I didn't even try vegan commercial cheese the first two years I was vegan. Then I finally tried Daiya shreds (tried chedder ones, mozzarella, and pepper jack), Daiya cream cheese, and Daiya slices. I was amazed at how good they were! and they melt!
For the most part though, I don't eat commercial vegan cheese because it is expensive, hard for me to find, and really doesn't add a lot of nutritional value. I was never a fan of cheese, and dairy used to make me really sick so I avoided it for years before even becoming vegan so keep in mind this is where I am coming from. However, my omnivore husband loves daiya as well (but he likes Tofutti cream cheese better than Daiya). I have done the following for "cheese" like substances:
parmesan: I use my high speed blender (a coffee grinder works too) to grind blanched almonds or sunflower seeds with nutritional yeast flakes and spices like garlic powder or marjoram to make a texture much like parmesan, though the taste is more nutty.
Sauce (to pour over baked potatoes, use for mac and cheese etc): I peal and steam a large sweet potato (russet potato works too but I like the slight sweetness that a sweet potato adds), then add it to my blender with 1/2 cup nutritional yeast, 1/4 cup or more almond milk, spices like turmeric, garlic powder, marjoram, nutmeg, salt and pepper etc. If I want it extra thick and creamy I add a block of extra firm silken tofu as well and a little more almond milk, then blend all. Or I add a little bit of starch (cornstarch, potato starch etc) instead of tofu.
Slices: Don't have the recipe at the moment but I use blanched almonds or cashews, agar flakes, almond milk, nutritional yeast etc to make sliceable nut based cheese. It tastes nothing like dairy cheese but is lovely in its own way and provides a nice bite when added to sandwiches, or alone with homemade crackers or fruit/veggie tray.
In the end, only kindness matters. - Jewel
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