Vegan Boursin®-Style Spread

This creamy vegan cheese spread is absolutely addictive and delicious on your favorite crackers, rye crisp, or crusty bread. Recipe from World Vegan Feast* (©2011, Vegan Heritage Press) by Bryanna Clark Grogan.

Makes 2 cups

• 12.3-ounce box extra-firm silken tofu, drained and crumbled
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons raw cashew pieces, finely ground
• ½ cup vegan margarine
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon light miso paste
• 1 to 2 medium cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 to 2 teaspoons minced fresh chives
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or 1 teaspoon dried
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place the crumbled tofu in a clean kitchen towel or piece of cotton sheeting, gather the ends up and twist, knead, and squeeze for a couple of minutes to extract as much of the water from the tofu as is possible.

Transfer the squeezed tofu to a food processor. Add the cashews, margarine, lemon juice, salt, and miso and process until very smooth. Be patient-it has to be very smooth. You may have to stop the machine a couple of times and scrape the sides and push the ingredients that have accumulated under the blade.

When as smooth as possible, add the garlic, chives, parsley, and pepper. Process again for a smooth, well-incorporated spread or pulse if you prefer small pieces of ingredient additions to be discernible.

Scoop into two straight-sided 1-cup ramekins (or three ¾-cup ramekins), cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. They will firm up in a few hours.

Variations:

Try any (or all) of these alternative flavoring ideas:

• Omit herbs and garlic and use more pepper.
• Use shallots instead of garlic.
• To the basic mixture, add 1 teaspoon dried basil or dill weed (or other favorite herb) or use 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs.
• To the basic mixture, add 2 tablespoons chopped roasted red pepper or sun-dried tomato.
• Make a sweet version with chopped nuts and dried fruit (Omit the garlic, chives, parsley, and pepper, of course). A holiday version of this might use chopped apple and dried cranberries, perhaps chopped toasted pecans and a pinch of cinnamon. Use no more than ¼ cup of the chopped mixture, in total.
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• Explore VegKitchen's selection of flavorful snacks and dips.
• Here are more vegan cheese-y delights.

Visit Bryanna Clark Grogan at The Vegan Feast Kitchen.

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