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This Vegan Coconut Bacon Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese is inspired by this grilled cheese, but possibly tastes even more delicious!

I posted the recipe for this Vegan Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese a couple of months ago, and it’s been the most popular recipe on my blog ever since!

When I was developing the recipe, I was so excited about creating a vegan cheese that was made using entirely natural ingredients, which would have a similar texture to real cheese.

I managed to make this Vegan Stretchy Melty Coconut Bacon Grilled Cheese thanks to the wonderful ingredient that is mochi! Mochi are Japanese sticky rice cakes, which are made from pounding rice until it becomes sticky.

It’s sold in many different forms, one of them being in small, hard blocks. When these blocks of mochi are cooked, they become incredibly sticky, melty, stretchy and gooey.

You can buy mochi in Asian supermarkets, some local health stores, or online – just make sure you get the hard, firm type that’s sold in blocks.

The other main base ingredient is white beans – when blended up they become luxuriously smooth and creamy, they add plenty of protein and fibre, and their plain taste makes them a great base for other flavours. It also means you can keep this cheese soy-free, nut-free and oil-free too.

I created a cheesy flavour using miso, which adds an umami-rich, salty, fermented flavour, nutritional yeast, and vinegar for a slight tang.

And, whilst I love my other grilled cheese recipe too as the cheese itself is so flavoursome, I wanted ways to make it extra tasty. This was when I realised I needed to make a bacon grilled cheese!

But there’s no need to give up bacon just because you’ve gone meat-free! You can have coconut bacon instead! If you haven’t heard of it, this means flaked coconut flavoured with salty soy sauce (or tamari), sweet maple syrup, and a pinch of smoked paprika for smokey flavour. It’s salty-sweet, subtly spiced, super crispy and incredibly addictive.

Adding the coconut bacon really takes the flavours and textures of this grilled cheese to the next level! And if you’re not so keen on coconuts, why not try flaked almond bacon?

This Vegan Coconut Bacon Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese is great on its own but also delicious with a bowl of steaming hot soup such as:

It also goes well with a nice side salad, such as this:

I hope you’ll love this Vegan Stretchy Melty Coconut Bacon Grilled Cheese! For more dairy-free cheese recipes, check out my:

Looking for more great sandwiches? You might like my

If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog, I’d really love to hear any feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo #rhiansrecipes on Instagram! Thank you.

And if you don’t quite believe me about the texture of this cheese, check out this 40-second video here:

Helpful tools to make this Vegan Coconut Bacon Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese:

Vegan Coconut Bacon Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese (GF) This Vegan Coconut Bacon Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese is the best sandwich made with mochi cheese and crispy, flavourful coconut bacon. 5 from 2 votes Print Pin Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 35 minutes Servings: 4 sandwiches Calories: 306 kcal Author: Rhian Williams Ingredients For the coconut bacon: 8 tablespoons flaked coconut 8 tablespoons flaked coconut

1 teaspoon tamari (or soy sauce if not gluten-free) 1 teaspoon tamari (or soy sauce if not gluten-free)

1 teaspoon maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener) 1 teaspoon maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)

Pinch of smoked paprika, to taste Pinch of smoked paprika, to taste For the grilled cheese: 150 g (5oz) tinned white beans, drained and rinsed 150 g (5oz) tinned white beans, drained and rinsed

70 g (2.5oz) mochi (the hard firm mochi sold in blocks) 70 g (2.5oz) mochi (the hard firm mochi sold in blocks)

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

1 heaped teaspoon miso* (ensure gluten-free if necessary) 1 heaped teaspoon miso* (ensure gluten-free if necessary)

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (ensure gluten-free if necessary) 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (ensure gluten-free if necessary)

Optional: 1/4 teaspoon (Dijon) mustard Optional: 1/4 teaspoon (Dijon) mustard

Salt + pepper to taste Salt + pepper to taste

8 slices of bread (gluten-free if necessary) 8 slices of bread (gluten-free if necessary) Instructions For the coconut bacon: Place all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well

Heat in a frying pan on medium heat for around 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crisp

Set aside on a plate, making sure they're spread apart as this will help them crisp up For the grilled cheese: Place the mochi in a pan with 100ml (just under 1/2 cup) water and cook on a low heat for about 5 minutes or so until mochi has melted and become sticky – until soft enough to stick gently pierce with a fork

Add the white beans and continue to cook for a couple of minutes until heated through

Turn off heat and add nutritional yeast, miso, vinegar, mustard and salt + pepper

Use either a blender, food processor or hand-held stick blender (this is the easiest option as you can just do it in the same saucepan) and whizz until completely smooth

Toast your slices of bread and spread a generous amount of the sauce over half of the slices

Scatter over about 2 tablespoons of the coconut bacon on top of the cheese on each sandwich

Sandwich the slices of toast together**

Best enjoyed immediately, but leftover cheese keeps well covered in the fridge for up to a few days - just pop in the microwave or reheat on the stove before using Video Notes *If you have trouble getting hold of miso, you can substitute with soy sauce (or tamari), and add extra nutritional yeast and salt if necessary

**I was lazy and just toasted my slices of bread and spread the cheese sauce between them, but you can alternatively use a grilled cheese maker or a frying pan Nutrition Facts Vegan Coconut Bacon Stretchy Melty Grilled Cheese (GF) Amount Per Serving Calories 306 * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Made the recipe? Tag @rhiansrecipes on instagram and use the hashtag #rhiansrecipes

Disclosure: This posts contains affiliate links to Amazon. If you click through and purchase any of the products, a small percentage will come to me, with no extra cost to you! This income will go towards the running of this blog – thank you.