Well, it’s almost out. Just another couple of months, and this baby will hit the shelves. In fact, it’s available for pre-order right now on Amazon. Vegan cheeses like you’ve never had – ones that are rich and creamy, sharp and hard, gooey and meltable, complex and nutty. To name a few, there’s brie, camembert, sharp cheddar, gouda, even a parmesan that grates. And to tempt you, here’s a photo of a cheese platter from my book.
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| Cheese Platter – Boursin, Sundried Tomato Cheese, Gruyere, Peppercorn Brie, Muenster, Gouda |
Indeed, if you venture into the land of homemade vegan cheese, know ahead of time that they are a labor of love. And love requires patience. But you will be justly rewarded: yes, the Sharp Cheddar you make today will be nuttier, more complex, and richer in flavor three months from now. And if you can’t wait that long, there are quickie recipes where you can reap the rewards almost instantly. But the best results come with a bit of patience, even if only a few days.
What distinguishes the cheese recipes in this book is that most of them are cultured. Recipes for delicious raw nut cheeses abound, and some of my cheeses borrow principles from them. But I don’t stop there. I take them a few steps further, flavoring them, coaxing them, culturing them, and aging them to transform them into a variety of textures, flavors and hardness. You’ll even find cheeses that actually melt and ooze, while being made from real, whole foods.
Finally, because these cheeses can be used just like their dairy counterparts in all sorts of cooking, there are chapters filled with delicious concoctions made with them, just in case you had forgotten how to cook with cheese. Not just vegan mac and cheese – although I don’t leave that out – but Porcini and Gruyere Croquettes, Cheese Gnocchi, Artichokes Stuffed with Almonds and Cheese, Chile Rellenos, Brie en Croute….
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| Cauliflower Gratin |
And lets not forget dessert….Tiramisu, Chocolate Chestnut Cannoli, Cheese Danish, and a variety of cheesecakes (yes, made with homemade oil-free cream cheese)…
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| Chocolate Chestnut Cannoli, Tiramisu |
I have served these cheeses to hundreds of people – mostly omnivores, and mostly unaware they were eating vegan cheese. I hope that you’ll have that opportunity as well. Play around with the recipes, and be sure to let me know how they turn out!
To pre-order, here’s the link again on Amazon.
Congratulations, Miyoko! I’m so glad this is finally happening after such a long (for us!) wait.
Can’t wait to try them – they look fantastic, and such an interesting process!
Thanks! Hope you do give them a try.
Oh my god, am I dreaming? Thanks very much, Miyoko!
i am afraid to ask…is there oil in them? I assume they are not lowfat.
Benjamin, the majority do not contain oil, although the ones that melt need oil (unfortunately). There are also recipes for super low-fat ones that are not cultured, but still delicious.
I think you’re amazing! Why don’t you have a national food show on networks like the Food Channel? Who do I need to call? Where’s petition for me to sign? 🙂 I’m really excited about the latest book!
Thank you, Denise! What sweet comments! I would LOVE to have a show on the Food Network! In the meantime, please check out my shows on YouTube at the Miyoko’s Kitchen channel. I will also be on a public television show called Vegan Mash-Up in the fall.
Are there any blue cheeses in your book?
Everything looks delicious. I’ll be pre-ordering.
I do wish I could hit upon a credible recipe for blue cheese, but alas, I have been unsuccessful to date. I have been working on this for awhile, but the particular flavor of blue cheese, from a mold, has not been duplicatable with plant-based ingredients. I have tried using noni, which is reminiscent of blue cheese, as well as tried numerous recipes offered by other vegan chefs on the internet, but none of them come close to the real thing. My intention with the book was only to provide recipes that came really, or reasonably close, to the real thing. I have not given up on blue cheese yet, as it was definitely one of my favorites!
