Delicious vegan cheese sandwiches

This really is a sign that things are changing when a big supermarket chain brings out their own vegan cheese range. They launched it on 28 September in selected stores and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to try their cheddar-style and Greek-style variety and come up with a nice sandwich recipe. One with rocket and turmeric fennel topping and another sweet and savoury one with rocket, apple and red pepper.

If you don't have a Sainsbury's in your area just can use any vegan cheese for these sandwiches. They are quick and easy to make and the toppings perfectly compliment each other.

I have to say that I was never the biggest cheese lover, I mostly preferred only the mildest of varieties, like mild cheddar, edam, mozzarella and feta and always stayed away from the more pungent ones, especially parmesan cheese. So you wouldn't call me a cheese connoisseur but I loved cheese on sandwiches and melted on pizza (like the on my vegan aubergine pizza with cashew cheese).

However, I am super grateful that now even the big supermarket chains see the need to offer people alternatives.

The Sainsbury's free from cheeses are coconut and soy based (for those of you who don't like coconut don't worry, you don't get a coconut taste at all). They have a much higher protein content than Violife cheese (which actually has 0g of protein per 100g, how is this possible?). The taste of the cheddar-style cheese is quite strong; for my personal taste a bit too strong. I tried to cut the cheese into thin slices but they broke easily so I had to cut it into much thicker slices. I found they overpowered the taste of everything else. So even if they break I would recommend using much thinner slices. Unless you are a fan of strong cheese, then go for big slices.

I only tried a few cubes of the Greek-style cheese and again it was very strong, much more than the milk-based one. But I think it would still work very well in a Greek salad. Maybe start adding a few cubes to your salad and depending on your taste add more if you like. Alternatively make your own tofu feta using my own recipe for Greek salad here.

But I think both are a great substitute for when you get the cheese craving (according to an article in the Independent cheese can be addictive). This is really about bringing vegan cheese to the masses and showing people that there are alternatives.

Talking about alternatives, Nicky Cook from Mr Vegan UK and I did some vegan cheese tasting (or #Gary as it's called now, see the article in Metro). Check it out below.