Non-Dairy Cheese and Egg Alternatives
There are many well documented, well-researched benefits for going dairy free, including: a reduction in the risk of hormone-related cancers including ovarian, breast, and prostate cancer as well as colon cancer; a reduction in chronic illnesses and immune related diseases; a reduction in heart disease; fewer documented digestive problems and symptoms; a reduction in exposure to antibiotics and antibiotic-resistance and hormones; less cholesterol and saturated fat; freedom from common dairy allergens (dairy casein, lactose, soy, gluten) that cause health concerns; a reduction in the risk of osteoporosis, bone fractures and weaker bones (caused by dairy consumption); a significantly lower overall environmental footprint; and most importantly — going dairy-free means less cruelty and suffering for dairy cows and their offspring.
There are also many well-documented benefits for going egg free, including: a reduction in cholesterol (eggs are the single largest source of cholesterol) and saturated fat; a significant decrease in artery clogging and carotid artery plaque buildup; a notable decrease in the risk of coronary heart disease; less overall calorie consumption; a significantly lower overall environmental footprint; and most importantly — going egg-free means less cruelty and suffering for egg-laying hens.
These dairy-free cheese and egg alternatives are available at local health food stores, larger grocery stores and online.
Dairy-Free Plant-Based Cheese Substitutes
Here are some dairy-free, plant-based cheese substitutes that have the same or similar texture, stretch and flavor of cheese, and are also great for cooking. These products don’t have the cholesterol, saturated fat, and allergens that cheese has, and they are humane!
CHAO Creamery by Field Roast
Field Roast’s Chao Creamery makes non-dairy coconut cheeses that shred and melt like cheese. Products include Creamy Original Slices, Tomato Cayenne Slices, and Coconut Herb Slices. CHAO products are available at most Whole Foods Markets, Sprouts, Costco, major grocers and online.
Daiya Foods
Available in slices, wedges, cream, and shredded cheese and cheese pizza. Products are soy free, gluten free, have no trans fat, no cholesterol, free of artificial ingredients and preservatives, free of all animal products, and are free of hormones and antibiotics.
Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet Cheese
Makes shredded and regular cheese options. All are vegan, natural, gluten free, Kosher, casein free, non GMO, are made with expeller-pressed canola oil and plant-based sources, and some products may contain soy.
Go Veggie Cheese Alternatives & Go Veggie Vegan Parmesan Cheese
Available in cream cheese, shredded, block, or cheese toppings. The Go Veggie products are plant-based, lactose free, dairy free, soy free and have 50 percent less calories and fat than animal dairy cheese has. They have no cholesterol and are free of saturated fat. The protein is equal to dairy cheese, and the calcium level is higher than dairy cheese. These products have the texture of cheese, and melt and stretch just like cheese. The vegan parmesan cheese is a staple to stock in every kitchen!
Kite Hill
Kite Hill makes artisan cheese, cream cheese, pastas and yogurts. All products are crafted honoring traditional cheese making techniques using nut milk from the highest-quality, non-GMO almonds sourced in California. Each batch of nut milk is custom blended, allowing for seasonal fluctuations in the flavors and textures of the nuts. The nut milk is made fresh daily and pasteurized each morning so that it’s fresh every day creating proprietary cultures and enzymes from the ground up. Each of the cheese products is made following traditional craftsmanship with nut milk, cultures, enzymes, salt, and fermentation. Using this time-honored process, they are making a line of revolutionary plant-based products in the tradition of old cheese making.
MIYOKO’S KITCHEN
These are some of the best gourmet vegan non-dairy cheeses you will ever taste! All products were created by Miyoko Schinner, who embarked on a mission to recreate the range of flavors and textures she had once enjoyed from dairy cheeses before becoming vegan. Artisan products range in textures from delicate and creamy to pungent and hard, and a range of flavors including: Classic Double Cream Chive, Double Cream Sun Dried Tomato Garlic, High Sierra Rustic Alpine, Fresh Loire Valley in a Fig Leaf, Double Cream Garlic Herb, Mt. Vesuvius Black Ash, Country Style Herbes de Provence, French Style Winter Truffle, Aged English Sharp and Aged English Smoked Farmhouse. All products are free of dairy, gluten, egg and are non-GMO. All are made from organic ingredients.
