the sea x love

I tried this cheese a few months ago at trader joes, and I actually enjoyed it. I don’t consume a lot of dairy. I drink plant milk, either Chobani Extra Creamy Oat Milk or Trader Joes almond, cashew, macadamia nut milk, and I try to keep both of these on hand. I only eat a few types of cheese because like most people I’m lactose intolerant. However, I’m a sucker for a good charcuterie plate, especially as a snack. So, when I tried this cheese, I immediately wanted to incorporate it somehow. A few weeks went by until I realized an easy way to use it, cheese crackers. As I’ve previously mentioned I’m trying to be more sustainable and cut down on the amount of (unrecyclable) waste and save money so I try not to buy snacks when I’m out and about, but I really love cheez-its because they’re cheesy and salty. These caramelized onion white cheddar cheese crackers are the perfect elevated cracker for a snack or paired with some red wine salami, and figs/strawberries/pears, depending on how you cut them. These are also perfect for parties and small gatherings.

Caramelized onion white cheddar cheese crackers

½ half pound block of English cheddar with caramelized onion (available at trader joes//this should only cost like $5-7)

¼ cup butter (used Miyoko’s but you can use whatever butter and I would actually recommend using cow’s milk butter)

1 cup sprouted wheat flour (you can also use all purpose)

~1 teaspoon salt

2-3 tablespoons of cold water

Optional: a generous amount of fresh cracked pepper (highly recommend this one from Diaspora as it complements the caramelized onion very well)

Grater!

1. Grate all of the cheese in a bowl, you should have a little over a cup of cheese. Set aside.
2. In another larger bowl, mix flour and salt together (now would be the time to add the pepper if you’re adding it).
3. Cut up butter into smaller chunks and add to bowl with cheese, and mix with a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, spoon, or hands.
4. Add seasoned flour in piecewise fashion, about a ¼ cup at a time, and mix after adding each quarter cup.
5. The dough should be a little crumbly, slowly add water a tablespoon at a time and mix until dough forms into a pliable solid ball.
6. Wrap dough in plastic wrap or airtight container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
7. After 30 minutes, well flour a flat surface and remove dough from the fridge. Preheat oven to 375F/190C
8. There are two ways you can proceed from this point:
   1. You could cut the dough into two chunks and roll them into a 1in or 25.4mm diameter log, then slice the log into thin slices (about ¼ inch or 6mm thick), sprinkle with coarse salt, and bake for 12 minutes or until crispy.
   2. Alternatively, you could roll the dough flat, again about ¼ in or 6mm thick, cut into square or fun shapes, sprinkle with coarse salt, and bake for 12-15 minutes depending on the size of the squares.
9. After baking let cool and harden, these are best fresh but can be stored for a little over a week, if they last that long!

I forgot why I originally made a vegan version of these cookies, probably just test it out. These are a replica to the egg version ones. However, the use of aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas) while necessary to create the same texture, slightly mutes the delicate and vernal flavor of the cookies. There only one small change between the vegan and vegetarian versions which, is nice.

Vegan Lemon, lavender, cardamom cookies (LLC)

2c flour

1c + 1/3 c sugar

6 tablespoons of aquafaba

1/2-3/4 c of coconut oil (melted, start with a 1/2c)

Zest from 3-4 lemons (personally would a little heavier on the lemon zest)

2 tbsp Cardamom powder

2 tbsp Lavender buds (these are supposed to be food-grade lavender buds//available via curio)

Sprinkle of baking powder (about 1 tsp)

Left to right: dough pre + post aquafaba

1. Mix flour, sugar, zest, cardamom, lavender buds, and baking powder together.
2. Ensure everything is homogenously mix and the lavender, cardamom, and zest are well distributed.
3. Slowly add aquafaba and melted coconut oil, in quarter cup increments, to the flour mixture and mix together. The dough should be smooth and stick together as a large singular ball.
4. Refrigerate the dough for around 1hr. You want the dough to be soft and pliable but not too hard otherwise you’ll have to let it thaw because the coconut oil will it too hard.
5. These are drop-ish cookies. I just pinch off pieces of dough and roll them into balls and place them on a well-oiled baking sheet.
6. Bake for 5-8min on 350 (I err on the side of 5/6 minutes and let them finish cooking on the baking sheet)
7. Remove from oven and let cool on a baking sheet. Enjoy with lemonade!

It’s a little ironic that I’m posting this recipe today of all days because it’s my first day of furlough from my museum job and I first had today’s recipe at said job. I visited this museum throughout college and never knew there was a cafeteria. The cafeteria is by far the cheapest place to eat and on select Fridays they serve crispy sweet chili tofu. I never had this before working here, but I fell in love with it. It’s my absolutely favorite way to eat tofu, which I’m trying to incorporate into my diet. The tofu is sold by weight at the museum for $8 a pound, which is ridiculous considering you can buy like 4 pounds of tofu, sweet chili sauce, and cornstarch for the same price. This recipe is also incredibly forgiving and it’s hard to mess up.

Crispy sweet chili tofu

1 pound block of extra firm tofu

~2 tbsp + plus some Cornstarch

1 tbsp Oil (again, I like avocado any neutral oil like olive or sunflower will work)

Sweet chili sauce (be sure it’s not sweetened with corn syrup)

Parchment paper

Paper towels or clean tea towels

A heavy pot + baking sheet, cooling rack or ceramic dish ( I’ve used all of three of these at differnt times, and they all produce wonderful results)

1. Drain liquid from the tofu.
2. Cut tofu into 1-in cubes and place between multiple sheets of paper towels or a clean tea towel (I rec the tea towel as it cuts down on unnecessary waste). Place a heavy pot on the tofu and wait about 30min.
3. While pressing tofu, preheat oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or place a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet.
4. After 30min, transfer tofu to a bowl and gently toss in oil. Then coat in cornstarch making sure that the tofu is covered in cornstarch.
5. Place tofu on a baking sheet or cooling rack, make sure none of the pieces touch. Place in the oven for 20-30min, flipping the pieces halfway through their baking time. If you opt for the cooling rack method, you don’t need to flip them
6. Wash and dry the bowl used to coat the tofu, you will need this later.
7. Pour about 4 tablespoons of sweet chili sauce (I really like the one from Trader Joes, but whichever one you choose, make sure it doesn’t have corn syrup in it because it won’t have flavor) into the bowl.
8. After about 20/30min remove the tofu and transfer it to the bowl with sweet chili sauce and toss it. Ensure that the tofu is well coated/drenched! Add more sauce to the bowl if necessary. So you could stop here and just eat the tofu as is, but the next 5 minutes really transfer them.
9. Move your oven rack to the second-highest position and set your oven’s broiler to high. If you have a gas broiler please be careful as there will be a direct flame on top of your food.
10. Transfer tofu back to a baking sheet, and wait for the broiler to heat up. Once on, place tofu back in the oven and bake for an additional ~3 minutes. DO NOT WALK AWAY FROM THE OVEN, as food can burn very quickly. Please stay with your food and keep an eye on it. I light to utilize my oven’s light during this time to monitor it. I also check on the tofu about once a minute, just a quick little open to ensure nothing is burning and the sugars are caramelizing. Also, be cautious if you used parchment paper for this because it increases your risk of fire. NGL I have slightly burned doing this before.
11. After ~3 the sugars should be caramelized, remove the tofu from the oven and let it cool for a bit like 5 minutes and serve! I really like eating this with rice, kale, and roasted carrots but honestly, I’ve also only eaten this as a whole meal.