Product Faceoff! Amy’s Soy Mac & Cheese vs. Stouffer’s

This week I compared one of my favorite staples, macaroni & cheese. I’ve just tried about every mac & cheese out there (boxed and frozen), and as the sole lactose-tolerant writer of this blog, I couldn’t wait to see if soy mac & cheese could stand up to my regular lineup. Below are the results!

Price
Amy’s - $2.79

Stouffer’s - $2.00

Winner of Price category: Stouffer’s… and bonus, you get 12 oz with Stouffer’s vs 9 oz in Amy’s

Taste
Amy’s – Could definitely tell this was not the real thing. It had a very sharp, odd taste to it. It had a very strong smell to it as well, and it wasn’t a nice one…

Stouffer’s – the regular stuff didn’t disappoint in this category. It had a nice mild taste and it smelled delicious.

Winner of Taste category: This was not a close call – Stouffer’s gets the win

Nutrition Info
Amy’s – 9 oz serving
370 calories, 15 grams fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 500 mg sodium, 42 grams carbs, 4 grams fiber, 2 grams sugar, 16 grams protein, 15% calcium

Stouffer’s – 6 oz serving
340 calories, 16 grams fat, 7 grams saturated fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 810 mg sodium, 32 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 4 grams sugar, 13 grams protein, 30% calcium

Winner of Nutrition info: With the Amy’s soy mac & cheese, you get a 50% bigger portion for similar calories & fat, and much less saturated fat & sodium. With Amy’s you’ll also save on sugar and gain some fiber instead.

Accessibility
Both were from your neighborhood grocery store

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Amy’s – Although the taste was very disappointing, the texture was alright. It was pretty similar to the regular stuff. The cheese melted well and the pasta cooked well in the microwave.

Stouffer’s – the cheese sauce was slightly thinner than the soy cheese version, but overall a great texture – better than the soy cheese

Winner of Texture category: Stouffer’s wins again

Final Results: This is no surprise – I couldn’t get past the taste and smell of Amy’s soy mac & cheese. It just had a very fake, strong taste and smell to it. If you have another dairy-free mac & cheese option, we would love to hear about them. Leave your comments below!

Product Faceoff! Amy’s Soy Cheese vs. Regular Cheese Pizza

This week I compared Amy’s products. After the experience I had last week with the Trader Joe’s soy creamer, I was pretty nervous to try the soy cheese pizza. Below are the results!

Price
$5.99 for both kinds

Winner of Price category: It’s a tie

Taste
Amy’s soy – I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the soy pizza tasted very similar to the regular version. I couldn’t even tell the cheese was dairy-free.

Amy’s regular – This was delicious - everything about it was great, from the cheese to the sauce to the crust

Winner of Taste category: Both pizzas had the same crust and sauce, just the cheese was different. I’m going to give Taste to the dairy-free version simply because it was so close to the real thing, I was extremely impressed.

Nutrition Info
Amy’s soy – 290 calories, 10.9 grams fat, 1 gram saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 590mg sodium, 37 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 3 grams sugar, 12.1 grams protein

Amy’s regular – 310 calories, 12.1 grams fat, 4.1 grams saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 590 mg sodium, 38 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 4.1 grams sugar, 12.1 grams protein

Winner of Nutrition info: Soy pizza is the winner here since it doesn’t contain saturated fat or cholesterol. Calories, fat, fiber, sugar, and carbs were all pretty similar.

Accessibility
Both were from the neighborhood grocery store – most sell Amy’s products

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Amy’s soy – Although the soy pizza rocked in the taste category, the texture will still slightly off from the regular version. The soy cheese didn’t melt as well as the regular version. The sauce and crust were still just as good as the regular stuff. The end result was still a tasty pizza, but it was very easy to decipher which pizza was soy and which was the regular version.

Amy’s regular – The cheese melted perfectly in the regular version. The crust was delicious too.

Winner of Texture category: Due to the soy cheese melting (or lack thereof), the regular version wins out here

Final Results: I was pleasantly surprised with the soy cheese pizza and it wins this week’s product faceoff. Even though the cheese didn’t melt like regular cheese would have, Amy’s still managed to make a tasty dairy-free pizza that rivals the original. Sometimes you just need to eat some pizza, and if you are lactose-intolerant, Amy’s should be your go-to brand.

