• 1 cup cashews, soaked 3+ hours or overnight (if you didn’t have time to soak you can boil them in hot water for about 10 minutes to soften them up)
• 1/2 cup fresh basil
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/2 tablespoon white miso paste
• 1 tablespoon warm water
• juice from 1/4 a lemon (about 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons)
• dash salt
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs (for gluten-free option, use gluten-free breadcrumbs)
• 2-3 tablespoons canola oil

What You’l Need for Salad:

• 2 cups kale, chopped
• 2 tablespoons pickled beets (if you don’t have them on hand, any other shredded red food works – like red cabbage. If you’re not using pickled beets adjust the dressing to include more vinegar for that tangy taste)

What You’ll Need for Dressing:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon agave

What You’ll Do:

1. Start by soaking the cashews in water overnight or for a few hours while you do other things. I like to use this time to clean, grocery shop, or walk the dog. 🙂
2. Take all of the cheese ingredients and place in a powerful blender or food processor. Blend until everything is mixed together and the mixture becomes more like a paste. You’ll likely have to stop a few times to scrape down the edges. The mixture shouldn’t be runny and should actually be a bit sticky.
3. Roll the mixture into small balls in the palm of your hand. (Your hands will get very full of cheese mixture!)
4. Roll each ball into breadcrumbs – this will make them less sticky and easier to work with.
5. Put one tablespoon into a skillet on medium-high heat. Allow the oil to heat up to a point where if you splash a small drop of water on the pan the oil spits.
6. Place 1-3 cheese balls onto the skillet and fry. I like to work in small batches, with as little oil as possible to keep the frying as “healthy” as possible. I found 3 to be the max I could fry at one time without burning everything.
7. Flip the cheese so it is evenly browned on all sides about 3-4 minutes.
8. Place fried cheese on paper towels to absorb any excess oils.
9. While your cheese is frying (or before if multitasking isn’t a strong suit) whisk together the dressing ingredients, chop the kale, and add dressing and kale together. Top with pickled beets and fried cheese. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Note: the cheese will last a few days in the fridge and can be re-heated by baking or microwaving. I also enjoyed a couple cold. But then again, I also like cold pizza. Take that for what it’s worth.