CAMEMBOSH Hedgehog
Right, this one is genuinely one of the most impressive things we've ever put on a table. The CAMEMBOSH Hedgehog is our plant-based spin on a baked camembert, made from scratch with a cashew base, and it looks absolutely stunning when you bring it out. The outside gets this gorgeous golden crust with little spiky cuts that make it look just like a hedgehog, and inside it's warm, gooey, and deeply savoury with that classic tangy cheese flavour. It takes a bit of love and time, but trust us, the look on people's faces when they see it makes every minute worth it. Make this for your next dinner party and watch everyone lose their minds.
Before You Start
- Preheat oven to 200°C
- Large baking sheet
- Parchment-lined dish (for cashew cheese)
- Liquidiser/blender
- Saucepan
- Mortar & pestle (or small bowl + rolling pin)
- Pastry brush or teaspoon
- Boil cashews for 20 minutes & cool before blending
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 3 tsp Nooch
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp olive oil
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 75g cashews
- 150ml warm water
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 sprig of rosemary
- 1 tbsp tapioca flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 8 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 sprig of rosemary
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 1 x 400g fresh tiger loaf
Method
First, start making the cheese
- Add the cashews to the pan of hot water and boil for 20 minutes to soften
- Remove from the heat, drain and leave to cool.
- Peel 1 of the garlic cloves and put it in the liquidiser
- Add the drained cashews, tapioca flour, salt, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar and warm water
- Blend to a smooth cream
- Pour the cashew cream into the saucepan, taste and season with salt and pepper
- Put the saucepan on a medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes, until slightly thickened
- Pour into the parchment-lined dish
Prepare the loaf
- Use a bread knife to cut even slices across the top of the loaf, 3cm apart, making sure you don’t cut all the way through as the base needs to remain intact
- Turn the loaf 90 degrees, and cut across the first slices to make a criss-cross pattern
Make the herb oil
- Peel and roughly chop the garlic
- Remove the leaves from the rosemary by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away) and finely chop
- Put the garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper into the mortar and bash them with the pestle to make a paste (or put the ingredients in a small bowl and use the end of a rolling pin)
- Pour the olive oil into the mortar and mix with a fork
Finish the loaf
- Put the loaf on the baking sheet
- Use a pastry brush or teaspoon to drizzle the herb oil deep inside the cuts
- Put the baking sheet in the oven and cook for 25–30 minutes, until the bread is golden and toasted
Time to serve
- Peel the remaining garlic clove and cut it into sticks
- Remove the rosemary needles
- Gently push the garlic sticks and rosemary needles into the top of the cashew cheese so that they stick out the top
- Drizzle over the olive oil and sprinkle over a little black pepper.
- Put the cashew cheese in the oven alongside the bread and bake for the final 12–15 minutes, until the cheese has formed a skin and the colour has darkened
- Remove and serve immediately
Tips & Variations
- Get your cashews soft: Don't skip the full 20 minutes of boiling. The softer they are, the smoother your cheese will be, and smooth is everything here.
- Score carefully: When you're making the hedgehog spikes, use a sharp knife and take your time. Shallow, even cuts look much better than rushed deep ones, and it helps the outside crisp up beautifully.
- Serve straight away: This one is best eaten fresh out of the oven while it's still warm and gooey in the middle. Have your bread or crackers ready to go before it comes out.
Why This Works
The trick here is the tapioca flour. It's what gives the cheese that stretchy, melty quality that makes it feel genuinely indulgent rather than just a nut paste. Blending the cashews properly until completely smooth is the other big one, so don't rush that step. We find the apple cider vinegar and nutritional yeast do all the heavy lifting on flavour, giving you that sharp, savoury depth you'd expect from a proper baked cheese.