What's the best Vegan/Non-Dairy Cheese?

I am generally of the opinion that fake food should not be eaten. I used to dabble in the world of vegetarian meats, substitute dairy and eggs, and a myriad other lab- or otherwise-created “foods.” But you know what? They’re just not very good.

If you want a burger – eat a burger. If you’re concerned about things like environmental impact and animal welfare (and you damn well should be), then make sure you get your products from a responsible producer. But trying to substitute a Portobello mushroom cap or a Boca burger for a fresh ground beef patty fresh off the grill is never going to work, and you’re not going to be satisfied if what you really want is meaty goodness. Substitutes are nearly always full of artificial, chemical garbage that people have no business ingesting. And even when they’re all natural it’s just far too many strange ingredients that we really don’t need all put together. Eat the real thing or don’t eat it at all.

That being said, sometimes you don’t have that option. The innumerable dietary restrictions people possess have just as many causes – and not all of them are avoidable. Whenever human nature is faced with the forbidden, of course, we want to push our boundaries and obtain it all the more. Even if that boundary is something as seemingly benign as a piece of cheese.

A friend recently reached out to me and tasked me with the objective of finding the least offensive non-dairy cheese. Non-dairy cheese, you say? An abomination! But, my curious nature got the best of me and I agreed to begin the hunt. I always say I’ll try anything once, so I’d better put my money where my mouth is, so to speak.

I went to my local organic market and picked out a variety of cheese substitutes with which to experiment. I decided that the best way to truly test a non-dairy cheese was with the epitome of all that is cheesy holy goodness – a grilled cheese sandwich. What better way to enjoy a piece of cheese than slapped between two crisp, buttery slabs of bread and heated until it’s ooey-gooey goodness?

I wasn’t really sure what to expect out of my little experiment. I’ve been surprised by new foods more often than not (like Quorn is an amazing substitute for chicken and it’s not really a “substitute” in the sense that it’s packed with all sorts of artificial garbage). Read on for my notes and thoughts on all four types I tested:

Rice Vegan – Cheddar Flavor

Galaxy National Foods

Rice Vegan cheese slices are a rice-based non-dairy alternative that claims to be dairy, soy, cholesterol, and lactose free. What it isn’t missing, according to its producer, is “big cheese taste!” Sadly I’m afraid I’m going to have to disagree…

Feel: Stiff little squares, not entirely dissimilar to thin pieces of cardboard.

Smell: Meh – a little cheesy, but pretty bland.

Color: Neon-organic – my term for an unnatural shade of orange with artful brown flecks.

Meltability: Nearly non-existent. It half melted, but I had to nearly burn the sandwich to get it there.

Taste: Downright awful – like grainy, orange library paste.

Verdict: If you can’t eat normal cheese and this is your only other option – just stop eating cheese. Please don’t put this in your mouth.

Veggy Slices – Cheddar Flavor

Galaxy National Foods

This soy-based cheese alternative was vastly different from its rice counterpart. These slices more closely resembled Kraft singles more than any of the other cheeses – which I think most people would be inclined to disagree is technically a “real” cheese, either, but hey – it makes an OK grilled cheese.

Feel: A little rubbery – like a Kraft single.

Smell: Moderately cheesy, with a little hint of grain.

Color:  Neon orange

Meltability: Good – melted within the time it took to perfectly brown the exterior of the sandwich

Taste: Surprisingly similar to a Kraft single. A little mellow, it could use some sharpness, but altogether not unappealing.

Verdict: If you’re jonesing hardcore for a grilled cheese Sammy and you don’t mind processed cheese in general, this is your go-to substitute. Dunk it in some tomato soup and you’d be hardpressed to tell the difference from a dairy-based processed cheese.

Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds

Daiya

Daiya is by far the most popular and well-known cheese alternative. I’ve seen it mentioned in numerous vegetarian magazines and many people praise it’s meltability and surprisingly similar taste and texture to regular cheese. I’m going to assume that anyone who has said those words hasn’t eaten real cheese in so long that they are no longer cognizant of what real cheese actually is.

Feel: Shredded cheese-like; a little crumbly.

