Daiya Wedges! Finally!

For those of you who might read my blog regularly, I’m quite often singing the praises of Daiya (day-yah) dairy-free cheese.  After over two years of development and experimentation, their initial product line started with vegan cheddar and mozzarella shreds, and later pepperjack shreds.  Even before I went full vegan, we quite often would purchase  these shreds because they really are very tasty!  They are perfect for pizza, italian dishes like eggplant parmesan, tacos, quesadillas, you name it, Daiya could do it!  Derived from the Sanskrit word “dayaa” meaning “loving, kindness, and compassion”,  Daiya cheese enables vegans to continue to practice those exact values but still enjoying the flavor and texture of cheese.

Rumors started rumbling early in the year that Daiya would be coming out with a new product, and that was confirmed when I attended the 2012 Vegetarian Food Fest:  Daiya wedges were on their way!  They made their official debut at the 2012 Natural Products Expo and I couldn’t wait to get my little vegan hands on it!  It comes in three varieties – Cheddar, Jalapeno Havarti and Jack.

And I finally did!  Well, Melissa did.  She found them at the Whole Foods in Union Square.  Although they were sold out of cheddar (BUMMER!) Melissa grabbed both of the others.  The packages were smaller than I anticipated, though not sure what I was expecting there.

I tasted the Havarti first – upon first taste, I was impressed.  The flavor was bold and the jalepeno gave it a great bite.  It wasn’t just jalepeno flavoring – there were jalepeno bits in the cheese.  As far as texture is concerned, well, its not cheese.  BUT!  For a vegan, this is an amazing alternative.  The texture didn’t bother me so much because of that.  I would think that given to a cheese eater, they might scoff.

Next was the Jack, which was my favorite of the two.  It was creamy and flavorful.  I noted that the flavor was not that artificial tasting, to me anyway.

Now, the ultimate test – paired with crackers and vegan pepperoni!  Both passed the test with flying colors.

I don’t know how well they would stand up at room temperature for an extended period of time, say at like a dinner party or on a cheese plate, but overall I was really thrilled.  I hope to soon find and taste the cheddar wedge.  I also need to test it out cooked, like in grilled cheese or maybe a toasted sandwich.  I will post an update once I do so.  (Since I originally drafted this post, I have also had it on a sandwich (Tofurky w/Jack cheese) and it was totally yum.)

Rating:  Four out of five carrots!

The Vegg! (W/French Toast recipe)

The Vegg is the world’s first vegan egg – and a product I’ve been excited about ever since I heard about it!  I knew it was something that we’d want to try, particularly because Melissa loves to cook weekend breakfasts for us.  I purchased a packet at the Vegetarian Food Festival last weekend from the Vegan Bodega, excited to see what was in store for us.

The Vegg is completely cholesterol free, gluten-free, no trans fats, ten calories per serving and 10% of the proceeds from each purchase goes straight to Compassion Over Killing, a great animal advocacy group.  You can use The Vegg in any recipe that calls for eggs.

Yesterday was the day!  We were going to try the Vegg!  Melissa decided to make french toast, as that is one breakfast dish that we both love and have missed (french toast with just soy milk is not the same).

The makings for a delish Saturday morning breakfast

Here is what you will need:

Melissa’s Vegg French Toast

• 2 tsp Vegg*
• 1/2 c. water*
• 1/2 c. soy milk (or other nut milk of your preference)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• Cinnamon to taste (a few shakes)

*as per Vegg’s website, 1 tsp Vegg powder + 1/4 c. water = 2-3 yolks

Inside the packet of Vegg

Combine the Vegg and water in a mixing bowl until smooth (10-15 seconds)

Measure out The Vegg!

It even SMELLED like eggs!

In a separate, shallow bowl, combine soy milk, vanilla, & cinnamon and mix thoroughly.  Add Vegg mixture.

Voila! French toast mixture that looks just like the real thing!

Coat both sides of your favorite kind of bread with the french toast mixture.

Dunk!

It even coats like eggs.

Coat your pan with your favorite vegan butter (we love Earth Balance) on medium-high and place your french toast in the pan to cook.

Cook til golden brown

Cook for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown.

Looking delicious.

Serve with real maple syrup and your favorite vegan sausage.

Blueberry smoothies, french toast & vegan sausage - a yummy Saturday brekkie.

Perfect french toast crust.

This product has revolutionized the vegan breakfast!  Now we can enjoy our french toast the way we did when we were kids, a beautiful french toast crust with NONE of the guilt about supporting the egg industry.  Hats off to you, Vegg, for creating such a fantastic product.