I hit the Irish Jackpot last week I won Gaby’s Give Away for Kerrygold products.
It was St. Paddy’s Day last week, and I guess I had the luck of the Irish on my side because there was:
Cheese galore
And an amazing cookbook. It’s a beautiful, hardcover, book with great photos and recipes inside.
I was seriously blown away by the generosity of Kerrygold’s “prize pack”. They overnight, refrigerated shipped everything to me in California. I have won a fair number of give aways over the past couple years blogging and have hosted at least 75 give aways for my readers on my own site, and this give away was definitely top shelf.
Thanks, Gaby and Kerrygold!
With all that cheese, I think I can make some Vegan Fajitas with Sweet Ginger Lime Dipping Sauce. Obviously they won’t be vegan if I add cheese with dairy, but you could always add vegan cheeze, too.
These fajitas use mushrooms. But feel free to use tofu. I just recently had ‘shroom cravings so am all about them lately.From my last post about my rainy day coffee meetup with Amber, and cookies vs. cookie dough, it seems most of you love your cookie dough. If we all love cookie dough so much, why do we even bother baking the cookies? Because lots of you said you do enjoy the baked cookies, too. Not just dough.
Questions:
1. Do you like cheese?
I loved cheese before I stopped eating it about 7-8 years ago. I used to eat any and all types of cheese.
I’m pretty sure Triscuits + Cheese + Wine was dinner at least twice a week in my early 20s. And honestly, those were great “dinners” and memories.
2. If you don’t like or eat cheese, why not?
For most of my life, I have eaten a largely plant-based diet. Vegetarian, vegan, or pescatarian. I dislike labels and since we are all on our own journey, and life ebbs, flows, evolves, and changes, we ought to be present and aware of what will work for us as life and our needs and desires change.
Growing up, even as a small child, I never liked or ate red meat or pork. I ate very limited amounts of poultry and did enjoy fish. However, I have food allergies, including anaphalactic reactions to shellfish that came on out of no where when I was 24.
Around that time I also felt like dairy was also a culprit and I eliminated dairy, including cheese, from my diet.
However, in recent years, it seems that dairy in trace/smaller amounts such as in butterscotch chips or in white chocolate in desserts or in cream in coffee, I don’t seem to have any issues or reactions. I haven’t tried eating cheese though.
No issues with the butterscotch chips in No Bake GF Peanut Butter Marshmallow Bars with Chocolate Frosting
Maybe in small amounts, my body is ok with dairy?
3. If you’re dairy free or vegan, do you miss cheese? Do you miss dairy? Would you miss dairy if you were to give it up?
Many people say they could never go vegan because they’d miss dairy, cheese, yogurt, and such. I’ve said before I really don’t miss cheese or dairy (aside from the traces that I have in recipes). Until I open my refrigerator and see all the cheese I just won.
Or walk around my neighborhood and see people drinking wine and eating cheese. I guess perhaps I miss the memories.
I know we don’t “need” dairy. I did a post on it. Dairy FAQ’s, Calcium, Myths, Recipes. But I do think I “need” white chocolate in my life.
I love nutritional yeast for all it’s cheezy vegan-ness. I have a nooch recipes post with about 15 cheezy recipe ideas but let’s face it, cheeze is not cheese.
Do you eat cheese? Or dairy? Would you miss it if you didn’t eat it?
i used to have a hard time giving up cheese and dairy. until one day i decided i was just going to do it for good. i’ve been vegan for a few months now and feel great, and i don’t miss dairy or eggs. ok sometimes i miss eggs. but definitely not dairy. though i know if i won a cheese giveaway i’d probably be craving some of it, just because it was there ;)
Excellent job! I found your blog using google. I am going to tell my wife about your blog later.
I’m not a big cheese person, mainly because I think the majority of it in the US sucks. Yes, total snob over here, but the only kinds I can’t resist are things like amazing brie, roquefort, camembert…the stuff my mom fed us growing up. I mean, cheddar and American still taste good to me, obviously, but I never crave it and have no problem saving it for the really good stuff!!
I still eat some dairy, so I never really miss it. It’s not a part of my every day life, but if I want ice cream or frosting, I eat it! There’s no intolerance, it’s just an ethical, taste and health thing, so I let myself have it when it’s calling my name :)
Kerrygold is supposed to be the best, I’ve heard–but I’ve never tried it.
