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Let’s Call it a Cheese Sandwich

February 17, 2006 By Susan Voisin 11 Comments
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Privacy Policy.

Cheese Sandwich

Recently Pete Wells, a writer for Food and Wine magazine, wrote an article that described most food blogs as opportunities for “hundreds of pointless cheese-sandwich meanderings.” To illustrate what he considers a boring “cheese sandwich blog,” he pulled quotes out of context from several blogs and caused a big stir among food bloggers. As a protest, Cheese Sandwich Day was born.

Well, I never eat cheese, and I rarely eat sandwiches, so I don’t think what I write could properly be called a cheese sandwich blog. In fact, I’m sure that Wells, a guy who once wrote that “lard is the most elegant fat I’ve ever met,” would consider my blog something much worse than a cheese sandwich blog: a freakishly health-conscious, nutritional yeast-pushing, fat-fearing, tofu salad sandwich blog!

I guess I should have made a tofu salad sandwich to express my solidarity with other food bloggers. They probably would have understood: I don’t do cheese, and tofu is really soy cheese. But no. I had “a sense of purpose,” which Wells says a blog needs. I wanted to rise to the challenge and make something vegan, something cheesy, and most of all, something not boring.

So I threw myself into the task with zeal. First I made my own “cheese.” Then I made my own whole-grain/sweet potato flatbread (gluten-free, even, as though I don’t already operate under enough food restrictions.) And finally I grilled my vegetables, because everyone knows a vegan, whole-grain, gluten-free cheese sandwich must have grilled vegetables!

In the end, my kitchen looked like the Pillsbury Doughboy had spontaneously exploded. Pots were coated with sticky “cheese” sauce, hand blender and food processor were caked with starchy residue, pans and cutting boards and serving bowls took up every bit of counter space. My husband, AKA “the dishwasher,” was not amused. He would have preferred tofu salad. (Actually, he would have preferred bibimbab, which uses an equal number of pots and appliances to greater effect.)

So, was it worth it? How did it taste?

It wasn’t bad. Actually, the “cheese” sauce was great (though I’m sure Mr. W. would quite literally rather eat lard). The vegetables, my standard recipe using rosemary, garlic, and balsamic vinegar, were good. The bread could have been better. In fact, my three components, sauce, bread, and vegetables, didn’t really mesh well together. I think my sense of purpose may have led me astray this time.

Here’s the rundown on what I did:

Millet-Sweet Potato Flatbread

I cooked one medium sweet potato and mashed it. Added about 3/4 cup of millet flour, 3 tbsp. corn starch, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Tried to knead it in the food processor, tried to roll it into a flat bread and put it in a skillet, but it fell apart. Put it back into the food processor with 1/4 to 1/2 cup water and 1/2 tsp. baking soda. Spooned it into a hot skillet and cooked it on both sides until done. (Next time, I’ll add some cumin and serve this as an accompaniment to Indian foods. It wasn’t really large enough to use as a wrap.)

The Vegetables:

Eggplant, zucchini, red bell pepper, onion, portabella mushrooms grilled like this.

Mozzarella-Style Cheeze

1 cup water
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cashew butter

Blend all the ingredients with a hand blender until smooth. Pour the mixture into a small sauce pan, and stir over medium heat until it starts to thicken, then let it bubble for 30 seconds. Whisk vigorously. Whisk in 2 T soymilk (or water). Drizzle immediately over vegetables or other food. (If you let it sit too long, you’ll have to blend it again.) For vegan, almost fat-free cheeze, this was a real winner. I will be using this recipe in the future to make my daughter’s beloved Mac and Cheeze.

So… I agree that it’s important to try not to be boring. But a writer from a food magazine is not the final arbiter of what’s interesting in a food blog. When you write day after day about what you’re cooking or eating, chances are you’re going to bore someone sometime. What’s important is to love what you’re writing about, and enjoy writing it. People who appreciate your ideas and recipes will find you and stick with you through the boring parts.

That’s what Mr. Wells didn’t understand: you can’t evaluate a blog based on one line, one paragraph, or one entry. You have to look at its entirety–the body of knowledge it shares, the particular voice of its writer, and the responses of its readers. I just started this blog last month, so I’m still finding my voice. I just hope I’m around as long as some of the other blogs that fancy food writer found boring.

