Replacement for cheese?

kelsierose094

So I'm cutting out dairy intake - just for a little bit (for reasons, too long to explain though -.-) And the hardest part is yogurt and cheese. I can't do too much about the yogurt..but is there any way I can fulfill my cheese craving? I love making homemade pizzas and pasta sauces, however they always involve cheese!! I've heard a couple of things such as using tofu, and cashews.... but any other ideas would be appreciated

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

There's vegan yogurt and vegan cheese. I have a bag of almond cheese in my fridge right now. I've made pizza with it before. Also, rice cheese. There's tons of diary-free "dairy" foods. Milk, butter, cheese, mayo, ice cream, yogurt, etc.

kelsierose094

There's vegan yogurt and vegan cheese. I have a bag of almond cheese in my fridge right now. I've made pizza with it before. Also, rice cheese. There's tons of diary-free "dairy" foods. Milk, butter, cheese, mayo, ice cream, yogurt, etc.

Where abouts would I find these things? Just health food stores? I imagine they'd be a bit pricey :ohwell:

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

There's vegan yogurt and vegan cheese. I have a bag of almond cheese in my fridge right now. I've made pizza with it before. Also, rice cheese. There's tons of diary-free "dairy" foods. Milk, butter, cheese, mayo, ice cream, yogurt, etc.

Where abouts would I find these things? Just health food stores? I imagine they'd be a bit pricey :ohwell:

I've gotten them from Whole Foods but you might be able to get it at Wegmans, Harris Teeter, MOM's, Trader Joe's, or other organic/health type grocery stores.

fuzzieme

The cheese one is hard, if you live in the USA you can get what's meant to be a decent cheese called daiya or something...

I sprinkle nutritional yeast on pizzas, and stir it into white sauce for "cheesy topping" on lasagne, it's delicious!! Couldn't live without nutritional yeast!

You can get loads of good yogurts, alpro soya is my favourite, you'll find them in your average supermarket

sailawaykate

Vegan cheese is also nasty. Source: ex-vegan.

If you're wanting to cut back on dairy, just cut back on dairy. Don't try to replace it. There are lots of other flavors out there that cheese can cover up. Just make it a once-a-week thing or something. Or cut it completely out for like a month, then do a test day where you eat dairy, and evaluate how it makes you feel. If you're not lactose intolerant (and aside from the high calorie count in most cheese), what's the reasoning behind cutting it out?

Note: I will eat the crap out of cashew "cheese" sauce on macaroni. The only cheese kind that rivals it is my sister-in-law's mac & cheese and I only get that like once every three years...

kelsierose094

Vegan cheese is also nasty. Source: ex-vegan.

If you're wanting to cut back on dairy, just cut back on dairy. Don't try to replace it. There are lots of other flavors out there that cheese can cover up. Just make it a once-a-week thing or something. Or cut it completely out for like a month, then do a test day where you eat dairy, and evaluate how it makes you feel. If you're not lactose intolerant (and aside from the high calorie count in most cheese), what's the reasoning behind cutting it out?

Note: I will eat the crap out of cashew "cheese" sauce on macaroni. The only cheese kind that rivals it is my sister-in-law's mac & cheese and I only get that like once every three years...

I've heard of "mac and cheese" with cashew cheese sauce, very interested in trying it!

kelsierose094

The cheese one is hard, if you live in the USA you can get what's meant to be a decent cheese called daiya or something...

I sprinkle nutritional yeast on pizzas, and stir it into white sauce for "cheesy topping" on lasagne, it's delicious!! Couldn't live without nutritional yeast!

You can get loads of good yogurts, alpro soya is my favourite, you'll find them in your average supermarket

Ooo I have nutritional yeast but am yet to use it. What exactly do you do with it????

jaz100_nz

If you are just trying to cut down and want a topping for pizza or pasta I would suggest substituting a big pile of grated cheese for a few slices of fresh parmesan or similar. It's stronger so gives you the taste and because its shaved it looks more than it is. And looks fantastic on a pizza.

misskerouac

My favourite non-dairy yogurt is So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt in blueberry flavour. Unfortunately the protein content kinda sucks, but it's nice for a treat every once in a while.

Luna & Larry coconut milk ice cream is really good, their cappuccino one is amazing.

cheese i've kinda lucked out that my stomach has been alright with goat cheese so i just try to stick to that. I've had Daiya (it's actually made here in Canada) and it's O.K. but it certainly doesn't taste like real cheese.

jennifershoo

No!!! Nothing can replace cheese! Nothing!!!!

lizzzylou

No!!! Nothing can replace cheese! Nothing!!!!

'
this...I might die without it :frown:

RoseDarrett

Lactose intolerant here. I use nutritional yeast. It's not too bad.

DragonSkip

I know they have some of the vegan cheeses at Kroger in the nature mart section. I've seen it around at some other chain groceries too.

mflinn84

Here are some ideas:

Hummus (roasted red pepper is my favorite).
Sprinkly parmesan (yes, I know, it's still cheese but it's pretty low calorie and works on rice, popcorn, pasta, crackers, sammiches)
Seasoned avocado (guacamole without the sour cream)
Tofu
Infused olive oil (infused with garlic, rosemary, anchovie, whatever)

Hope this helps!

