Vegan cheese - any good?

[celtic rose]

Although I haven't missed cheese at all since becoming vegan (strange as I used to be a bit of cheese freak when veggie) I felt I should try this tofutti everyones been talking about. And the verdict: it was very nice, rather like philadelphia cream cheese. Definitely buy it again.
Last time I tried vegan cheese was 10 years ago and it was gross.

[gertvegan]

celtic rose, if you haven't tried it yet, and liked philadelphia, theres a soft dairy free spread made by the same makers of swedish glace ice cream I think, called swedish soft. I can't find a link :mad: . I haven't bought it for a while, but it was avaialble in the likes of asdawl. ;)

[cedarblue]

today i spotted a 'cheese' sauce powder mix in holland & barrett, suitable for vegans of course!

anyone tried it yet?
i will buy some on fri and give it a go i think ;)

[Gorilla]

i love Swedish Glace ice cream and i've been looking for their cream cheese but can't seem to find it anywhere. it's certainly not available my local "Asdawl" as you suggest gert. ;) i don't think any of the local supermarkets do any vegan cheese, yet.

[Gorilla]

today i spotted a 'cheese' sauce powder mix in holland & barrett, suitable for vegans of course!

anyone tried it yet?

i've seen that 'cheese' sauce in H&B Cedar but haven't tried it. i did try a cheese-style sauce from Veganstore and it wasn't very nice so it put me off trying any others. if you try it, let us know what it's like as i'd be interested :)

[celtic rose]

I can get Swedish Glace from tescos but only in vanilla. My local H&B have four flavours - strawberry, chocolate, raspberry and of course vanilla.
The raspberry is lush - just like raspberry ripple.

[veganblue]

Today in the supermarket I was explaining to a vego about vegan foods and why some of the Sanitarium faux schnitzel range are not vegan when we came across the tofutti cheese slices with a 'new' sticker on them. I duly bouught some and they taste like what I remember to be that strange plastic cheese slices in plastic wrap that I used to have as a kid. The novelty is interesting and they don't taste bad but I can't see myself getting them for anything other than novelty value.

For Australian readers, Coles stock them - you can get your local store to bring them in if you are really keen for that plastic cheese experience. Somehow I think that Pilot (cockatoo with a former diet of cheese and processed meats) will be getting little bits on special occasions.

[Mystic]

Veganblue, I think that Pronto Brontos uses tofutti cheese slices in their burgers. I almost choked when I tried it coz it tasted so real (like dairy) - luckily it wasn't in mine - it was in my boyfriend's burger. I think I didn't like it coz it felt too much like the real thing that it almost frightened me :D LOL! I could probably get used to it, but I don't really ever miss cheese

[veganblue]

It's funny - I missed cheese to begin with but after a year or so it didn't matter - certainly not enough to want to try it or get carried away with replacements. Maybe it could be the vegans practical joker - popping it in things without warning vegans :D maybe a bit mean...but worth throwing into vegan burgers. "Look! Vegans can eat trashy burgers too...?" Somehow the fact that vegan food that *doesn't* look like Macca's is actually a really great positive.

I carefully picked out dozens of ham pieces from a tomato sauce when I first was staying at a boarding place. I didn't want to offend. Seems I was picking out the smoked soy-bacon bits which I had never come across before...!

[FR]

No vegan cheese compares to Roads End Organics mozzerella chreese packets. I finally tired some yesterday as I bought a box of 12 packets. It is "melty" and "gooey" and is completely perfect for pizza and pasta dishes.

Toffutti is okay as far as taste but the really need to start making their cheese without using hydrogenated oil. Vegan Gourmet is pretty good, but not nearly as good as Roads End Oraganic's mozzerella chreese.

Vegan Rella has a good flavor to it but it does not melt.

[veganblue]

I wonder what could be used instead of hydrogenated oil? Possibly coconut? It has naturally saturated fats that set at room temp? If they used poly or mono-unsaturated fats then the oils would possibly come out of the faux-cheese - maybe more lecithen to stabilise the fat and keep it from seperating? Food chemistry is not a forte of mine.

If I remember correctly, the hydrogenated fats are created by bubbling hydrogen through the polyunsaturated fats under pressure and possibly at a high temperature in the presesnce of a catalyst.

The health concerns regarding the resulting saturated fat is that it is a 50/50 mix of molecules that are 'left' or 'right' handed. Natural fats have the biologically active 'handed-ness' while half of the hydrogenated fats have a biologically detrimental shape. I don't know enough to say how or why it is bad but it is possible to find out if anyone is interested.

[Mystic]

Toffutti is okay as far as taste but the really need to start making their cheese without using hydrogenated oil.

I agree - that is the reason why I won't buy a packet of it myself. Having it occassionally in a burger won't kill anyone, but if there is one thing that I go out of my way to avoid, it has to be hydrogenated fats. I don't mind a little sugar or fat, but definately not hydrogenated. It would also be nice if toffutti fortified there stuff with calcium to give it some nutritional value.

[Spiral]

i don't think any of the local supermarkets do any vegan cheese, yet.

Sainsbury's did their own dairy free soft cheese spread a year or two ago, but for some reason they've discontinued it, and at least some Tesco stores sell cheezly.

I don't mind the melting cheezly on toast occasionally, but I don't like non melting varieties and I love anything by Toffuti. The mozzarella style slices are good. I tried the country vegetable style cream cheese recently and thought it was delicious.


I can get Swedish Glace from tescos but only in vanilla. My local H&B have four flavours - strawberry, chocolate, raspberry and of course vanilla.
The raspberry is lush - just like raspberry ripple.

Swedish Glace have a new caramel flavour out now.

[PolluxStar]

I haven't tried any cheese itemz yet

All I have had is tofutti in a pasta dish.

I've only recently buying meatless productz , I've only been eating rice n stuff lol!

[Mystic]

I just ordered these from cruelty free shop. Are they any good? I got mozzarella & cheddar. Any suggestions for use (besides nachos coz that is a request from my boyfriend!)

[Roxy]

NOOOOOOOO! I find this stuff tastes like extremely salty gloop! It's awful Banana. :(

Sorry :o

[Mystic]

Crap - we were planning on nachos tomorrow night. I guess I will still try it and will give the verdict :D

[sophia]

Hi banana,

I had some last night, the mozzerella style. I thought it was nice, a bit salty. I just used one packet on top of a pizza. I think its fine if you dont use more than one packet! :) well I liked it anyway!!!

[cedarblue]

i agree with roxy, bleugh!!
sorry banana :o

[FR]

I love it. You can use it for pizza, pasta dishes, and grilled chreese sandwiches. I always mix it with plant milk (I use soy) instead of water when making it.

[veganful]

:-d I just posted a recipe for a "decent" cheese recipe in the recipe section of this forum. I've used it quite a bit and vegans and non-vegans loved it every time I make it. Unless you just want to buy it.
Ileana

[Mystic]

Cmon guys - chreese isn't that bad! It isn't anything to rave about, it just tastes like a nutritional yeast mixed with spices. It added something to my nachos ;)

[veganful]

*shrugg* I wasn't that amazed by it. I liked my home made stuff better. But if you don't mind the taste of it, its cool. I make many variations of the cheese recipe i found in a book many years ago. And I li ke it.


Ileana

[FR]

I think Road's End Organics "chreese" tastes better than the homemade versions I have tried (including my own). Like I said, I always mix it with soymilk as opposed to water, though.

[veganful]

:D You just haven't tried my version of it. :D :D :D
To each their own. Send me some of the stuff (chreese) and I'll try it out.

Ileana