I’ve been making my way through various vegan parmesan recipes, and I usually like the products…for a little while. However, I invariably stop liking them when I’m halfway through a jar.

What I don’t like about the vegan parmesans I’ve tried is that they’re too crunchy….and it’s always a sharp crunch, not a crisp crunch or a soft crunch.

Ever since I made my chewy vegan bac’n, I’ve been toying with the idea of using TVP to make a chewier vegan parmesan, and today’s the day I tried it out.

The result is pretty damn perfect: chewy, crunchy, salty, garlic-y! This will taste delicious atop some brown-rice spaghetti alla puttanesca!

Here’s the recipe:

Chewy Vegan Parmesan

Mix the following in a small saucepan and bring to a boil…

• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 TBS Knorr vegetable broth powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Remove from heat and stir in…

• 1 cup TVP

Stir until all the liquid is absorbed. Add:

• 1/2 cup crushed cashews

Stir well. Leave for twenty minutes or so to ensure all the liquid is absorbed.

And here it is atop Jamie’s famous penne alla puttanesca!

And, well, okay, why not toss on a few of those chewy vegan bac’n bits too for a next level of deliciousness!

And when I was in town, my awesome niece, Annie, gave me these!!! I’ve heard so much about this spice blend–I can hardly wait to try it!!!

And the song of the day is John Mayer’s “In the Blood.” I’m not normally much of a John Mayer fan, but I was staying with my brother, Johnny, for a week while I was in town and he kept singing this song, so I became a bit attached to it!