Buffalo chickpeas add a punchy topping to vegan nachos

The right vegan cheese is crucial for this snack.

“We’re having nachos for dinner?” he asked.

“Yep,” I said. “Does that sound good?”

“Yes!”

I was talking to our 13-yearold foster son, who’s been with us for a little over a month. Like the 8-year-old we had for six months before he left in March, he loves food — and how. My biggest challenge in the kitchen is keeping up with his appetite. No need to worry about “spoiling” dinner with a snack; he’ll devour both, want a cookie for dessert and ask for popcorn a halfhour later.

One night, I had settled on this recipe for Buffalo Chickpea Nachos as a sly way of showing him that vegan cooking can be hearty and satisfying, and all went according to plan — until I used the only pepper sauce I had on hand, Tabasco. It’s so much hotter than the traditional sauce used for Buffalo wings, Frank’s Red Hot, that this seemingly simple swap rendered the dish largely inedible (and the air around the stove cough-inducing).

Burritos came to the rescue that night, and the kid got a kick out of telling us — and later, anybody within earshot — about the time “Joe really messed up some nachos.” The next night, I was back at Nova Scotia blogger Olivia Biermann’s recipe, this time with the correct sauce, and redeemed myself.*

Obviously, this is just the thing for game night, whether that means the upcoming Super Bowl or the backgammon and Monopoly we’ve been playing since our foster son arrived. But before you make it, know that there are at least two other crucial choices beyond

the Frank’s. First, start with big, restaurant-style tortilla

chips. Second, and perhaps even more importantly, you want the right vegan cheese.

If you’ve been scarred by memories of vegan shreds that just sat on your nachos or pizza, or in your grilled cheese or quesadilla, unmoved by the heat of the oven and refusing to do anything close to melting, you might be reluctant to go there again. If you’re not vegan and not interested in eating a vegan meal, by all means use your favorite dairy cheese here. But for those of you who do want to keep this plant-based, I tested nine brands, sprinkling them plain on tortilla chips and baking for 10 to 15 minutes. The upshot: Daiya — a brand I used to avoid — was the clear winner with a vastly improved product that melted beautifully. Runners-up were Violife and Vevan; losers were Go Veggie, Original Almond and So Delicious; and in the middle were Forager, Miyoko’s and Chao.

When I made the nachos with Frank’s Red Hot and Daiya, the tart (and manageably spicy) chickpeas, gooey cheese and crisp bell pepper and scallions had all of us eating like teenagers, going back for seconds — and playfully fighting over thirds.