Toasted sandwiches are the bomb, i’ve always loved a good toastie on a winters day, straight from the sandwich press. However, toasted sandwiches are probably considered a little naughty and unhealthy given they usually have melted cheese and ham and white bread. So in order to satisfy my toastie craving i decided i needed to come up with a toastie combination that was just as satisfying as a creamy, melted cheese. As with everything i make there has to be an element of nourishment and health that goes along with the taste. Healthy food doesn’t have to exclude all your favourites, it just takes a little creativity.
So, as i often do, i turned to the trusty cashew nut to give me that creaminess that will hopefully give me that creamy cheese feel. Although i love cheese, dairy is not really my friend, it causes congestion for me and my skin reacts to dairy, so i stick to almond milk, coconut oil instead of butter and cashew cream/cheese to make my dishes taste creamy and luscious.
The addition of Kimchi to this toastie just tops it all off. It’s salty, it’s sour and it’s got all that probiotic, enzymatic goodness of a fermented food! I use a raw kimchi from The Fermentary and it’s delicious! It has ingredients like ginger, daikon, cabbage, turmeric, garlic and sea salt. You could of course make your own Kimchi, it’s quite easy to make if you can wait up to 5 days for it to ferment and it is cheaper to do your own, but there is such a great selection of sauerkraut and kimchi brands now at health food stores that it’s worth the money if you’re time poor. You could also pair this cashew cheese with a beetroot sauercraut, i might experiement with a beetroot sauerkraut next time!
For the toast, i like to use gluten-free bread. I chose a chia and buckwheat loaf, but i also like the Chia Rice bread from Dovedale.
You can use a sandwich press or if you don’t have one, you can simply toast the bread and assemble the sandwich like that.
Here is the recipe for my yummy Cashew Cheese to compliment your kimchi sanga!
Cashew Cheese:
What you need:
1.5 cups soaked cashews (soak cashews for at least 2 hours in fresh water to soften and drain)
2 tsp dijon mustard
1.5-1 tsp sea salt
2 tblsp lemon juice
1 cup water
2 cloves of garlic
2 tblsp olive oil
1 heaped tsp tahini
Kimchi Recipe: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-cabbage-kimchi-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-189390
Gluten-free bread x 2
1 tablespoon kimchi per sandwich
1 tablespoon cashew cheese
What to do:
Blend all ingredients for cashew cheese in the blender until smooth
Toast your bread and spoon on a big dollar of cashew cream and 1 tablespoon of kimchi on to your bread.
That’s it!
ENJOY!