Wow, congrats on your prize! You really must have the luck of the Irish! ;)
I am going through a vegan phase after reading Crazy Sexy Diet. Soo…..I have given up dairy–however, I think my chocolate chips DID have dairy that I through in my no bake cookie dough balls yesterday. So I guess I’ve given it up in large amounts. I don’t really miss it though. I have found alternatives that are just fine, like nooch, nut milks, etc. I do miss cream cheese sometimes though. ;)
I’ve never really cared much about cheese so I had no problem giving that up, but I’ve been drawn back into eating real butter and I don’t think I’ll ever turn away from it again. That would not last long near me; they just make brownies taste that much better.
yeah im glad you’re cooking with real butter again too. makes the recipes look that much better :)
HOLY CHEESE! the only thing I have been craving during comp prep is CHEESE and bread! lots and lots of cheese…its the strangest thing! I thought I would want cookies or sweets but nope! just bring on the cheese and ill be a happy gal! :)
As far as dairly, whats strange is that I am becoming somewhat intolerant to dairy (I think) When I have dairy later in the day (past 3pm) I get extremely uncomfortable, bloated yadda yadda, but if I have it before say 12pm then Im okay! I know that enzymes are working harder in the morning in the stomach so maybe thast why its easier to digest? do you know anything about why this is?
if you followed the principles of food combining, there is definitely merit to time of day and ingesting certain foods. Also the ORDER of the foods, i.e. fruit first, don’t mix carbs and meat, there are tons of “rules” and it’s food for thought but i am not a “food combining” advocate per se.
I also think that the biorhythms of our bodies differ and at certain points in the day it can handle certain foods and other times….not so much.
recently ive been really into fajitas!
i have a love/hate relationship with cheese. sometimes i crave it, sometimes the thought of it makes my stomach churn. I’m so odd.
I was wondering who won that cheese – love the stuff. Not vegan over here. Soooo psyched to see you today. Still on yes??
The only dairy products I am really obsessed with are cottage cheese and yogurt. These are the reasons I could not be a vegan…
I LOVE cheese, but it does not love me back. My boys would have been in heaven with that jackpot! YUM! I am sure your crew will be loving you making so many treats with it!
that’s so cool that you are DF and your boys aren’t. I guess I “knew” it but everyone’s households and who eats what…i can’t keep everyone straight :)
Lately I’ve been trying to reduce dairy and eggs in my diet, to focus on more plant-based foods (for health/ethic reasons). Cheese is actually the only form of dairy I consume semi-regularly at the moment, exept for an occasional ice cream treat or traces in pre-made foods. I feel very lucky to live in Europe, where you have easy access to so many different kinds of awesome cheese. Having cheese only a few times per week makes me savour and apreciate it even more.
Ah, memories … like feasting on parmesan and fresh ciabatta bread on a mild night in Rome. Sigh!
I just recently bought a bag of nooch, not sure how to use it. I’ll re-read your post on it for inspiration!
Holy cheese heaven! Wow. I used to think I could never give up cheese. But it makes the hubs sick, so we rarely have real cheese. We did indulge in goat cheese last night (not even very much) and it felt so sinful, but oh so good.
After over 4 years of being very strict vegan I have in the last few weeks been including some cheese and eggs into my diet. I have said many times before that we don’t need these things in our diets- however in the last 6 months I have been feeling as though there is something missing from my diet. I was feeling extremely tired and a bit unhealthy. I really wanted to do what was best for my body because I’m an extremely active girl- and it seemed like the best way to go. Cheese is good- and I had always loved it! So for me eating a “vegan” diet rich in veggies, fruits and whole grains with these things is working :)
I eat and adore cheese! Feta is my staple- I use it on salads, in omelettes… you name it! :)
Amen to Tricuits + Cheese + Wine. Except replace Cheese with Hummus and Wine with Mixed Drinks and that was me. Sounds like you were classier :P
Kerrygold really hooked you up! I was wondering how they would go about shipping all that but you answered the question for me.
I never really thought I’d find myself where I am now in my “diet,” but I’ve just sort of phased out of dairy and animal products altogether. The longer I go without it the more it sort of…weirds me out, I guess. I still don’t consider myself vegan because it’s not like I try to avoid it at all costs (and honestly, I’m more likely to put the butter on the counter on my muffin or toast at night than I am to pull out my own Earth Balance, it’s in a hot cocoa mix I have and trace amounts in other products I’m sure, too) I’ve always been “I could take it or leave it” about cheese and my mom is the same. Blame her :P And milk? Always hated the stuff growing up! I’m kind of glad the vegan substitutes aren’t really all that similar to the real deal, haha.