JRChadwick

Some times I have replaced some of the cheese I put on pizzas with avocado. It is creamy and nutritious, but not too rich in flavor and it doesn't over power the pizza.

justtodayjen333

Yes to hummus--I love love love it--which is a problem too. I just made cucumber crackers with hummus as the spread--so good. Since there isn't a great substitute, perhaps coming up with some other foods that add richness or texture. I'm thinking perhaps using more chopped nuts sparingly as one idea. Still thinking about hummus. . .

ecdce

Vegan cheese is also nasty. Source: ex-vegan.

If you're wanting to cut back on dairy, just cut back on dairy. Don't try to replace it. There are lots of other flavors out there that cheese can cover up. Just make it a once-a-week thing or something. Or cut it completely out for like a month, then do a test day where you eat dairy, and evaluate how it makes you feel. If you're not lactose intolerant (and aside from the high calorie count in most cheese), what's the reasoning behind cutting it out?

Note: I will eat the crap out of cashew "cheese" sauce on macaroni. The only cheese kind that rivals it is my sister-in-law's mac & cheese and I only get that like once every three years...

This. Its noxious. I'd much rather go without. It doesn't melt like normal cheese and the mouth feel is unappealing. If you must go without dairy, just go without diary. Cheese substitute is never going to satisfy cheese cravings - I just found they made it worse.

Ready2Rock206

:huh: There is no replacement for cheese. I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't eat cheese - I've tried a few substitutes - just gross. :sick:

fuzzieme

The mac and cheese mentioned calls for nutritional yeast, and it's INCREDIBLE, all my cheese eating friends adore it too, soooo good, it's an indulgent treat and I make some changes - use a cup of carrots and .75 cups of potato, and no miso, use a little soy sauce instead. The trick is to puree the cashews for AGES, once it came out grainy and it was rank. I put the nuts in the blender first and cover them with boiled water and let them mingle while I cook the carrots. Then let everything blend together while I cook the pasta and broccoli (I cook the pasta - I use macaroni - then add the broccoli for the last three minutes). I should be perfectly smooth by then.

http://veganyumyum.com/2009/01/mac-cheeze-take-2/

Other uses for it, I sprinkle it right on top of things before I cook them, like cannelloni for example. I've heard of a hard cheese style thing where you grind cashews with equal part yeast for a good cheesy topping on pasta or pizza.

For the likes of lasagne, make your basic white sauce (make a roux with melted dairy free "butter" and plain flour, cook until it comes together and add enough of your favourite milk to make it the desired consistency. Then add about a quarter cup of yeast and it is delicious. I usually season more with fresh black pepper and herbs or some concentrated vegetable stock but that's up to you.

It's been tried and tested on meaties, peskies, veggies and vegans and so far these have all gone down a treat

laserturkey

Almond cheese is by far the best of the vegan cheeses, IMO. Nutritional yeast is good, but if you dive in and have a whole bunch of it right off the bat, you may have digestive issues, so I'd ease into that by sprinkling a little on something for starters.

kaylalryan

I agree with pretty much everyone here.... cheese substitutes are kind of a waste of time and money. Not good at all.

BUT...cashew and nutritional yeast based macaroni and faux cheese dishes are actually really good! I finished mine with some sauteed mushrooms and truffle oil. Obviously, it is not the same as regular mac and cheese, so dont expect it to be. BUT, SO GOOD! My dairy farmer grandfather even loves it!

fuzzieme

I agree with pretty much everyone here.... cheese substitutes are kind of a waste of time and money. Not good at all.

BUT...cashew and nutritional yeast based macaroni and faux cheese dishes are actually really good! I finished mine with some sauteed mushrooms and truffle oil. Obviously, it is not the same as regular mac and cheese, so dont expect it to be. BUT, SO GOOD! My dairy farmer grandfather even loves it!

Ding ding ding! Most are an insult to food. Awful. Cream cheese subs are good for cooking, I had it in my cannelloni last night with spinach, onions, garlic, peppers and mushrooms, and they flavoured it beautifully.

But on a bagel?

Eurgh

juliegin

I gave up dairy 2 months ago, and have seen great improvements in my life because of it. Feel free to add me!

My boyfriend has celiac disease, so we are a dairy free, gluten free household for the most part. We make pizza pretty often still, and its delicious! We buy gluten free pizza mix, and use dairy free cheese. I agree with other posters, that expectation is everything.

I really like Daiya cheese, it is awesome! It can be a little hard to find, so stock up when you see it.

www.godairyfree.com is another good resource for dairy free products. They have a ton of product reviews.

I am interested to find a good sub for feta cheese though, if anyone has one, please let me know!

Good luck!

hmuh

Veggie cheese slices aren't toooo bad. I like the avocado and hummus ideas!

freshmenthesis

Daiya is the brand you want to look for. Their non-dairy cheeses are great! They are also made from minimal ingredients. Trader Joe's carries the best non-dairy cream cheese with the best price but there are many brands for cream cheese and sour cream,etc. Non-dairy yogurts are great too and you can find them in all kinds of different forms; from almond milk, coconut milk or soy milk. SO Delicious has a coconut milk greek style yogurt that I love. I have not experimented with cashew/nut cheeses yet although I have had dishes with such a thing at vegetarian restaurants and they were very good. Check out any of the specialty health food stores and you should find some options. If cutting out/back on dairy is something you want to do, it's really not that hard and you should enjoy it. The most precarious situations I have found are when milk is an ingredient in something you wouldn't expect. If you are not eating a ton of processed foods and/or aren't concerned with totally cutting out dairy than this shouldn't be too much of a problem for you. Stay positive though, people tend to be too quick to get combative when you talk about your choices.