I quit using dairy because I had somtach aches every dag. Sometimes it was so bad I couldn’t even walk from the cramps. In an attempt to eat healty at my work, I ate a lot of yogurt. I also liked cheese a lot. But I was so sick of it,it had gone on for years now, and I had to find out wat was causing this much pain.My friend who is an dietitian said that if I wanted to find out if I had lactose intolerance, I really needend to cut everything off, cookies, cheese, milk, choclate with milk It soundend hard to do, but I wanted to do everything to get rid of that pain every day. It took less then a month to feel the difference!! I use soymilk or rice milk and soy yogurt now. It’s so amazing I can’t understand no one had told me this before A few weeks ago I got a gift wich was coffee with sweets. I tought a few bites won’t hurt’ (desserts with cream), and again I sufferd all night long Not long after I gave up dairy, I quit using any animal products (exept some honey now and then, and eggs from our own chickens) and I never felt better! I am enjoying cooking so much now, exiting about trying out new recipies (thank you Dreena!) I never believed I could live without cheese, but I don’t miss it for a bit. The hard things for me are now the family events as birthdays and such They know, but not as well as I wished. Nothing but big cakes with lots of cream and milk. And even a cake for me! Frosted with choclate It’s almost a sin to refuse to eat But hey, they do there best and I will amaze them at my home with my delicious vegan cakes and pies!
Congratulations Miyoko. I am looking forward to your book and making the recipes in it. Most of us could use more culure in our life.
I was just alterted by someone on Twitter that the title of this post ought to be Sneak Peek not Sneak Peak. The latter is correct.
I am stil thrilled to see this either way.
Yes, Jill, it should absolutely be “Peek!” I’m sure the spelling of Sneak crept in somehow…very funny. I usually catch these things.
I will be buying that book…Hopefully it will be available in Australia! If not, I am just going to have to put in some detective work! YUMMMMMM!
You can preorder Artisan Vegan Cheese through Fishpond (www.fishpond.com.au), or you could always preorder through Amazon. 🙂
I just went to The Book Depository and pre-ordered it. No postage charges from the U.K. to Australia (or anywhere in the world for that matter)…can’t do better than that!
Looks wonderful. I am a big vegan cheese fan, can’t wait to try the fermented versions. Looking forward to it.
Linda (from the Netherlands)
Hello, I can’t wait to get this book and try some cheeses. I have two questions. Is Miso one of the main ingredients in the recipes? Can I culture the cheeses with probiotic capsules instead of Rejuvelac? Miso is not available in my country and whole grains are difficult to find. Thanks.
Miso is a flavoring in only some of the cheeses, not all. You can always just add salt. You can culture with probiotic capsules but I can’t tell you how much – you’ll have to experiment. My experience with several brands is that they all differ in strength. I avoided using them because they are expensive. I tried to focus on ingredients that are more universally available, as much as possible (you can make rejuvelac and yogurt at home cheaply; a bottle of probiotics might be $20, and many are not vegan at all). What country are you in? I’m just curious about the unavailability of whole grains.
I have two books on pre-order, August can not come fast enough! Love your other books too. I am slowly learning to cook all over, thanks so much.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it!
Amazing recipes.. I like it. Thanks for sharing this information Php Web Development
So excited for your book! Thanks for the teaser! I’ve already decided the brie en croute is going to be on my thanksgiving/christmas appetizer to-do list. And later this week I will be making your buffalo mozzarella for my mom because caprese salad used to be one of her faves b4 she went vegan.
LOVE your videos!
Thanks!
Hi,
Do you use alcohol (wine etc) in the recipes?
There are a few recipes that do use wine (for flavor). You can omit if you like. The majority of recipes do not use alcohol.
Oh im tempted by this, im a vegetarian (15yrs) but cutting out dairy for my 6mth old baby. Do you think these take some skill to make? Im going to miss having cheese the most i think. Im especially wondering if there is a suitable pizza cheese? 😉 Thanks so much. You are amazing for creating this book too!!
The Meltable Mozzarella is perfect for pizza. I just served it at a large party and people were raving. Best to use higher heat – 400 degrees or above. I use 450 to bake a pizza, using a pre-heated stone. Makes all the difference on how the crust turns out, too.
