ceryna
June 21st, 2004, 08:44 PM
In my omni days, and in my lacto-ovo vegetarian days, I loved cheese. I adored it. I worshipped it. Its gooey, melty, dairy-opiate filled goodness brightened my days.
Then I went vegan, and tried to forget what cheese tasted like, as I thought no substitute could come close to fulfilling that need for melty-gooey-goodness.
I didn't bother trying any of the cheese subs on the market, as I'd heard mostly negative reviews about all of them, and honestly, I was scared. :sweat:
Since the HFS recently had a sale, however, I bit the bullet, girded my loins, and decided to give VeganRella's cheddar flavor a try. My first experiment? A grilled cheese sandwich.
I took some vegan-friendly bread and slathered it with EB, then put a quarter inch thick slice of the VeganRella between the slices and slapped it in a pan. Ten minutes later, it was done, and I had an exact duplicate of the greasy gooey grilled cheese sandwiches I used to love.
Then came the taste test.
It wasn't great. BUT, it wasn't horrible, either. It would do in a pinch, and in the case of an undefeatable craving, it would serve to keep me sane. It sort of reminded me of the fat-free cheeses that my mom would occasionally try to sneak past my sisters and I.
Next experiment?
Cheezy "Hamburger" Macaroni. (A little recipe I made up. Lame, huh?)
I cooked some plain macaroni 'til it was al dente, drained it, and poured it into a baking dish. Then, I dumped in a can of tomato sauce mixed with drained crushed tomatoes, and two packets of Boca crumbles. I mixed it all together, then sprinkled shreds of the VeganRella over it. (I grated what was left of the block, except for a few chunks.)
I baked it at 350 for twenty minutes, stirred, and served. Very good! (Although it would have been good without the cheeze, too.) It worked better in this recipe than it did in the grilled cheese.
Next experiment?
Macaroni and Cheeze.
It's still in the planning stages, but I plan to melt the remaining chunks of VeganRella with some plain soymilk and cornstarch to make a cheesy sauce for macaroni. I haven't quite figured out the measurements on the soymilk and cornstarch yet, though, I may just have to play with it to get it the right thickness.
Anyway, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being "Sucktacular" and 10 being "Mouthgasmic", I give the VeganRella Cheddar Flavor a 6.
Then I went vegan, and tried to forget what cheese tasted like, as I thought no substitute could come close to fulfilling that need for melty-gooey-goodness.
I didn't bother trying any of the cheese subs on the market, as I'd heard mostly negative reviews about all of them, and honestly, I was scared. :sweat:
Since the HFS recently had a sale, however, I bit the bullet, girded my loins, and decided to give VeganRella's cheddar flavor a try. My first experiment? A grilled cheese sandwich.
I took some vegan-friendly bread and slathered it with EB, then put a quarter inch thick slice of the VeganRella between the slices and slapped it in a pan. Ten minutes later, it was done, and I had an exact duplicate of the greasy gooey grilled cheese sandwiches I used to love.
Then came the taste test.
It wasn't great. BUT, it wasn't horrible, either. It would do in a pinch, and in the case of an undefeatable craving, it would serve to keep me sane. It sort of reminded me of the fat-free cheeses that my mom would occasionally try to sneak past my sisters and I.
Next experiment?
Cheezy "Hamburger" Macaroni. (A little recipe I made up. Lame, huh?)
I cooked some plain macaroni 'til it was al dente, drained it, and poured it into a baking dish. Then, I dumped in a can of tomato sauce mixed with drained crushed tomatoes, and two packets of Boca crumbles. I mixed it all together, then sprinkled shreds of the VeganRella over it. (I grated what was left of the block, except for a few chunks.)
I baked it at 350 for twenty minutes, stirred, and served. Very good! (Although it would have been good without the cheeze, too.) It worked better in this recipe than it did in the grilled cheese.
Next experiment?
Macaroni and Cheeze.
It's still in the planning stages, but I plan to melt the remaining chunks of VeganRella with some plain soymilk and cornstarch to make a cheesy sauce for macaroni. I haven't quite figured out the measurements on the soymilk and cornstarch yet, though, I may just have to play with it to get it the right thickness.
Anyway, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being "Sucktacular" and 10 being "Mouthgasmic", I give the VeganRella Cheddar Flavor a 6.