This Creamy Walnut Cheez & Sweet Fig Relish combo is incredibly delicious! Perfect for spreading over crackers and freshly-baked or warmed bread. A tasty choice for holiday snacking!
Two double recipes, two days in a row?! Who has ever heard of such a thing? See, the deal is, I was already planning on delivering you the bean recipes this week, but the other day for Friday happy hour, I prepared my Creamy Walnut Cheez & Sweet Fig Relish. I created these recipes a little over a year ago, but (just like the beans) I had procrastinated in sharing them with you. With Christmas coming up, I decided it would make a great, festive appetizer and that I ought to share them with you before it was too late!
I told my husband, my predicament! “Christmas is only a week away!” I said. He didn’t understand the problem, so I explained I was already doing the bean recipes for those, like us, who will be preparing Mexican cuisine for the holiday, but these too need to be shared by Christmas.
Michael suggested something crazy, “Why don’t you post them both?” he asked. Of course, I was already considering that, but hearing him suggest it made me think rather than just playing with the idea, perhaps I’d actually do it. So, here I am, on Monday night, after finishing up my last post this morning, working on the delicious appetizer to bring your tummies, even more, Christmas joy!
Of course, you don’t have to celebrate Christmas to enjoy these recipes. In fact, it doesn’t even have to be December. I made these for the first time in the early fall. Initially, I used fresh figs for the relish but have now converted the recipe so you can use dried figs, available year-round.
The Creamy Walnut Cheez has a blue cheese familiarity with a hint of walnut. Its creaminess makes it easily spreadable, and the tartness pairs nicely with the sweetness of the relish. We’ve always enjoyed them together on gluten-free crackers, and this last weekend I served them to spread onto freshly baked buckwheat bread — heaven!
One of my favorite things about making and serving delicious vegan cheeses is the reaction I receive from my non-vegan guests (of course, guests will have to wait a while… sitting here on lockdown and all). Nothing is more satisfying than impressing a real dairy lover. The other perk to making tasty vegan cheese is, of course, being able to enjoy those flavors I love and don’t have as available when eating a vegan diet. I truly enjoy recreating cruelty-free versions of my old favorites.
No matter what your holiday season looks like right now, I hope you’re able to enjoy yourself. My heart goes out to those of you suffering physically and/or emotionally.
I also hope you enjoy these recipes as I do. You can let me know by leaving a comment below or taking a picture of yours and tagging me on Instagram, @veggiesattiffanis. This will be my last post for 2020. My birthday is NYE, and next week the hubs and I are doing a staycation in an air B&B locally on the beach. I’ll see you all next year!
Creamy Walnut Cheez
Equipment
- *high speed blender
Ingredients
- 2 cup walnuts soaked in hot water for 4 hours
- 1/4 cup unflavored/unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 2 1/2 Tbsp white miso paste
- 2 Tbsp coconut oil
- 1 Tbsp + 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp nutritional yeast
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to your high-speed blender. Start the blender on low and gradually turn up the speed until you're on the highest setting. Blend the mixture until *smooth, stopping to scrape the sides of the blender frequently to bring the cheez mixture back to the blades.
- Transfer cheez into a container and chill in the fridge for 2 hours. Spread onto gluten-free crackers or bread and top with Sweet Fig Relish (recipe follows).
Notes
Sweet Fig Relish
Ingredients
- 20 dried black mission figs soaked in warm water for one hour
- 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp reserved water from rehydrating figs or use fresh water if the figs absorbed all of the liquid when soaking
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp pure maple syrup
- pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Once the figs are done soaking, remove them from the water and chop them into very small pieces.
- Add the chopped figs, along with all of the remaining ingredients into a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer, cover. Maintain a light simmer, covered for 5 minutes.
- Remove the lid from the saucepan. Use the back of a fork to mash the figs as well as possible. Remove from heat and let cool. Chill in the fridge until ready to use. Delicious on gluten-free crackers or bread spread with Creamy Walnut Cheez.