When I became a vegetarian in 1991, it was fairly easy to give up meat. I missed chicken, but not beef, pork or fish. I resisted going vegan for the next 20 years because I didn’t think I could give up cheese.

However, after a very short time, I didn’t miss cheese at all. I’ve tried most of the commercial vegan cheeses and find that I prefer to just do without. The exception is nut-based home-made cheese. I’ve tried a few recipes for cashew based cheeses that hit all the right spots.

I really like this simple soft cashew cheese. It is very easy to make, tastes great on crackers, on top of vegetables, mixed into chili, etc.

You can make it either in a high speed blender (i.e., Vitamix or Blendtec) or a food processor. I’ve tried both and they both work well. I prefer the blender because of the smoother consistency, but not everyone has one because let’s face it, they’re expensive!