WOW thank you so much, is this the mozzarella recipe ive found on your site, plus the extra oil? How exciting 😀 I think i might have to invest in your book… They all just looks too tempting i want to try them all 🙂
I’m so excited about this book. But does it take two months to make a cheese? What would be the shortest time for a nice Parmesan type of cheese?
Someone just told me that after 8 days of air-drying the parmesan that he got impatient and dried it in his convection oven at low. He said that he was “stunned” how remarkably close it was to the dairy version. Anyway, the book contains cheeses that are almost instant, to those that take a day or two, to those that take a few weeks. There is a variety.
I am making your cream cheese and it is getting a hard crust on it. Is this normal, and how do I make the final product smooth again?
Did you cover the cheese? If you covered it (either with plastic wrap or a lid), it shouldn’t get a crust. If you forgot to cover it and a crust formed, just scrape it off.
Hey Miyoko. Thanks you so much for creating this book. I can wait to try all of the recipes. I am in the midst of air drying the herb encrusted chevre and I just finished with the brie. The consistency was spot on but my brie had a sour or kind of vinegar taste to it. Is it possible that I let the base culture too long on the counter? Thanks again.
John from Pa
Yes, it sounds like you let it culture too long on the counter. You have to taste it a couple of times per day and then stop when it’s right. My suggestion is that you wrap it in puff pastry and bake it. Serve it as a brie en croute where the sharpness will be appreciated. Good luck!
i’ve never tried noni. would i be able to use this in your recipes in lieu of nutritional yeast (which i can’t consume as it’s a major migraine trigger for me) or would there be a better substitute?
Nutritional yeast isn’t used in every recipe. It is critical for the flavor of some of them, however. That being said, it may be possible to substitute miso for some of the recipes that only call for a tablespoon or two of nutritional yeast. Noni has a stinky, blue cheese flavor, and I use it to make a cambozola (a brie-type cheese with a hint of blue). I originally had a crumbly, aged blue cheese in the book, but took it out because the flavor of the noni seemed to dissipate over time. I’m still working on that recipe, but the cambozola works pretty well. Because noni has a cheesy flavor, it might work in other recipes as well. Note that it is very expensive – about $20 per small bottle, but it seems to last awhile in the fridge. Expect more recipes in the future with it.
I’m enjoying the book and can’t wait to try some of the cheeses. My quinoa seeds are already starting to sprout. The kindle version I purchased is lovely, and I thank you for both offering it at a very reasonable price and for allowing the loan of the book to another for a while. Mind you, I didn’t want to give mine up even for 2 weeks so I got another as a gift for a vegan friend instead of loaning it to her. She’s thrilled.
I also got the Japanese cooking book. We have great access to the ingredients here in Hawaii, but since going vegan I’ve been avoiding some old favorites, or turning a blind eye to the occasional bonito flake laced broth. By the way, when will Now and Zen be out in eBook format?
I also have a couple other questions. For the aged cheeses, I was wondering since it’s generally warm and humid here, would a small wine fridge work, or is it too little air circulation? Also, how does the mac nut ricotta culture without rejuvelac or yogurt? Mahalo!
Do any of these cheese recipes have a nut-free option? The book looks amazing, and I’d love to test some out (especially brie!), but I am very allergic to nuts.
Let me know!
Yes, there are cheese is that contain no nuts. Good luck.
It’s Wonderful, Miyoko! Thanks for sharing this. What about vegan brie or camembert? I miss those… Can you do them with “real” Penicillum bacteria…? Many Thanks!
Yes, I am currently making a camembert with the real penicillium candidum mold. Take a look at some of the photos on my FB page!
Check out photos of my camembert on my FB page inoculated with the real bacteria!
Hello, I love the book and have made pretty much every cheese already. I’m curios about the vegan camembert with the penicillium candid mold. Do you have a recommendation where to purchase it – one that’s truly vegan? I contacted one company and they said theirs has milk cultures…
I’m sorry, but it took me two years to source the PC, and because I am opening a cheese company, that information is now proprietary!