A Vegan Cheese That’s Legit

Hey guys!

When I first heard of Wayfare’s “We Can’t Say It’s Cheese” products through Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe, I was intrigued but highly skeptical. You see — I feel like vegetarians and vegans get an undeserved positive rap for eating wholesome and healthy foods — which is very often the case (why am I complaining?); but truth is, when we veg-heads go out looking for something that’s not straight up from the Earth, we’re often faced with ingredients lists as long and confusing as those on the back of our drain cleaner. In other words, there’s way too much processed crap out there marketed specifically to “transitioning” vegetarians and vegans who still want the comforts of their previous food lifestyle. I get it — sometimes you want a nice cheese spread. But does it have to include so much chemical crap?

No, it doesn’t!  And I have proof to back that up. Welcome, Wayfare Foods’ “We Can’t Say It’s Cheese” line of cheese spreads and dips!*

The following lists the available flavors and their accompanying nutritional info. AND my thoughts on them (whew! this is gonna take a while!):

• Cheddar-Style Spread — 2 tbsp. = 60 calories, 5g fat, 190mg sodium, 1g fiber, 0g sugars, 2g protein; Ingredients: Prepared non-GMO Whole Grain Oatmeal (water, oats), vegetable oil blend (may contain the following: coconut, safflower, and olive oil), sesame, pimentos (pimentos, water, citric acid), nutritional yeast, sea salt, calcium carbonate, onion powder, evaporated cane juice. It tastes like Velveeta cheese and I want to melt it all over some nachos (why haven’t I done this yet?!)
• Hickory-Smoked Cheddar-Style Spread — 2 tbsp. = 60 calories, 5g fat, 190mg sodium, 1g fiber, 0g sugars, 2g protein; Ingredients: Prepared non-GMO Whole Grain Oatmeal (water, oats), vegetable oil blend (may contain the following: coconut, safflower, and olive oil), sesame, pimentos (pimentos, water, citric acid), nutritional yeast, sea salt, natural hickory smoke flavor (water, natural hickory smoke concentrate), calcium carbonate, onion powder, evaporated cane juice. This was my favorite flavor. It tastes like those smokey Hickory Farms cheese spreads I used to eat with crackers and salami. Fortunately, THIS “cheese” won’t load me up with fat and a two days’ worth of sodium.
• Cheddar-Style Sauce & Dip — 2 tbsp. = 50 calories, 4g fat, 180mg sodium, 1g fiber, 0g sugars, 2g protein; Ingredients: Prepared non-GMO Whole Grain Oatmeal (water, oats), vegetable oil blend (may contain the following: coconut, safflower, and olive oil), sesame, pimentos (pimentos, water, citric acid), nutritional yeast, sea salt, calcium carbonate, onion powder, evaporated cane juice. Tastes just like the Cheddar Spread; the difference is it’s more liquidy. I’ve seen a fellow blogger use it as Mac ‘N Cheese sauce with great results. Go for it!
• Mexi Cheddar-Style Sauce & Dip — 2 tbsp. = 50 calories, 4g fat, 180mg sodium, 1g fiber, 0g sugars, 2g protein; Ingredients: Prepared non-GMO Whole Grain Oatmeal (water, oats), vegetable oil blend (may contain the following: coconut, safflower, and olive oil), sesame, pimentos (pimentos, water, citric acid), nutritional yeast, sea salt, calcium carbonate, onion powder, evaporated cane juice, spices. This was my 2nd-fave flavor. It took my mouth straight to the south and I was wishin’ for some jalapenos and a margarita. This would be ideal in latin-inspired dishes, so on top of nachos, mixed with potatoes for an enchilada filling, etc. I ate it with crackers because, despite being latin, I’m bland and boring.

So overall — these cheese spreads and dips are totally legit. Like straight-up gangsta mock-cheese. Have you ever seen such a beautiful list of ingredients for a processed “cheese”? OATMEAL?! I haven’t!

I’d like to note that my skeptical omni boyf said EXACTLY what I would have presumed a skeptical omni would say if I had been Wayfare’s product developer coming up with the brand name for these non-cheese spreads: “Yea, you really CAN’T say it’s cheese!” So snarky!   He thought the cheddar-style cheese tasted like, and had the consistency of, hummus (which in my mind is a pro not a con). You gotta keep in mind that this is a cheese spread, not a shredded or hard cheese that you’re going to sprinkle on top of dishes or use in the typical hard cheese way. These “cheeses” work best as a dip for crackers and veggies and for recipe development. Though, as with most things, if you have an open mind and palate, I’m sure you could use these cheeses as a substitute for whatever your cheesy desires are!

I wanted to try out the cheddar spread in a recipe, so I created the following savory cheddar cornbread muffin recipe and hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!

Cheddar & Rosemary Cornbread Muffins (Vegan recipe)

Ingredients
16 mini-muffin servings

• 1 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour — 660 calories, 3g fat, 24g fiber, 24g protein
• 1/2 cup stone ground cornmeal — 220 calories, 2g fat, 10g fiber, 4g protein
• 1/4 cup Wayfare Cheddar Cheese Spread — 100 calories, 8g fat, 2g fiber, 4g protein
• 1 cup non-dairy milk (I used Trader Joe’s Whole Grain, Unsweetened) — 50 calories, 3g fat, 3g fiber, 0g protein
• 1/4 cup vegan butter — 320 calories, 36g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein
• 1/8th cup sugar — 90 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein
• 1/2 lemon, squeezed — 6.5 calories, 0g fat, 0.1g fiber, 0.1g protein
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary (or your favorite herb mix), chopped  – 4 calories, 0.2g fat, 0.5g fiber, 0.1g protein
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1,450.50 calories, 52.20g fat,39.6g fiber, 32.2g protein
• 1 serving: 90.65 calories, 3.26g fat, 2.48g fiber, 2.01g protein

Directions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees
• Mix all ingredients in a large bowl
• Spray a mini-muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and fill the first 16 cups with the batter
• Check them in 15 minutes; the tops should no longer be wet

You can find “We Can’t Say It’s Cheese” by their store locator or by ordering online here.

<3,

The Cranky One

*FTC Disclaimer: Eventhough I would gladly accept cash, presents, and even compliments, Wayfare only offered me the “cheese” for free. There were no strings attached to this review and you can count on me being 100% of an honest smart-ass as usual when I do product reviews.

Tags: vegan cheese, vegan products, wayfare foods