Vegan Feta

Most vegan feta recipes require tofu and cashew, or just tofu. Being allergic to soybeans I could not find a vegan feta recipe without them both together, so I adjusted the recipe to include the proportion of cashew required for a Vegan Spanakopita recipe (which I have made a few times). Note you don't actually need the coconut oil if you plan on including it in that recipe (can use about 1/3 cup of olive oil instead). I have not tried to make the feta (cashew based) on its own just FYI.

Ingredients

350 g cashews
½ cup / 120 ml melted refined coconut oil (measured after melting) , it MUST be refined and not unrefined or virgin
45 ml / 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
30 ml / 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon dried dill (leaves not seeds) , please note the finished feta does not taste of dill at all - Strangely, it helps the feta flavour so please don't omit it.
1½ - 2 teaspoons salt , or to taste

Instructions

Add all of the ingredients to a food processor (this recipe does not work well in a blender, even a high powered one), starting off with only half of the salt. Blend it all up until smooth then taste and add more salt as needed. Blend to incorporate it after each addition. Remember that this is feta so it should have quite a salty edge. I like to use a full 2 teaspoons in mine.

For softer meltable vegan feta

Serve straight from the blender, or pack into a container and refrigerate for a few hours for a firmer, spreadable cheese. If you want to be able to turn it out for use on a cheese board, line the container with cling-wrap so that you can easily remove it once it's set.

For firm, cube-able vegan feta

Line an oven proof pan/dish with baking parchment. A square or rectangular shaped pan/dish is best if you want to be able to cut perfect cubes once it's ready. A loaf pan will work well. It doesn't matter if the cheese doesn't fill the container. You just need the cheese to be between 1 and 2 inches deep once it's in there.

Spoon the cheese from the food processor into the oven proof dish and push it down well and evenly. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or overnight is fine). This step is important. If you don't refrigerate before baking, the coconut oil can separate a little on the bottom while cooking.

Preheat oven to 400°F (200 °C) and once at temperature, remove the cheese from the fridge and bake uncovered for 35 minutes.

Remove from the oven. It will be puffy, a bit soft and bubbly but will set again as it cools. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or overnight) before cubing or crumbling.

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