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Autoimmune Paleo Diet Nut-Free and Dairy-Free “Cheese”

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AIP Nut-Free and Dairy-Free "Cheese"

You know how I love my dairy-free cashew and coconut “cheese.” They’re full of probiotics and so delicious. However, they aren’t hard cheeses, and not everyone can tolerate nuts. I didn’t think there was a way to make a hard cheese without dairy or nuts. But Hayley did. She created a nut-free and dairy-free cheese  (safe for the Autoimmune Paleo Diet), which is now known all over Instagram as “Zucchini Cheese”. Her recipe uses zucchini, nutritional yeast, and gelatin. My mouth fell open when I saw it. (She has a blog now)

AIP-cheese-low

I’m sure it’s awesome, but I never actually made Hayley’s Zucchini Cheese, so I don’t know if our proportions are similar (she measures her zucchini before steaming and pureeing.) I used cauliflower puree in my variation. A few notes before I give you the recipe:

So does it taste like real (dairy) cheese?
Taste is subjective. I find it similar and delicious, but you may not 🙂

Can it be made without gelatin?
I’m sure it can, but I haven’t yet. Normally I use HALF as much agar powder as gelatin, but again, I haven’t tested it with agar yet.

Will it melt like cheese on pizza or burgers?
No. When it becomes warm it turns into sauce. If you want to put it on pizza or a burger, make sure they’re room temperature first.

What IS the Autoimmune Paleo Diet or AIP?
Check out these AIP rockstars for the answer to that question: Mickey Trescott, Sarah Ballantyne, and Jessica Flanigan.

You can grate it?!
Yes! I think it’s easiest to grate if you freeze it for an hour first though.

Are the onion and garlic powder necessary?
I think so. I think such small amounts aren’t really noticeable, but really bump up the flavor. Like, “Mmm… what’s that flavor? I’m not sure, but it’s goooood.”

Autoimmune Paleo Diet Nut-Free and Dairy-Free “Cheese”

2 cups steamed cauliflower puree (rutabaga also works, but I preferred the cauliflower version)
1/2 cup grass-fed gelatin (see above for note on agar powder)
1/2 cup nutritional yeast (THIS ONE is free of synthetic folic acid, a major no-no with the MTHFR mutation)
1/4 cup  coconut cream concentrate (also sold as coconut butter or coconut manna) You can leave this out, but I think it adds creaminess and texture.
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon fine pink salt
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
the contents of enough dairy-free probiotic capsules to equal about 25 billion
optional: herbs and spices to taste, HERE are the AIP-approved ones

UPDATE: We have been loving this will Herbamare in place of the pink salt. I DON’T know if it’s AIP-friendly.

  1. Steam one large head of cauliflower until fork tender.
  2. In the food processor with the S blade puree the cauliflower until smooth.
  3. Measure out 2 cups of hot pureed cauliflower, then transfer any extra puree to a glass container with a lid.
  4. Quickly put the 2 cups of puree back into the food processor, and turn the machine on. (It will stay on as we add the rest of the ingredients.)
  5. Place a funnel over the feed tube and immediately add your gelatin. (It’s important that the puree is still hot for the gelatin to emulsify.)
  6. Next add the nutritional yeast the same way.
  7. Now we can remove the funnel and add the rest of the ingredients. (The puree should be cool enough to add the probiotics by the time you finish adding everything else.)
  8. Line a loaf pan with unbleached parchment paper, then fill with the cheese puree, and chill to set. (You can speed up the process by freezing for an hour before refrigerating.)

Makes about 8 servings — About 12 grams of protein per serving

♥, Kelly

iHerb.com coupon

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Comments

  2. Holy WOW! Who would have ever guessed?! It looks just like my cashew cheese! I think I will *have* to try this (with agar). Brilliant, Kelly! 😀

  3. I can’t wait to try this! Ive been searching for a good df cheese and I never realized just how challenging that would be!

