Neva has been a vegetarian for the last 6 years, her reasons were due to the slaughtering of animals, whereas my mother in law is vegetarian as she just doesn’t like the taste of meat, so it’s sometimes a little confusing when talking to either of them about what they do and don’t like and what they will and won’t eat!
Asa has also chosen to cut down on his meat consumption, purely because he prefers a plate of vegetables than a slab of meat!
When Violife got in contact and asked if we would like to try a selection of Vegan Cheese products, I knew exactly who to call on for the job!
Both Neva and Asa eat dairy products are certainly don’t class themselves as Vegan, but they are always keen to try new Vegetarian/Vegan products, and Cheese goes pretty quickly in our household!
We were sent five different products to try, and i’m pleased to say they were very well received!
The first thing I noticed was that the products don’t have to be stored the same as ‘normal’ cheese, on the packaging of the cheddar its says Keep refrigerated below 5 degrees, whereas the Violife recommends storage temperature +2 degrees to +8 degrees.
Epic Mature Cheddar Flavour Block
Deliciously crumbly, with protein and vitamin B12.
Our thoughts : I was quite surprised how quickly the entire block of cheese disappeared! (i’m not kidding about the amount of cheese that is consumed in our house), I even caught Asa going in the fridge and cutting slices off and just eating them! All agreed that it had a lovely flavour and didn’t have the texture they thought it would, definitely ‘cheese like’ and not like the cheese slices that they had expected.
Original Flavour Slices
The classic flavour that gives you your cheesy hit in a variety of recipes, in a humble sandwich or grilled for ultimate comfort food.
Our thoughts : These also disappeared pretty quickly, used in a piece of french bread with some sandwich pickle, Neva said it was the perfect lunch snack that she really enjoyed. Asa tried to melt it to put on toast, but he said you’d be better putting it under the grill like normal cheese on toast than trying to melt it in the microwave! i did explain that most people usually just pop it under the grill, but he wasn’t convinced his way was unusual!
Original Flavour Grated
Now you can enjoy your jacket potato or pasta with ready grated delicious Violife Original. A super easy convenient addition to any fridge.
Our thoughts : The thing I loved about the grated cheese was the fact that once you opened it, you could still use it a few days later as it didn’t appear to go dry and crusty, Neva loved it in a Cheese salad roll, and even Viggo the youngest had it in his sandwich and didn’t mention it was any different to his normal cheese sandwich, which is a good sign as he’s pretty fussy!
Smoky Cheddar Flavour Slices
Deliciously Smoky Cheddar Flavour Slices with a hickory smoky rind promises to deliver!
Pairs ideally with your sandwiches, melts to perfection in your toasty and adds a smoky twist to your late-night snack with a glass of red wine!
Our thoughts : This one of the five was my favourite, I love smoked cheese, so I was curious to see how it would taste compared to the ones I usually consume, and I am happy to report that it had a lovely texture, the right mount of smokiness and definitely one I shall be purchasing again, this packet went very quickly! A firm favourite with everyone.
Violife Le Rond Camembert Flavour
Our new VIOLIFE LE ROND with Camembert flavour is soft, round and creamy. Bake it in the oven or pop it for 1’ in the microwave, pair it with dried fruits and crackers, pour a glass of wine and enjoy.
Our thoughts : Lots of the family love baked camembert, so I was interested to find out their thoughts on this one, the recipe booklet inside the Camembert box gives you instructions for baking in the oven or in the microwave, this time we tried it in the microwave and I was actually surprised how well it tasted, it obviously melted very differently and makes a bit more mess than baking the usual camembert, but all agreed it was a good taste and a slightly different texture but not unpleasant, just took your head a while to get round it! I will definitely be purchasing another and giving it a go in the oven.
Who Are Violife ?
Violife are a vegan-dedicated community based in the beautiful surroundings of Thessalonica in Greece. They have been committed to making amazingly tasting, 100% vegan, non-dairy, non GMO foods since the 90’s, in their production plant in Drama.
Violife comes from the Greek word Vios, which means Life. So it’s, life squared , live life to the full.
We had the Violife Vegan Cheese Products as they are, but there are some amazing Vegan Recipes on the website that sound delicious.
Over Thoughts on Violife Vegan Cheese Products
I am happy to admit that I was a little sceptical about the Vegan Cheese, but actually I am extremely impressed by all of the products, and would definitely consider swapping out some of the current products we purchase for some alternatives (definitely need to give that baked camembert in the oven a try!), so if you are already Vegan and looking for some tasty cheese products, or you are looking to substitute some dairy products for vegan alternatives, Violife is definitely a brand to give a try.
*we were provided with these products for the purpose of a review, all thoughts and opinions are my own *