And now I must get back to cooking. I think I owe my husband some bibimbab!

Tags: vegan recipes vegetarian cooking food fat-free cheese sandwiches

Filed Under: Bread Tagged With: Cheese Sauces, Gluten-free

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Comments

  1. Anonymous

    February 16, 2010 at 9:17 pm

    I made the cheese with some pasta and edamame; it was amazing. I never enjoyed mac and cheese as a kid; I always found it too strong, but I loved this. I just stumbled upon your blog, but already there's so many recipes I can't wait to try.

    Reply
  2. Ashley

    February 3, 2011 at 2:01 pm

    Hi Susan,
    Do you prefer this cheese sauce to the one you use in your mac and “cheese”? For say, poring over baked potatoes? Thanks!

    Reply
    • SusanV

      February 3, 2011 at 2:22 pm

      Ashley, I prefer the mac and cheese sauce for just about everything. I use it all the time over baked potatoes and mix in salsa or Rotel tomatoes for a queso-style dip.

      Reply
      • Ashley

        February 3, 2011 at 2:39 pm

        Thanks so much! I already love your mac and cheese sauce, but came across this one and thought I might give it a try. I think I’ll stick with the mac and cheese sauce. On a related note, we recently broke down and tried Daiya at a restaurant. It is pretty good as far taste and melt-ability go, but so high in fat and not much nutritional value at all. And my husband said “Yours is better” and by “yours” he meant your mac and cheese sauce, Susan.

        Reply
  3. angela

    May 9, 2011 at 12:57 am

    Just found your site Susan…just love it : )
    Congratulations on the weight release…..we don’t want to lose it then find it again do we???? Although I certainly have that knack : (
    How’s your cholesterol Susan? I released some weight last year trying raw vegan and when I had my cholesterol checked…it had gone up! I was absolutely gutted.
    One more thing which I’m sure you do know (one of your readers commented that she had to use up her bananas before the end of the week). They make wonderful raw ice cream either as is or with added cocoa/cacao and maybe some nut milk…if allowed. Unfortunaely bananas are very expensive at the moment here in Oz because we had a huge cyclone/hurricane during the growing season…..just as well I freeze them : )
    Love Angela XXX
    PS I know this isn’t a raw site but Penni Shelton has an amazing site called “Raw Food Rehab” where there are some amazing raw vegan recipes….just thought you may be interested : ) A

    Reply
  4. anonymous

    July 18, 2011 at 9:38 pm

    do you think this would go good on pita pizzas? ^^

    Reply
    • SusanV

      July 18, 2011 at 9:52 pm

      I think the sauce would be great on any kind of pizza!

      Reply
  5. nikki

    July 19, 2011 at 9:25 am

    this looks scrumptious! how many calories does this have per serving?

    Reply
  6. Amanda

    October 15, 2013 at 12:52 pm

    Hi – I just stumbled on this blog and was captivated by the picture of your cheese sandwich! I made the recipe as stated and it came out delicious. Your own review of the sandwich wasn’t exactly glowing so I should have been wary about trying it out but all the ingredients are things I love. The millet bread actually came out pretty good. I cooked them like pancakes. Used one enormous sweet potato, one cup of millet flour, 3 tablespoons of arrowroot powder. It made 8 5 inch diameter pancakes – so 4 sandwiches overall. Thanks! I look forward to trying out more of your recipes.

    Reply
  7. Lori Whitworth

    January 22, 2023 at 7:27 pm

    This hit it out of the park for us. Thank you! I used the mozzarella cheese recipe to make quesadillas. I added 1/4 tsp. chipotle powder to the cheese recipe. I oven roasted mushrooms, zucchini, onions, and bell pepper seasoned with garlic powder and salt. The mushrooms I seasoned with taco seasoning. I assembled them one by one in a nonstick fry pan by adding a whole wheat tortilla. It was heated on one side then flipped. I added the cheese, roasted veggies, then folded it in half and continued to heat briefly on one side then the other. I served it with salsa for dipping. I will definitely use this cheese recipe for more Mexican recipes.

    Reply

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Susan VoisinI'm Susan Voisin, and I love creating delicious whole foods plant-based dishes with no added oil. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram.
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