Spinach-Salad with apple-mustard-vinaigrette and vegan cheese-balls
Vegan cheeseballs? Hell yeah! Before we wanted to try our first vegan cheese balls, we searched on the Internet for inspiration. Unfortunately, a lot of recipes need a lot of time or utensils we don't have. We definitely have to try these versions later, but for now, we want something really quick and easy. So we decided to do our first vegan cheese balls at home! They also work very well on a salad, on a cheese platter, or with bread or toast.
Spinach-Salad with apple-mustard-vinaigrette and vegan cheese-balls
Ingredients
For the nut cheese balls:
- 150 g (5.25 oz) cashews
- 1 tsp dried thyme (or fresh thyme)
- 2 tbsp (1 oz) lemon juice
- 3 tbsp (1 oz) nutritional yeast
- 15 g (1 tbsp) coconut oil
- 2 tsp white miso paste
- 1 garlic clove
- 75 g (2.66 oz) pecans
- water
- salt
For the spinach salad:
- 150 g (5.25 oz) baby spinach
- 1 apple
- 75 g (2.66 oz) walnuts
- 50 g (1.75 oz) dried cranberries
- 50 ml (0.25 cup) cloudy apple juice
- 2 tbsp (1 oz) apple cider vinegar
- 3 tbsp (1.5 oz) olive oil
- 1–2 tbsp mustard
- 1 tsp agave syrup or sugar
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
Place the cashews in a pot and cover with water. Simmer over medium heat for approx. 10 minutes until they've softened significantly. Then drain and rinse cold.
Place the soaked cashews together with thyme, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, coconut oil, miso paste, and a peeled garlic clove in a tall container and blend creamily with an immersion blender or blender – the mass can also remain somewhat chunkier and doesn't have to be blended smoothly. Add a bit of water if needed. Season with salt to taste.
Chop the pecans very finely. Form the nut mixture into small balls with your hands and roll them in the chopped pecans until covered all around. If the nut mixture is too soft, refrigerate for a few minutes. Then chill the finished nut cheese balls until serving.
Wash and shake dry the baby spinach. Core and dice the apple. Roughly chop the walnuts and toast them in a fat-free pan for 3–4 minutes. Also chop the dried cranberries.
For the dressing, place apple juice, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, mustard, and agave syrup in a screw-top jar and shake vigorously until everything is combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Arrange the spinach with the apple pieces, walnuts, and dried cranberries on a salad platter and distribute the dressing over it. Finally, distribute the nut cheese balls on the salad.