Parma! Vegan Parmesan
Parma! was born around 2000 “while trying to figure out how to deal with severe allergies and eating a mostly raw diet.” The parmesan cheeses are 100% plant-based, vegan, dairy-free, soy-free, gluten-free, GMO-free, Kosher, include B12, trace minerals and omega 3s. The ingredient base is: nutritional yeast, raw organic sunflower seeds, raw walnuts, raw organic pumpkin seeds, raw organic hemp seeds, and Himalayan crystal salt. Flavors include: Original, Chipotle Cayenne, Garlicky Green and Better Than Bacon. The product is available in most Whole Food Markets, health food and co-op stores, natural food stores and Safeway. Also online!
Punk Rawk Labs
Punk Rawk Labs is a woman-owned, Minnesota-based company formed in 2010, that grew out of one woman’s journey to regain her health after a serious illness. Their artisanal, gourmet, diary-free, nut-milk cheeses are handmade in small batches using a process similar to traditional dairy fermentation. Cheeses are crafted by fermenting nut milks resulting in a smooth texture and authentic umami flavor. Unlike most alternative cheese products on the market, PRL cheese is made using simple and natural organic ingredients free of dairy, gluten and soy. The cheese base contains only four components: nuts, water, culture, and salt. The result is a great tasting, healthy alternative to dairy cheese. Available flavors include Cashew Original, Cashew Herb, Cashew Smoked, Nacho and Cashew of the Woods.
Ste Martaen
Ste Martaen vegan cheeses are gluten-free, soy-free and nut-free. Cheeses are made with purified water, agar, organic sunflower seeds, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, tahini, sea salt, spices, and citric acid as a base. Products are available to purchase online only and include Colby Cheddar, Muenster, Pepper Jack, Smoked Gouda and Olive.
Three Girls Vegan Creamery
Three Girls Vegan Creamery makes handcrafted, artisanal, small batch, 100% vegan plant-based cheeses made from nuts. Cheeses are fermented and aged naturally using the finest organic and sustainable ingredients. Currently they have shops in Connecticut and New York, and are opening more stores in Boston and Nashville. All cheeses and vegan products can be ordered online. Flavors include Pistachio, Cranberry, Fresh Thyme, Pumpkin Seed aged cheese wheels and fresh Mozzarella “di Bufala.”
Tofutti
Tofutti makes a wide variety of soy-based cheeses, including slices, cream, ricotta-style, and shredded. All are vegan, dairy free, Kosher, gluten free, lactose free, cholesterol free, and are non-GMO.
Tofu
Tofu is a great replacement when you need cottage and ricotta cheeses, just crumble and season to replace dairy cheese.
Treeline Treenut Cheese
Treeline Treenut Cheeses are 100% dairy free, lactose-free, soy-free, gluten-free, probiotic, are certified Kosher, and made from cashew nuts. They are artisan-made in the Hudson Valley region of upstate New York. They are made from just four ingredients including cashew nuts, acidophilus culture, salt and pepper. Flavors include Aged artisanal cashew nut cheeses including Classic, Aged Nut Cheese, Cracked Pepper Aged Nut Cheese and soft French-styled nut cheese including Scallion, Chipotle-Serrano Pepper, Green Peppercorn and Herb-Garlic. Cheeses are available in over 3,000 stores to health food stores and co-ops, giant supermarkets including Whole Foods, Wegmans, Kroger, Ralph’s, Fry’s, Meijer, Fred Meyer, Dillons, King Soopers and QFC, or call them at 855-NO-DAIRY, or 855.663.2479.
Violife
Violife cheese products are 100% vegan, free of preservatives, GMO’s, gluten, nuts and soy. Cheeses come in cream, slices or block styles. Flavors come in Blue Cheese, Cheddar, Gorgonzola, Herbs, Hot Peppers, Mediterranean style, Mozzarella, Original and Parmesan.
Youssef Fakhouri opened the first dairy-free, vegan cheese shop in Los Angeles. Since opening in 2011, he has been refining and perfecting his cheeses. All cheeses are nut and seed based using cashews, macadamias, pine nuts, pistachios, almonds, Brazil nuts, walnuts, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and poppy seeds. With flavors like “Veganzola,” “Macon Brie,” and “Vromage Blanc,” you may want to give this shop a try! There is a minimum order of 32 ounces. You can call his shop to order at (323) 745-0157.
