Caprese is a classic Italian starter salad made from tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. As a quick vegan variant, the mozzarella can easily be replaced with tofu. And now vegan mozzarella is becoming more available in supermarkets as well. The best and cheapest result, however, delivers the self-made variant. Naturally.
Our vegan caprese salad is therefore served with vegan psyllium husks mozzarella, made from cashews and psyllium husks. For raw enjoyment, this mozzarella version is much more suitable than our vegan meltable mozzarella cheese, which is thickened with tapioca starch and agar agar.
When our omnivorous friends were immediately enthusiastic about the first trial attempts, it was clear to us that we wanted to share the recipe with you. But somehow it still slumbered on the hard drive for 1 year before it finally found its way onto the blog now.
The psyllium husks mozzarella is quick and easy to prepare. It actually only needs some rest or cooling time. So it’s best to prepare it the day before you use it.
Vegan Caprese with Psyllium Husks Mozzarella
Ingredients
Psyllium Husks Mozzarella
- 3 tbsp ground psyllium husks, equivalent to 15 g
- 150 ml water
- 60 g cashews
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes**
- 1 pinch salt
Other
- 2 tomatoes
- 1 bunch basil
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- salt + pepper
Preparation
- Mix the psyllium husks with the water in a bowl with a spoon. The mass gradually thickens and takes on a slimy consistency. You should let it thicken for at least 1 hour. Meanwhile soak the cashews in hot water.
- Drain the cashews, collecting the cashew water. Puree the cashews with at least 2 tablespoons of cashew water, lemon juice, yeast flakes and salt until they become smooth. Finally add the psyllium husks and blend everything with the mixer until smooth.
- Put the vegan mozzarella in a mold and let it set in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, or better overnight.
- Cut tomatoes and vegan mozzarella into thin slices and season with salt and pepper. Pour vinegar and oil over it and serve with basil leaves.
Notes
Song of the recipe:
Elena Ledda is known as the voice of Sardinia. With the Italian, a classically trained opera voice meets Italian folk songs. Andi discovered the song as a sample in an electronic live set by Rampue.
(Would you like to listen to all the songs for the recipe? Find them collected in one playlist here)
If using per your tip for gratinating- would you still set in the fridge overnight, or just bake it as is? And how much extra water required for say, pizza topping purposes? Thank you!!
Hi KM, I think for gratinating you don’t have to let it set in the fridge overnight. For this purpose also check out our other recipe for vegan meltable mozzarella cheese.
Cheers
Andi