Smell: Similar to sharp cheddar or goat cheese, but with this weird yeasty quality that wasn’t altogether pleasant.

Color: A kind of orangey-brown color

Meltability: Melty – unless it touches the pan and then it gets hard and brittle

Taste: In a word – weird. It’s kind of cheesy, but it has this weird yeasty aftertaste that is pretty hard to ignore. It’s obvious this isn’t cheese and I don’t think it could be covered up with tomato soup or other accoutrement.

Verdict: Pass – it’s just….weird.

Almond Cheddar Style Shred

Lisanatti Foods

I’d head of vegans turning cashews into great non-dairy alternatives, but this was my first experience with almond alternatives (except of course for almond milk, which is delicious). I’d have to say that my first concern arose with the claims of no gluten, GMO’s, lactose, sugars, cholesterol, saturated fats, or trans fats – what the heck is actually in this stuff then?

Feel:  Shredded cheese-like, but crumbly

Smell:  Strikingly similar to fake nacho cheese dip

Color: A truly frightening shade of radioactive orange

Meltability: Pretty lame – it takes some serious moist heat to get this stuff to melt.

Taste: It tastes like nothing – zero flavor. It’s not just that it doesn’t taste like cheese, it doesn’t taste like anything. Not really surprising considering the lack of all ingredients that actually provide flavor.

Verdict: Pass – not even remotely cheese-like.

And the winner is…. Veggy Soy Slices!

Are they perfect? No. Are they going to obliterate your craving for cheese? Probably not. Will they satisfy an undeniable need for a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup? Most likely.

This is actually the one that’s still in my refrigerator. After a single bite of the other ones they made a direct journey into my trash can – so that’s got to be in their favor.

Ultimately, cheese substitutes are just that – substitutes. There’s never going to be anything that will ever taste like cheese except cheese. But, when your body simply won’t cooperate and you’re at the point of either shanking a fool or risking serious gastrointestinal distress from eating real cheese – pick up a package of soy cheese and make yourself a sandwich. It’ll make your life marginally better.

Any other food testing requests? Leave them in the comments below or on our Facebook page.

Side note: To keep our grilled cheese truly dairy-free I used Earth Balance buttery spread. As far as margarines and butter substitutes go, it’s pretty good. A little salty, but browns nicely and is also good on slightly warmed seeded bran muffins.

Seeded Bran Muffins

The last three months in Italy were positively wondrous. I tried all sorts of amazing things – from deep-fried sage leaves to braised fish fry with tomatoes and basil. What all that amazing food and wine left me with, however, was a rather unsightly ten or so additional pounds than when I had first arrived.

Let’s just say it was the worst souvenir ever.

So, upon my return home I decided that it was time to lose that ten pounds, along with the other five that had crept up on me since my husband’s last return from the sandbox. About 4 years ago I went through a very disciplined weight-loss regimen that helped me to lose nearly 40 pounds – and I’d kept most of it off until now.

Back then, however, I was mostly concerned with just dropping the weight. Rather embarrassingly, now that I look back upon it, I wasn’t terribly concerned with nutrition. All I wanted was to get back to my svelte self and fit into the size 2 jeans in the back of my closet. I managed that eventually, but I certainly didn’t do it in the most healthful way possible.

Yesterday I celebrated my 26^th birthday by spending a few hours at the spa. While I was getting a pedicure two of the nail techs were discussing their eating habits and the methods they were taking for losing some weight themselves. I was a little appalled to be honest – they talked of fasting for days drinking only water and tea, not eating a meal until 7 or 8 o’clock at night, and a number of other incredibly unhealthy habits.

I remembered myself engaging in a few of them when I was younger, doing whatever possible to reach the all-important number I’d set for myself on my bathroom scale. And what an arbitrary number it was. Why on earth do I need to be 122 pounds or 125 pounds or whatever number feels right that day?

The answer? I don’t.

So right then I there I decided that I wasn’t going to lose those pesky pounds by any bizarre weight loss strategies or adhering to a specific number of calories every day regardless of their origin. Because 500 calories from a greasy cheeseburger and 500 calories from an amazing avocado salad are two entirely different kettles of fish, my friend. What matters is eating right, eating clean, and letting my body find the weight it deems appropriate (though the vain side of my personality hopes it’s around a size 4…).