The Quiche, Dairy Free and Delicious!

Hello my lactose intolerant peeps!  I’m Erin and  today I'm delivering to you one of my new favorites - quiche! Since I've been lactose intolerant my entire life, I've never quite understood the love people have for quiche, but this recipe changed all that.  Quiche is not only quick and easy - it is delicious and there are endless varieties you can make. Below is my favorite (adapted from Paula Deen from FoodNetwork.com) - the western quiche - all the goodness of a western omelet baked into a hash brown crust. This recipe (and my bonus recipe below) both pass the test for company ... in other words, dairy lovers too will enjoy them. 

Crust Ingredients:

3 cups of shredded hash browns, defrosted and moisture removed

4 Tablespoons of melted Smart Balance (light or regular), Lactose free butter substitute

1t each of onion powder and garlic powder

Western Quiche Ingredients:

½ yellow onion, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1 cup mushrooms, stems removed, sliced thinly

1 cup of ham or Canadian bacon

5 sprigs of thyme

5 eggs, beaten

½ cup of Silk Soy Creamer

1 cup of Shredded Veggie Cheese, Cheddar

EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

Hash brown Crust Directions:

1)      Preheat oven to 450 degrees

2)      Drain hash browns, squeeze to get as much moisture out as possible

    
      3)      Mix hash browns with the melted Smart Balance along with the onion and garlic powder.

4)      Mold mixture into a nine inch pie dish forming a crust

5)      Bake for about 30-40 minutes- you want to see the crust nicely brown

6)      When browned, remove from oven and let cool.  Reduce oven temperature to 325



Tip: Get  as much the moisture as you can -
this is the key for browning



Western Quiche Directions:



1)    Complete the hash brown crust.      

2)      Heat a few turns of EVOO in a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat, add onions and let cook until slightly translucent (3-5 minutes)

Tip: Make sure the onions are translucent -
you don't want them burnt -
cook low and slow to get the best taste

3)      Add red pepper and cook an additional 2 minutes until pepper is slightly softened then

4)      Add mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms have given off their moisture  and have softened

5)      Add ham, thyme and mix together. Cook an additional 5 minutes to meld flavors



Tip: Make sure all the ingredients are are mixed together.
If the pan is looking dry, add an extra 1/2 Tablespoon of Smart Balance
or a few turns of EVOO

 

6)      Mix five eggs and Silk Soy Creamer together. 

7)      Add vegetable and ham mixture along with the ¾ cup shredded veggie cheese.

8)      Pour mixture into cooled crust and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. 

Tip: Check your quiche often starting around 40 minutes - use a tooth pick to make
sure the egg in the middle is fully baked before removing.

9)      Add ¼ cup of cheese to the top and green onion and cook an additional 5 minutes. 

Tip: If you're making this a head of time,
wait to complete step 9 until right before serving.

10)   Cool and serve. 

Tip: Omit the ham and you have a delicious vegetarian option!

Bonus Recipe - Smoked Salmon Quiche

I love quiche so much - here's a second recipe to experiment with (adapted from Emeril's recipe on FoodNetwork.com):

Ingredients:

Hash brown crust ingredients (above)

2 cups of red onion, thinly sliced

1 cup of smoked salmon chopped

¾ cup of Tofutti Cream Cheese

2 Tablespoons of lemon juice

5 eggs

½ cup of Silk Soy Creamer

1 Tablespoon of Smart Balance

EVOO

Directions: 

1)      Complete the hash brown crust.

2)      In a large non stick skillet add 1T of Smart Balance and a few turns of EVOO and add onions allowing them to slowly caramelize over low heat.  This is time consuming but worth it – make sure they don’t burn though

3)      In a mixing bowl combine cream cheese and lemon juice and add one egg in at a time and mix together completely. 

4)      Add Silk Soy Creamer and combine

5)      Add onions and smoked salmon, mix to combine completely

6)      Pour mixture into cooled hash brown crush and bake at 350 for approximately 45 minutes. 

7)      Add green onion to the top and cook another 5 minutes

8) Cool, serve and enjoy!