Plant-Based Egg Replacements and Substitutes
Watch the Egg-Replacement Show!
When baking or cooking and need to replace eggs, you can use applesauce, mashed banana, silken tofu, vegan yogurt, ground flax seeds or chia seeds, or an oil/water/baking powder mixture. For a packaged product to replace eggs, the following options work best in baked goods such as cookies or cakes, but can also be used in most recipes calling for eggs.
Aquafaba or Chickpea Water
Aquafaba is the water from canned chickpeas or garbanzo beans. Drain the water from one can of beans. It’s essentially canned bean juice, it joins two Latin words: aqua for water, faba for bean. Aquafaba is great for whipping when recipes call for whipped egg whites, it’s also easy to emulsify and works as an excellent binder. It can be used for making pancakes, cakes, cookies and for general baking. You can even use it to replace egg whites in cocktails like a Ramos Gin Fizz. Using 3 Tbsp. water from a can of unsalted chickpeas will replace one egg.
Beyond Eggs
Made by Hampton Creek Foods, Beyond Eggs is a commercial product to be used in baking large batches of products. In addition to being vegan, it’s also gluten-free and cholesterol free.
Bob’s Red Mill 100% Vegetarian Egg Replacer
Bob’s Red Mill Vegetarian Egg Replacer is a great substitute for whole eggs when making cakes, waffles and pancakes that need a leavening agent to make them light and fluffy. For general baking, Bob’s Egg Replacer acts as a binder and adds moisture for making cookies, muffins and brownies. It’s made from wheat and soy, and ideal for people who are vegan, allergic to eggs or on a reduced-cholesterol diet. It is 100% vegan and contains no animal products and stays fresh for an extended period of time when stored in a cool, dry place. All of Bob’s Red Mill products are certified kosher pareve or kosher dairy.
Ener-G Egg Replacer
Used strictly for baking. Made from potato and tapioca starch. 10 calories per serving. Free of gluten, wheat, casein, dairy, animal protein, yeast, egg, soy, nuts and has low/no sodium. Also there’s no cholesterol, no fat, and no trans fat. The product mimics what eggs do in baking.
Flaxseed Egg Replacer
To make a flax egg, mix one tablespoon ground flaxseed meal or flax seeds with three tablespoons of water. Mix together, and let sit in your fridge for 15 minutes to set up and thicken. You could leave it up to 30 minutes if you want. It’s that easy. The flax egg is also commonly used in vegan and allergy baking. This ratio will replace one egg. You can also grind the flax seeds into a fine powder using a coffee or spice grinder if you do not have flaxseed meal, and then simply whisk in the water until it becomes gelatinous.
Follow Your Heart VeganEgg Replacer
This Veg Egg Replacer is 100 percent USDA Certified organic, cold-pressed and unheated to maximize inherent nutritional properties, raw, vegan, gluten free, non-GMO, paleo (grain free), kosher and soy free. It is made from whole algal flour, whole algal protein, nutritional yeast and black salt. To use as an egg replacer, whisk or blend with ice-cold water in any recipe. Great for making scrambled eggs, an omelet, quiche, cookies, cakes and more.
The Neat Egg
Made from chia seeds and garbanzo beans, an all-natural egg replacement that is easy-to-mix. 100% vegan, soy free, gluten free, non-GMO. Just add water and Neat Egg together. Used mainly for baking.
The Vegg
A 100% plant-based egg yolk replacement. It uses only natural ingredients, and has the texture and taste of egg yolks. It is fat free, cholesterol free, soy free, GMO free, high in vitamin B-12, vitamin A, and is Kosher. To be used for egg-based recipes.
Tofu
Tofu is great to use when you have a recipe that calls for a lot of eggs, like frittatas, egg salad or quiches. It creates an egg-like texture and one egg is the equivalent to puréeing 1/4 cup soft tofu.
Checkout these 10 delicious egg recipes WITHOUT the eggs!
Credits: Photo by Pixabay, www.pixabay.com
