Chic Vegan

Vegan and Fabulous!

Follow Your Heart Review, Recipe and Giveaway

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If you haven’t been vegan for very long, you may not know about the early days of vegan “dairy” products. I went vegan in 2001, when there was one type of mayo readily available, and it tasted kind of like rancid oil. There were one or two types of vegan cheeses on the market, and they were similar to waxy chalk. My only guess as to how the companies stayed in business is that vegans were so eager for vegan versions of their favorite dairy products that they were in denial over what they really tasted like. 

 

VegenaiseI’m not really sure when I first discovered Follow Your Heart’s Vegenaise, but it was was a life changer. Rich and creamy, it tastes like what I remember mayonnaise to taste like. I began using it everywhere I could, and I found myself coming up with excuses to make sandwiches and potato salad, just so I could have more of it. A few years later, I heard that Follow Your Heart had begun making Vegan Gourmet Cheese. I heard that it melted and stretched and could be used on pizza. I salivated at the idea of a cheese pizza. I had friends in California who had tried it and told me it was amazing, but distribution hadn’t quite reached the East Coast yet. I remember the day I finally found Vegan Gourmet Cheese. I was in Watkins Glen, NY, visiting Farm Sanctuary, and I stopped at the local health food store to see if there were any snacks I could buy for the ride home. There in the refrigerator case was block after block of Vegan Gourmet. Fortunately I had a cooler bag in the car so I bought as much as the bag would hold. Soon after, I was able to get Vegan Gourmet Cheese at my local Whole Foods. Pizza Night became a regular occurrence and I started looking for foods to melt cheese over.

 

Vegan Gourmet ShredsVegan Gourmet Cheese is now available in shreds, making Pizza Night and Taco Tuesday even easier. They melt, stretch and they taste like cheese. Win win win! Vegan Gourmet Shreds are available in Mozzarella, Cheddar and Fiesta Blend. I like that they melt without getting slimy or oily, unlike some other vegan cheeses on the market.

 

 

Vegan Gourmet Sour CreamShortly after I discovered Vegan Gourmet cheese, I noticed that they were making both cream cheese and sour cream, which meant that vegans had now successfully conquered the dairy world. We could now have bagels and cream cheese on Sunday mornings. We could have a baked potato with the works. We could make cheesecakes and dips for parties. A new era of vegan food was upon us. Going vegan no longer meant giving up cheese, mayo or sour cream – it just meant switching to a more compassionate brand.

 

Speaking of dips for parties, Follow Your Heart was kind enough to share this recipe for Spinach Artichoke Dip with us. This is sure to be a hit with guests at holiday parties this month. You may want to make a double batch, because it will disappear quickly! 

 

DipVegan Spinach Artichoke Dip

Ingredients

  • ½ white onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • ½ cup Vegan Gourmet® Cream Cheese
  • ½ cup Vegan Gourmet® Sour Cream
  • ¾ cup Vegan Gourmet® Shreds- Mozzarella
  • 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
  • 2 cups frozen spinach, thawed and drained
  • Bread crumbs or Panko

Preparation

Chop onion and garlic and sauté in olive oil on low heat until translucent. In a medium sized bowl, mix the onions and garlic with the cream cheese, sour cream, mozzarella shreds, chopped artichoke hearts, and spinach.  Add freshly cracked pepper and a pinch of salt. Pour into oven safe dish and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until bubbling and browned on top.

 

FYH_Vegan Cheesecake KitVegan Gourmet is also being kind enough to give a cheesecake making kit to one lucky Chic Vegan reader! The kit includes:

  • Follow Your Heart® Vegan Gourmet® Cream Cheese
  • Follow Your Heart® Vegan Gourmet® Sour Cream
  • Vanilla Extract
  • Mini Heart-shaped Springform Pan
  • Cheesecake Filling Bag: Sugar + Cornstarch (exact measure)
  • Margarine (non-hydrogenated & non-dairy)
  • Gluten-Free Crust Mix: Vegan & Gluten-Free Crumbs + Sugar (exact measure)
  • Spatula

Follow the instructions below to enter. U.S. residents only, please. Contest ends at midnight EST on Monday, December 16th. Good luck!

 

 

Recipe and photos courtesy of Follow Your Heart

About Dianne

Dianne Wenz is the Editor-In-Chief for Chic Vegan. She is a Holistic Health Counselor, Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Plant-Based Nutrition Specialist. Dianne coaches people from across the country to help them improve their health and wellbeing, and she helps people make the dietary and lifestyle changes needed to go vegan. Dianne lives in New Jersey, where she runs the busy MeetUp group Montclair Vegans. Through the group she hosts monthly potlucks, runs charity bake sales and organizers guest speaker events. An avid cook and baker, Dianne also teaches cooking classes to local clients. In addition to food and nutrition, Dianne loves crafts and cats. To learn more, visit Dianne’s website and blog at Dianne's Vegan Kitchen

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Natalie says

    I would make a cheesecake for my family because we LOVE cheesecake and haven’t had one since going vegan!

  7. Mae says

    Of course I would make a heart shaped cheesecake for my boyfriend 🙂 If my best friends lived closer, I’d make one for them too!

  9. Bridget C says

    I would make one for my group friends to show them how delicious vegan foods are; love to making vegan foods for non-vegans!

  10. Lisa says

    My sweet Pickle, who turns 3 after Christmas. He was born with a VERY rare error of metabolism which severely limits food choices. He is vegan, so Momma is vegan too…for life! xxxooo

  16. Amie says

    I would make it for my love – the reason we eat vegan is that it took thirty years to find each other, and we want to be around as long as possible so we don’t miss another second!

  28. Ivonne Quiroz says

    I would make it for my almost veggie partner who supports me and takes me to vegan restaurants and bakeries as a way to support me 🙂

  29. Beth says

    I would make the vegan cheesecake for my family. I love making delicious vegan goodies for them to show them that veganism can be pretty darn tasty and that I want for nothing as a vegan!

  33. Anitra W says

    I would love to make this for my son. He loves cheesecake and I would like for him to see you can be vegan and still eat the things you love.

  38. Amanda T. says

    I would make it for my family who are always skeptical when it comes to the tastiness of vegan food.

  45. Veronique Daoust says

    I would make a heart shaped cheesecake for my newly-turned vegan boyfriend for his birthday :).

  46. Fran Bernitz says

    I would love to share it with my partner, Steve Seltzer along with my son, Nate and his wife, Jenny.

  47. Shauna Donatell says

    I would make this for my 81 year old vegan Dad. He was into healthy eating, before healthy eating was cool or even heard of. Since the early 60’s !!

  50. Jerri says

    I would make a heart-shaped vegan cheesecake for ME! Because I love myself and I love cheesecake. Aaaand I suppose I’d be willing to share it with my terrific daughter and partner.