Review: Vegan Cheeze from Heidi Ho Organics

After much anticipation, I was so excited when my delivery of vegan cheeze arrived from Heidi Ho Organics. Immediately, I got the wheels turning, and the stove burning, with what I wanted to do with these beautiful blocks of plant based cheeses.

What I like most about Heidi Ho Organics is that they use ingredients that I can easily find at the grocery store, most of which I already have on hand at home. The ingredients are all pure and natural, with nothing hard to pronounce or indistinguishable like many other alternative cheeses that are on the market. As an added bonus, since they are hazelnut based (with the exception of the soy feta), they are a great option for a higher protein cheese substitute.

Looking at the Heidi Ho Organics website, you can tell how passionate the two ladies who created the company are about their product. Quality ingredients and a healthy, but delicious product are important to Heidi K. Lovig and Lyssa M. Story and they are sure to let that show. The website offers not only a comprehensive ingredient list, and nutrition facts, but also highlights health benefits of the ingredients. There is a link to sample recipes for each of the four flavors of cheeze that they make, for inspiration.

I rounded up a few of my friends for dinner and cheeze tasting so that there was variety of palettes and opinions. (Oddly enough, the vegan invited had to bail at the last minute.) With the omnivores on hand with me for the tasting, the scrutiny was probably a little high, but challenge to prove that vegan cheeze can be delicious was thrilling.

Vegan Cheese Plate

To do the tasting, I set up a cheeze plate to be enjoyed in its pure form right out of the package, along side slices of sourdough bread. Then, I also created simple dishes incorporating the cheezes.

The first cheeze we tried was the Monterey Jack. This was the least favorite of the bunch when tasted on its own. For me, the flavor of lemon and dijon was a bit too prominent (I do not like the taste of mustard!).  When sampled on a slice of bread, we all thought the taste was much more balanced and tasted worlds different.  Once melted over the bread in the toaster oven, the texture took that of a spread, and flavor was even better (although again still a little too mustardy for me.) The omni group all agreed that the seasonings were nice, but they wouldn't compare the flavor to Jack.

Roasted Beet Salad with Feta Crumbles

Next up was Feta Crumbles. Seeing as I don't eat much soy, I just took the tiniest nibble of it, but my boyfriend proceeded to eat piece after piece. He said that the flavor gets enhanced in your mouth the more of it you eat.  An interesting note from him was that it tasted a little like olives, even though there are no olives in it. Since our initial tasting, he has been sprinkling the feta crumbles over all his salads. For that evening, I prepared a simple salad of "feta" and roasted beets over red leaf lettuce, drizzled with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. I could also see the feta going nicely in a stuffed pasta or lasagna.  The gang would like to see an increase in the saltiness of the feta crumbles.

For our main course, I prepared mac n cheeze with the Smoked Gouda. The gouda had a nice flavor, mild smokiness and made for a good mac n cheeze. I still tasted the dijon a little when it was on it's own, but it wasn't anywhere near as prominent so I didn't mind. For my next round of mac n cheeze, I think I'll reach vegan cheeze perfection by combining the jack and the gouda. My bechamel was a mix of olive oil, almond milk, spices and garbanzo flour, which added a nice complimentary nuttiness to the gouda.

Last on the tasting board was the Chipotle Cheddar. This one was the universal favorite. Everyone appreciated the smokey, spiciness of the cheddar style cheese, thought it tasted great on bread, and even better warmed. I made a simple broccoli casserole with a bechamel similar to what I used for the mac n cheeze, tossed with shredded Chipotle Cheddar.  This cheezy, saucy, spicy casserole received rave reviews from the group.

Enchilada Pie with Chipotle Cheddar

While I have still not managed to convince the omnivores to give up the dairy, they do have an increased willingness to eat my vegan cheeze creations.  I have been on a never ending search to find a good table cheese, and although Heidi Ho Organics vegan cheezes unfortunately did not satisfy this for me, their products do make for great heated cheese dishes.  I've already used it for enchiladas and can't wait to sprinkle it over pizzas, and try the stuffed chili recipe on the website.

Overall, in relation to all vegan cheezes, not just Heidi Ho, my cheese expert friend feels they would all fare better if they were given their own names.  I understand the marketing value of calling a vegan cheeze by a familiar name, but would find it so cool to one day have our non-dairy products respected by all for their own uniqueness. So come on vegan community, let's start thinking up some new names for all the awesome cheese products getting put out on the market!