Vegan cauliflower cheese

Ingredients 6 tbsps cashew nut cream, 50ml water, 1 cauliflower, 1 tsp mustard

Serves: 4 Preparation: 30 minutes

My approach to cauliflower cheese is unparalleled. Indulgently finished with cream and two kinds of cheese, richly flavoured with Guinness and mustard it is everything a person could want. For vegans however, one would think cauliflower cheese was... well... impossible! But it's not and what's more it's absolutely delicious. I used cashew cream flavoured with no more than a teaspoon of mustard and a teaspoon of salt and black pepper and was blown away by the creamy, delicate sauce topped with a fine crispy crust.

1) Prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and slicing the stem to the base. Slice around the stem to release the florets.

2) Steam or parboil the cauliflower for about 6 minutes, strain and set aside to rest in an ovenproof dish.

3) Spoon the cashew cream into a pan, pour in the water, add the mustard, salt and pepper to taste and reduce on the hob for 5 minutes.

4) Pour the sauce onto the cauliflower and bake for 20 minutes at 220 degrees until a golden crust begins to form and serve!

Cashew nut cream

Ingredients 500g cashew nuts

Preparation: 30 minutes (plus overnight for soaking)

If you are a vegan, nuts are not just a magical source of fat and protein - they are also dairy substitutes. Milk can be extracted from coconut, almonds and cashew nuts, is naturally sweet and incredibly can even be whipped just like cream to use in puddings. Cashew nut cream is perhaps the most versatile of all - with a little seasoning it becomes a savoury bechamel-style sauce and when reduced in a pan it becomes a perfectly respectable cheese substitute for pasta. It can be frozen or kept for a few days in the fridge.

1) Put the cashew nuts in a bowl, cover with water and leave overnight.

2) Pour into a pan and simmer for 5 minutes.

3) Pour the nuts and water into a blender and pulse thoroughly.

4) Parse through a sieve and decant into a kilner jar or tupperware box to store.