Winning Recipes With WayFare Cheddar!

I feel very lucky, with as small a following as this blog has, and as new as it is, that I have been able to get hooked up with this terrific company called WayFare, thanks to those fabulous Texans at Qples, to taste-test and review WayFare’s vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free products.  Now, I am not vegan, although most days I’m practically vegetarian, as I stated before.  I’m fortunate that I do not have to abstain from dairy or gluten, as “these are a few of my favorite things!”  But, this is precisely why WayFare wanted to spread the word about their brand. These products are not only useful for those who need a dairy alternative, but can simply be a healthy substitute for other ingredients!

I’ve been working with these items for a few days now, and was beginning to get a little nervous because it has not gone as smoothly as I’d hoped.  It certainly wasn’t all bad, but I have to continue tweaking the recipe for the Broccoli Cheese Soup, for example, and I’m not implying any reflection on the product, just my recipe.  Looked lovely, though!

“We Can’t Say it’s Sour Cream” has a satisfying, tangy, creamy taste and it works great when you add it to, say, a taco, as I did over the weekend, but I don’t feel you’re going to get away with anything sneaky by putting a dollop on top of something because it has a gelatinous sheen that gives it away.  I did, however, mix it with regular organic sour cream on top of beans and rice, which was tasty and harder to differentiate from the original.  I also mixed the “Mexi Cheddar” spread in with the rice for that dish, which was delicious!  I went back for more when I heated it and ate it as a dip with tortilla chips, too.  And, like The Laziest Vegans, as well as I thought I’d emptied the container of Butterscotch pudding, because it was truly hard to put down, one of my cats eagerly licked it clean!

Anyway, I’m hard on myself, too, but last night, I finally scored a recipe I can really rave about!  I created cholesterol-free Baked Potatoes topped with “Cheddar” and Broccoli and Potato Skins, with and without fake Bacon, that were so good and gratifying that my teenage son asked for more, and I will absolutely make again! (Soon!)  I remembered to add chives on the second serving.  These were really tasty and could have easily "passed" for cheese, albeit a higher quality cheese than that stuff in a #10 can that those chains would put on your potato skins...

Here’s the rundown on the winning recipes in our house, using the WayFare Cheddar Style Spread and/ or the Hickory Smoked Cheddar Style Spread.  I should add, too, that I’m a little sensitive to smoked flavors, but this is just right! Kudos on that!

To prepare the amount that is pictured here, including the baked potato, preheat your oven to 375° and wash four (organic) potatoes. Rub them with a light coating of olive oil and place directly on the rack.  Please note, I covered a cooking sheet with foil and placed it on the rack below the potatoes to avoid having oil, etc. drip onto the element or the bottom of the oven.  I baked these at 375° for one hour, but about 20 minutes before they were done, I began to roast garlic in the oven. (So, adjust your timer initially to 40 minutes, and then add 20 more if that helps.)

If you want to make the potato skins with fake Bacon, as I did, I have found that the MorningStar Bacon Strips work best cooked low and slow, in a bit of olive oil. (I’ll post more on this product separately. Know that it is not organic and not vegan.) I had some cooked already in the refrigerator that I wanted to use.

For the roasted garlic, make sure it’s evenly coated in olive oil. I just placed it on a small ceramic plate and set it in the oven. This worked out really well, because when I removed the garlic, I added the chopped broccoli to this plate and I could hear the sizzle immediately from the remaining oil on the hot plate!  I placed the broccoli into the oven after I removed the potatoes and turned the oven off.  (The broccoli only needs to cook about 5 minutes, if cut pretty small like mine was. I left it in the oven just about as long as it took me to work with the potatoes for the potato skins.)

Before your potatoes finish baking, or while they cool for a moment, prepare the cheese.  Add 1 T. of olive oil per ½ C. of WayFare Cheddar spread.  (The Hickory Smoked Cheddar flavor complemented the “bacon” ones very well, but I used the regular Cheese spread for all the others.)  I used about one cup altogether.  You could add a pinch of (organic) cayenne pepper at this point if you like.  It is an antioxidant and boosts your metabolism as well as adding flavor.  You might find that you don’t “need” the olive oil, but fat is a satiating ingredient, and olive oil is high in Monounsaturated fat, so it’s ok in my book. Remember, there's no cholesterol in these recipes; you only get that from animal products.

Cut the potatoes in half, or quarters, according to your preference, and scoop out the potato flesh, leaving about a ¼ inch.  (Reserve the potato for another dish; twice-baked potatoes would be great with these spreads, too.) Rub the remaining potato flesh with a roasted garlic clove.  Add the Cheese Spread, salt and (organic) chives as desired.  Bake about 10 minutes, or if you have a broiler safe pan, broil just until the cheese is hot and the exposed potato begins to brown. 

For, the baked potato, I simple added the Cheese and olive oil blend, the other clove of roasted garlic and the broccoli.  I ate every bite.  This is a perfect use for this spread!

I really enjoyed the taste and consistency of the Cheddar spreads in these recipes and I encourage you to try them yourself and to share them with others! Check the store locator to find WayFare items in your area, get your coupon from their Facebook page, and be sure to let them know how you like their products!  

Keep following this blog to see further recipes!