So what’s a girl to do? Eat for health. Not for weight loss. Not on a diet. Not for any other reason than making my body as healthy as it can possibly be.

And how does one do such a thing? You look for whole, healthful foods and combine them in unique ways to benefit your body as much as possible. Why have some sugary cereal for breakfast when you can microwave some rolled oats, fat-free milk, frozen blueberries, honey, and cinnamon for breakfast? Now you’re not only getting fiber from the oats, calcium from the dairy, and a serving of fruit – you’re helping to lower your cholesterol with the oats, slowing the aging process and improving motor skills with the blueberries, increasing the good bacteria in your body with the honey, and regulating your insulin production with cinnamon. That my friend, is eating for health.

My brother bought me a Chia pet once. It was the best gift ever.So what does this have to do with “seeded” bran muffins? A lot. Seeds are super-duper healthy. Chia seeds  - yes, those used to grow “pets” a decade or two ago – are crazy good for you. They’re loaded with iron, folate, calcium, magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids and soluble fiber. They help to lower your levels of so-called “bad” (LDL) cholesterol and can stabilize blood sugar levels.

Hemp seeds are a complete protein – and no, they won’t get you high. They’ve got Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, reduce inflammation, and increase brain health. Flax seeds offer soluble fiber so feel fuller longer – and they also help to stabilize blood sugar levels.

Add all of these wondrous seeds to the fiber powerhouse of bran, the potassium booster from the banana, and heart-healthy extra virgin olive oil and you’ve got a veritable super-muffin. It does not, however, come with a cape (though feel free to add one should you feel the need).

So, raise a muffin in toast to a life of healthier, happier, skinnier people who eat to be healthy – and not for any other reason.

Seeded Bran Muffins

Approximately 18 muffins

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ tablespoon cinnamon

1 ripe banana, mashed

1 ½ cups fat-free milk

2 cups bran cereal

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon toasted flax seeds

1 tablespoon hulled hemp seeds

1 tablespoon chia seeds

Preheat oven to 400⁰ F

Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl combine mashed banana, milk, bran cereal, egg, and oil. Let sit for two minutes or until the cereal softens. Stir the flour mixture into the bran mixture, also adding the flax, hemp, and chia seeds, until just combined. Scoop ¼ cupfuls into muffin liners and bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out with small crumbs. Let sit for ten minutes, then remove from pan. 

Grapefruit-Champagne Sorbet

I’m not generally a fan of frozen treats. I have very sensitive teeth and the coldness of ice creams, sorbets, and popsicles is usually rather painful.

There are a few notable exceptions. For some reason frozen custard doesn’t bother me, nor did some of the most amazing pistachio gelato last year in Florence. Perhaps it’s the fat content or the method of churning – I’m unsure.

Then there are frozen treats that are so incredibly delicious that I don’t care if they hurt my teeth, I just eat them slowly and carefully. This sorbet is one of those treats.

It’s like a frozen mimosa exploding in your mouth. Which, to me, sounds like bliss. The recipe is from David Lebovitz’s Perfect Scoop, which is, in my opinion, the definitive recipe book on ice creams and frozen delights.

So far I’ve made a few different things from it. I was pretty “meh” about the Watermelon Sorbetto, but the husband loved it. I adapted the Lemon Sorbet recipe to suit some fresh grapefruits sent lovingly from an aunt in Florida for Christmas, but it was pretty underwhelming – but the husband loved it. In fact, I think he ate the entire batch in about 3 days.

I’ve got a bunch of other recipes on my to-do list: Mojito Granita, Olive Oil Ice Cream, Orange-Szechuan Peppercorn Ice Cream, Rice Ice Cream…

This Grapefruit-Champagne sorbet, however, has rocked my world. The flavor of the wine is prevalent, so be warned. This probably isn’t appropriate for children or non-drinkers. The husband doesn’t drink alcohol, but he found the strong champagne flavor to be “un-offensive,” as he put it. I, on the other hand, want to take the entire container of sorbet, back myself into a corner, and growl at anyone who comes near.

