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Vegan Cheese...REALLY?
Started
by Amy Willard
on February 1, 2010
I wanted to ask/post about vegan cheese. I am a cheese lover (addict) from way back. I had no problem ditching the milk and cream products but butter and cheese seem to be a bit more difficult. I love the Earth Balance, but when I went to find vegan cheese, the selection was limited. And because I am an avid label-reader I noted on this particular brand (can't remember if for reference here though) had casein in it. This is a milk protein that has been implicated by T. Colin Campbell (The China Study) as a carcinogenic! As a 2x cancer survivor...I would rather not go there again!! So is there any true vegan cheese out there??? And what brand is it? And does it taste good?
Dr. Cow cheese is really vegan.
http://www.dr-cow.com/products/
I recently tried the cream cheese as well as the cashew nut cheese and it was delicious. I don't really care that much about cheese though so I don't know how often I'll go out of my way to get it.
Hey Everyone. What is Casein????
Here is a definition:
Casein is a protein that is found in milk and used independently in many foods as a binding agent. Technically, it is part of a group called phosphoproteins, collections of proteins bound to something containing phosphoric acid. Casein may also be called caseinogen, particularly in European foods.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-casein.htm
casein is the name of the protein found in dairy. definitely not vegan
Catgirl, where did you find that Dr. Cow cheese?
Really! Is it only in chesse, or can it be in hemp milk? Soy Yogert? Why would they do that?
I've heard rave reviews about Daiya vegan cheese. I'm a four day Vegan but because I was so excited, I looked up where to buy Daiya on their website - http://www.daiyafoods.com/where.html
They have an Italian blend and a cheddar blend. I bought the cheddar, but later regretted it because the local gluten free market I bought from says they are currently only selling 5lb bags, though Daiya should start producing smaller sizes this spring or summer. Thought you might want to check out their website and give it a try. There is a pizza chain that uses Daiya on one of their pizzas so maybe you could locate somewhere like this and give it a try before buying. The grocer (non-vegan) I bought from said she eats cheese and thought the Daiya Italian blend was very good and melts well. Let me know what you decide! Below is a list of ingredients (no casein) but you can also find out much more on the website:
Purified water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and/or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegetable glycerin, natural flavors (derived from plants), xanthan gum, sunflower lecithin, vegan enzymes (no animal rennet or animal enzymes), vegan bacterial cultures, citric acid (for flavor), annatto.
Isn't follow your heart cheese vegan? no casein?
Yes, Follow your Heart is vegan, no casein.
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