented cheese but don’t have rejuvelac, you can use 1tsp of probiotics instead (please be aware that this can be rather expensive).