Author Notes
Delight in all of the familiar flavors and textures of a traditional French lentil and goat cheese salad—chewy lentils, creamy and tangy cheese—while also enjoying a recipe that's 100% dairy-free and vegan-friendly. The cashew cheese consistency should be somewhere in between a very thick hummus and a soft goat cheese—you'll know it when you see it. Add water gradually so that you can be sure to control the texture to your liking. —Gena Hamshaw
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Ingredients
- For the salad:
-
1/3 cup
olive oil
-
1
small shallot, minced
-
1 teaspoon
salt
-
2 tablespoons
freshly squeezed lemon juice
-
1 tablespoon
Champagne vinegar
-
1 teaspoon
Dijon mustard
-
2 1/2 cups
cooked Le Puy green lentils, drained well
-
2 cups
firmly packed baby arugula leaves
-
1 cup
thinly sliced radishes
-
1 cup
chopped endive
-
1 cup
sliced cucumber
-
1/4 cup
chopped fresh dill
-
1/3 cup
toasted walnuts, chopped
-
1 dash
black pepper
-
1/4 cup
herbed cashew cheese (below)
- For the herbed cashew cheese:
-
1 1/2 cups
cashew pieces or a combination of cashews and pine nuts, soaked for at least 3 hours and drained
-
2 tablespoons
large flake nutritional yeast
-
1 teaspoon
salt
-
2 teaspoons
herbes de Provence
-
1/4 teaspoon
black pepper
-
3 tablespoons
freshly squeezed lemon juice
-
1
clove garlic, minced
-
4 tablespoons
water, divided
Directions
- For the salad:
-
In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the olive oil, shallot, salt, lemon juice, vinegar, and mustard until evenly blended.
-
In a large bowl, stir together the lentils, arugula, radishes, endive, cucumber, and dill. Drizzle evenly with the dressing, then toss or stir until all the ingredients are evenly coated. Stir in the walnuts and season with black pepper to taste. Dot the top of the salad with small bits of the cashew cheese (about 1⁄2 teaspoon each).
-
Serve salad right away, or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- For the herbed cashew cheese:
-
Put the cashews in a food processor or blender (preferably a high-speed blender). Add the nutritional yeast, salt, herbes de Provence, pepper, lemon juice, and garlic. Pulse a few times to break the cashews down until they have a wet, coarse, mealy texture.
-
With the motor running, drizzle in 2 tablespoons of the water. Now it’s time for some kitchen intuition: Keep adding water, stopping
occasionally to scrape down the sides of the work bowl, until the mixture has a good consistency. It should be similar to a thick hummus—a little coarse, but smooth and spreadable. You may not need all of the remaining 2 tablespoons of water. (If using a blender, start on a low speed and gradually increase to high speed as you add the water, using a plunger attachment the entire time to keep the mixture blending.)
-
Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired. Stored in a covered container in the fridge, the cheese will keep for about 5 days
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