Nasturtium Cannolis with Macadamia Cheese

I was in production mode today preparing food for the Fresh from the Garden Raw Picnic tomorrow, which will be part of Foodbuzz.com's 24, 24, 24 this month.

Earlier in the day I picked some tender nasturtium leaves from my garden plot at ChapelSeed Community Garden. They're kinda like grape leaves, only not as tough and slightly peppery in flavor. I suspected they would complement the savory richness of a raw nut cheese, so I decided to make some stuffed rolls for the picnic (recipe below)

I started by soaking the macadamia nuts in water overnight to soften them up and remove the enzyme inhibitor. After draining and rinsing them, I put them in a food processor with mellow white miso, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and sea salt.

I pulsed the mixture together just until crumbly, then gradually added more water to get a semismooth paste. I then added some dried and fresh herbs, black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. The result is an Italian inspired creamy ricotta-like filling that tastes rich, but is not heavy.

Onto the cannolis. . . First, I spread about 1 heaping tablespoon of the cheese along the bottom end of the leaf.

Then I rolled it up like a burrito (or in this case, little cannolis).

Tomorrow, I will be laying them on a platter and garnishing with lovely orange and yellow nasturtium blossoms. Can't wait!!

Macadamia Cheese "Rawcotta”

2 tsp mellow white miso

2 cups macadamia nuts (soaked, drained and rinsed)

3 Tbl lemon juice

1 tsp olive oil

½ tsp sea salt

1-2 cloves garlic

1 Tbl onion powder

½ tsp dried basil

½ tsp dried oregano

Fresh black pepper

2 Tbl fresh parsley

Enough water to chop

In a food processor, pulse together miso, macadamia nuts, lemon juice, olive oil, sea salt, garlic and onion powder into a thick paste. Empty into a bowl and add remaining ingredients.