  4. Love this version. Love the photography (of course!) and the cauliflower idea. Thank you also for including me in your AIP resource list xo-jessica

  5. I have stayed away from yeast for years due to Candida. I think I saw something recently that said nutritional yeast is not the same thing as baker’s yeast. Is that right? Will nutritional yeast add to a candida problem?

      • It’s not alive, but if you are actually allergic/sensitive to yeast, it still has the yeast protein in it.

        • Thank you! This is something I’ve been trying to find an answer to! I’ll have to keep looking for yeast free options!

  6. I am looking forward to trying this. I was wondering what brand of nutritional yeast you use. I have thought about getting some, but most are fortified with synthetic folic acid, and I try to avoid that. Have you found one that does not have folic acid in it?

    Thanks!

  8. I can’t have yeast but I can use my probiotics. I have capsules I could pour out into the mix. Will it lose the flavor with out the yeast?

  9. Gah! I am so excited about this! I was just telling my husband last night how much I miss a slice of cheddar on an apple slice in the fall. Plus, this will make a serious dent in the bag of nutritional yeast I have sitting around 🙂

  10. I tried Hayley’s zucchini cheese with agar a while back…no good. The cheese was still kinda mushy, despite using a good amount of agar, and it was noticeably grainy. MUCH better with gelatin; however, I cannot digest it very well at all, so no cheese for me! SAD FACE.

  11. I know that you recommended for the food to be at room temp to put on, but would this consistency work for grilled cheese? I see the consistency in the photo, but I just wonder how it melts . . . say, between two slices of bread (GF, of course!). 🙂 Thank you for the recipe!!!!!

  12. I am wondering if you could make this well in advance (say a month or so) and freeze it for future use.

  15. Since I went totally Paleo a couple of months ago I’ve been wondering how to enjoy dairy products-which I love- without the “dairy”. This Dairy-Free “Cheese” is a real treat and sure fun to make. I’ll try it this weekend and if you don’t mind, I’m going to share you page in Twitter.

  16. Fascinating! Also, that’s the first time I’ve ever heard a good rule for subbing agar for gelatin. I’ve had some horrible experiences with trying to substitute. I’m assuming you mean the powdered, rather than flaked, agar agar?

  17. HI Kelly, I was going to sign up for Vitacost and remembered you had a link at one point for Refer a Friend. Do you still have that?
    Thanks for all your wonderful posts!!

  18. Great adaptation on this recipe! I subbed tahini for the coconut butter and it was AMAZING! Although this makes it not auto-immune friendly it certainly tastes great if you can tolerate seeds.

  22. i made this and it is so yum!!!! a miracle cheese! okay so it’s not cheese but it tastes cheese-ish and that is wonderful. Thank you for this blessed little recipe. Oh and I grated it and put some on AIP fake pizza and it kind of melted under the broiler…it won’t crisp obviously but it was fun to use that way.

  23. I have been searching in all of these, but can’t find any that are yeast free. My husband is severally allergic to yeast. Does anyone know how I can make a cheese without it? Thank you for any help!

  24. This sounds so good! Which probiotics did you use for this/yogurts and any other cooking? I’ve been wanting to make various recipes with probiotics but I don’t know which to buy or where to even start looking for ones that are good in recipes. Thanks!!

  25. Has anyone made this with zucchini in place of the cauliflower? I think I’m going to try it. It looks delicious but I’m a little bit “over” cauliflower right now. Love the photographs!!! Love that you grated it!!! I’ve made zucchini cheese in the past with a nut-free and dairy-free basil and spinach pesto and it’s so nice with eggs, or in a plantain wrap with protein, or just eaten sliced with plantain chips. I love that your recipe has probiotics in it and the coconut butter. Going to try this with zucchini today.

    • JUST FYI – I’ve been making this with zucchini for awhile now and I also finely chop basil and stir in just before pouring into a loaf pan. It’s my go-to recipe for “cheese”. This is my favorite recipe for zucchini cheese – and I’ve tried a few. Thanks so much for posting this!!!

  26. Hi, I want to know if the nutritional yeast can be optional for this recipe.
    Thanks!