Vegan Cheeses

Earth Island makes the only good vegan cheese I've ever had, but I don't get to the Health Tree often to buy it, and it's not always in stock. (Though I just realized it's only 1 bus ride away, not 2. Hm!) It's really good, though, especially the cheddar flavour (or the spicier Nacho), and you can get it to melt a bit. When I have some in the house, I eat cheese cheese cheese sandwiches.



Cheese is made with rennet, so unless the rennet is artificially or plant produced (the real thing comes from calf stomach lining) it's not even vegetarian, let alone vegan. I've been buying a vegetarian cheese lately, for Fernando, who's lactose intolerant. And it's lower in fat, of course, than the real thing. Make sure to buy the block variety (pictured on the right) of cheddar; I think I may have tried one of these slices or sprinkles before, and they sucked. But the block cheese tastes like the very low fat mozzarella I used to buy. It's okay on it's own, but perfect with bread or salad or whatever. Probably pizza.

I have a confession to make, though... that I've been eating it. I first tasted it just to make sure it wasn't disgusting. But then I kept sneaking pieces. Ahhhh! In the few times I've vegan-cheated over the years, my response is to shrug it off, but to find a solution to prevent it happening again. That's a whole other post I guess. Anyway, I've decided the solution is to start making cheese at home, and find a recipe I love.

One of the advantages to making cheese at home is to know what's gone into it. Fake vegan foods are often lower in fat, and might contain protein, but they're extremely processed; at least with a recipe I know where the fat is coming from, how much salt there is, etc.

I bought Stepaniak's Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook a couple months ago, and now that I've got all the ingredients I need... let the experimenting begin. Well, not all at once. My fridge is already packed with food that needs to be eaten. (Right now I'm cash poor, but grocery rich. Can I buy things by bartering?) See the next post for the first recipe.