When I went vegan, cheese was one of the hardest things to give up. I have a new love for dairy cheese and am honored to have had the opportunity to try Follow Your Heart vegan cheese. Having such amazing options makes it so much easier because they are so comparable! Not only is this cheese vegan but it is gluten free. The ingredients list is not frightening either which is a total plus! I have run into plenty of dairy free alternatives with a massive ingredients list...
Follow Your Heart is a brand that sells strictly dairy-free products. They offer vegan alternatives to cheese, salad dressings, marinades, meat replacements and more. Their mayo is currently in my refrigerator because I love it oh so much! The prices are not too bad either. Everything is under $8.00 which may seem like a lot but if you shop for health food/vegan products often this is nothing new! Their products are also non-gmo which means that they are not genetically modified. They offer soy-free products as well which is convenient to those who feel they consume too much soy.
My first thought about the cheese was that I was afraid; I was afraid it would be just like most other vegan cheese alternatives. I was mistaken! It is probably my second favorite alternative. The mozzarella cheese smelled like cheese which is good; some other cheeses I've tried are yummy but do not smell like cheese! The taste was overall pretty good as well. It was a very mild flavor. The cheese shredded very easily just as normal cheese would. The shredded cheese would be great on pizza, nachos, or lasagna which is what we used this cheese for! We baked the cheese over the lasagna and most of it melted which was a big surprise. Most dairy alternatives do not melt! This is what makes this one of my top cheeses! I can guarantee if someone that consumes dairy cheese ate this cheese on their lasagna, they would not know the difference; not even in looks! It looked like regular lasagna.
I definitely would recommend this cheese to anyone that eats gluten free, vegans, vegetarians, or omnivores that are interested in trying something new! I feel for the price this cheese is 100% worth it. The taste and texture when melted is almost perfect. I couldn't tell the difference in looks when it was melted on my lasagna. The link to the site is at the top of this post!
What You Need:
- 1 rectangular baking dish
- 1 container extra firm tofu
- salt and pepper
- oregano
- container bread crumbs
- olive oil
- 1 onion
- brown sugar
- minced garlic
- 1 box lasagna noodles
- 1 zucchini (or spinach)
- 1 container of mushrooms
- 1 can tomato sauce
- 1 package Follow Your Heart Mozzarella "cheese"
Instructions:
- Preheat your over to 450°.
- Drain the water from the tofu. Use paper towel to pat dry all water from the tofu. You want it as dry as possible. This is an extra step to make your lasagna have the texture of ricotta cheese. Using a potato masher, smash the tofu down until it is the consistency and texture of ricotta cheese! Add 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp oregano and 1 tbsp bread crumbs to the tofu and set aside.
- In a saucepan, 1 tbsp olive oil. Dice and saute the onion on medium heat until soft or transparent. Mix in 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tbsp minced garlic, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cover with lid and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes. Stir and reduce the heat to a simmer; cook for another 15 minutes.
- In a large pot, begin boiling water for the noodles. The consistency of the cooked noodles should be soft but firm.
- Thinly slice the mushrooms and zucchini.
- When the noodles are done cooking, grab the baking dish. Using a spoon, grease the bottom of the pan with the tomato sauce (Sort of like greasing a cake pan with oil). Put one layer of noodles (typically 3-4 noodles depending on pan size).
- Next, your layer of zucchini slices. Spoon some tomato sauce over the layer of zucchini (this should be a light layer of sauce). Then make another layer of noodles on top of the zucchini. With clean hands, crumble the tofu mixture over the second layer of noodles. Make another layer of noodles and on top of that; layer your mushrooms. Spoon the remaining amount of the tomato sauce over the mushrooms. Add the last layer of noodles.
- Using foil, completely cover the pan. Be sure not to let the foil touch the noodles because it will stick. Bake this for approx. 35 minutes.
- While the lasagna is baking, shred 1 package of Follow Your Heart Mozzarella cheese.
- When the 35 minutes is up, sprinkle the cheese over the top of the lasagna. Bake for another 5-10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- When the cheese is done melting, remove from the oven and let sit for approx. 5 minutes to cool. Serve hot!
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