Follow your heart Vegan Cheez Review

I was so excited to try the Follow your heart Monterey Jack non dairy cheese alternative. I heard about it in one of my cooking classes but never thought about it enough to try it until PurpleZoe fellow Shae member suggested it. I have tried other non-dairy cheeses made with rice and soymilk but wasn't that happy with it. That was a while back since I tried, so I hope that there would be some new better alternative.

Ok so what did I think?

Texture: When I first pick up the cheez in the store. I was like oh boy it's feels so rubbery and gel like which makes sense because made with agar agar a sea veggie. (I use it instead of gelatin). So the texture is a little strange! But like I told myself this product is cheez not cheese.

Taste: It taste good. I ate a piece straight out the package and gave some to my sis and we both agree it taste good. But when I cooked it, now I can really see why PurpleZoe took the time to recommended it. It was the best alternative cheez I have tasted. It took longer to melt than regular cheese, but it did melt all the way through and I diced them up pretty large. I don't think this cheese can shred but I haven't tried.

For this mac in cheese I use brown rice pasta, plain unsweetened soymilk mix with sea salt, nutritional yeast flakes for color and added flavor. (I have been using it as a cheese substitute on pop corn and it very good so I said hey it couldn't hurt!) a touch of arrowroot starch to thicken it a bit, and last but not least some earth balance butter on top. Sorry I didn't measure anything or I would have include a recipe but just know that I added the brown rice pasta and cheez to baking dish first then I mixed and poured my other ingredients on top about half way full

I added this pic so you can kind of see the texture!

Tags: Brooklyn, Ceramics, Cheez, Culinary, Follow, Food, Heart, your

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Comment by Shevon Gant on September 14, 2009 at 3:38pm: ok , Now I'm curious what cheez do you recommend! I would like to test others as well.

Comment by PurpleZoe on September 14, 2009 at 6:35pm: @Shevon Yay! Thankyou for sharing this.Told you it was good.There are others out there too like Daiya, and Cheezly that also taste like Cheese. I've had to buy those online from Veganstore.com Haven't seen them at WholePaycheck yet. You can shred Follow your Heart, and Cheezly. Daiya currently comes pre-shredded.
So how did the Mac and Cheez taste to you on the whole? I've mad Baked Mac and cheez with another cheez. Still have plans to try it with a mixture of Follow your heart and a few others this Fall. Love Fall season-type selections. It's all about the soups and casseroles this year.

@YoliOuiya
Have you tried FYH's Monterey Jack flavor? Their cheddar is nasty imho, and the Mozzarella is bland, but the Monterey Jack I love. Agreed that Vegenaise is the business. What cheez (ez) do you prefer? Daiya Mozzarella is decent [haven't tried the cheddar yet], and Cheezly works also. Tried Sheese before, and the first reaction was to spit it out. The Galaxy foods cheezes are type-bland to me.
At home I mix equal parts Tahini, Lemon Juice, 1/2 part salt and a dash of garlic and onion powder in a sauce base (Vegan milk and thickener, or a flour and water type gravy). Tastes like a sharp cheddar.

One I have to try again is Dr.Cow's. I think I had a bad batch the first time I tried it. I'm hoping to catch them when they set up a booth somewhere so I can be sure I know I'm trying a fresh piece. Than I'll know for sure if I'm hyped or not.

Comment by Shevon Gant on September 14, 2009 at 11:09pm: Hey PurpleZoe,

My mac and cheese tasted good, I liked it lot. Of course it was different than my mom's but It was a good substitute. Thanks again. I have been wondering about that Dr. Cow's products. They are pretty pricey so I have not ordered. It would make a extra special treat they have a Tree Nut Cheese Box 5 aged + 1 cream cheese for $75/box Shipping Included - Next day Air. I'm curious what it would taste like I love cashews so it must be good. It might be a cool thing to try to make too!

Comment by TastyKeish on September 16, 2009 at 9:14pm: i'm not vegan, but i'm opened minded about this meal....lol

Comment by PurpleZoe on September 18, 2009 at 2:12am: @Shevon
Dr. Cow's is pricey, and the portions are very small. Not enough to do much on the culinary experimentation tip. You'll need at least 5 or 6 orders to make a pan of mac and cheez, and in this case it doesn't melt. Cashew Cheez is more creamy than melty. You can try veganstore's stock if you want to sample it.
I have to try it again. The one I tried was shiveringly nasty, but I think it's because I may have needed to get expedited shipping [they say this particular cheez spoils really fast].
I've made a non-fermented version with the Cheez Sauce variation I posted using soaked & blended cashews as the base. There are raw versions on the web too. This one might be interesting.
Cashews can be fermented as well, Dr.Cow style. Habib of Living tree has some directions here.

@TastyKeish
I can dig it.
Alot of recipes veganize dishes that are already out there.
There's not a huge difference in taste, if any [depending on the meal].

Comment by Shevon Gant on September 19, 2009 at 1:35am: wow, thanks PurpleZoe for posting those links. I won't be able to splurge right now for the Dr Cow but that living tree community foods online store has some great products. I never heard of Yacon Syrup before so thats something new I would like to try. I love my agave syrup but it always good to try something new.

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