Make this. Then don’t share it with your friends.

Grapefruit-Champagne Sorbet

from The Perfect Scoop

1 1/3 cups Champagne or other sparkling white wine

1 cup sugar

2 ½ cups fresh squeezed grapefruit juice

In a medium, nonreactive saucepan, heat about half the champagne with the sugar, stirring frequently until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, stir in the remaining champagne and the grapefruit juice.

Chill the mixture thoroughly and freeze it according to your ice cream maker’s instructions.

*Notes: I didn’t use a saucepan, I microwaved half the champagne and the sugar in a large glass measuring cup a minute at a time until the sugar dissolved, stirring every 30 seconds. Then I chilled the champagne-sugar mixture, as well as the rest of the wine and the grapefruit juice. I combined them all once chilled and then put it in my ice cream maker. This worked perfectly for me and it seemed a lot easier than using the stovetop. It’s up to you.

White Beans and Ham

I remember my mother making white beans and ham anytime there was a leftover ham hock from a holiday meal. That soup had a stick-to-your-ribs level of heartiness that has remained unmatched, in my eyes, to this day. She’d simmer a pot of Great Northern white beans with the ham hock until the beans had gotten all creamy and thick; little bits of ham dotted throughout. She’d serve it with cornbread and we’d all gobble it down. My dad recently lamented (7 years post-divorce) that he still hadn’t been able to get it replicated in his own kitchen.

I will admit that it may be an acquired taste for some. It literally consisted of nothing besides a ham hock, beans, salt and water. While I appreciate the simplicity of the dish – and no one can deny how filling and economical it was for feeding a family of 5 on a budget – I wanted to add some more vegetables into my version. I’m trying to limit my meat consumption as much as possible while adding in as many vegetables as I can, in an effort to finally meet those 5 or more servings per day recommendations. Plus, adding a mirepoix isn’t that expensive and adds a ton of flavor and nutrients into the finished soup.

I had a ham hock left over from Christmas dinner, from the ham I bought from Copper Penny Farm. It was a beauteous thing, marbled with fat and loaded with flavor. It’s easy to forget how delicious ham is when it comes from a pig that’s raised properly and isn’t one of those commercially hybridized, Smithfield-patented abominations with a 2% fat content. Seriously, check out LocalHarvest.org and find where you can get a locally grown ham for your next holiday meal. It’s worth it.

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Vanilla Pistachio Biscotti

A few weeks ago I bought a couple bags of pistachios while they were on sale. While I’m a fan of the salted variety for out of hand eating, I accidentally grabbed an unsalted bag as well. After I’d devoured the salted bag and was searching through my cupboards for a late-night snack, I decided that the unsalted kind had to be better than nothing at all.

While munching I noticed some particularly strong notes of vanilla. I had a few dozen batches of cookies to bake for people on the horizon, so I started thinking of ways to incorporate the unsalted green nuts into some sort of cookie – like vanilla pistachio biscotti.

I’d never made biscotti before, but had been meaning to for quite some time – perfect opportunity. Plus, since I was baking for other people I could experiment to my heart’s content and get the waistline-burgeoning results out of my house (not something I can say for the batch of cinnamon rolls I baked last night and am currently devouring).

Every recipe I came across also incorporated cranberries or chocolate, but I wasn’t interested in distracting from the nutty vanilla flavor I wanted. I eventually settled on altering one of Tyler Florence’s recipes and I think it turned out pretty well.

I wanted to amp up the vanilla flavor as much as possible, so I also used vanilla sugar. Vanilla sugar is one of my favorite baking secrets for sneaking some extra flavor into goodies without too much effort. Many recipes call for scraping the seeds out of a vanilla pod, but there’s still so much flavor left in there – it’d be a shame to discard it, especially considering how expensive they are. Instead, fill up a jar with sugar and stick the “spent” pods in there. Over time it will perfume the sugar with a lovely, subtle vanilla flavor. I just use an old spaghetti sauce jar (that’s been thoroughly cleaned, of course) and refill it with sugar every time I use some.

If you don’t have vanilla sugar then just use regular, I can guarantee the biscotti will still be delicious.

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