Tofutti has become so ubiquitous in both specialty and mainstream grocery stores, it’s hard to imagine life without it. Many a vegan cheese cake has been born from those plastic tubs of non-dairy spread, and countless bagels topped with their creamy contents. So devoted am I to this classic staple, which has been around since the infancy of my veganism and beyond, it’s simply difficult to imagine having any other cream cheese in my life. Galaxy Foods wants to change all that though, and has officially entered the battlefield with their brand new vegan cream cheese.
The differences between brands are subtle, but noteworthy. Immediately upon peeling back the protective plastic, it was evident that the textures would be distinctly divergent. Much softer and easy to spread straight out the fridge, the Classic Plain from Galaxy definitely had the upper edge on consistency for everyday eating.
Delightfully but still mildly tangy and well-rounded, the stellar flavor makes this option a serious contender. With just the right balance of salty and sour elements, it’s a very pleasing and agreeable shmear overall. Truth be told though, while I would be perfectly happy eating Galaxy’s version, Tofutti might still be my personal preference in that department.
More importantly, however, how would this newcomer hold up to dessert applications? This was a job for my favorite cream cheese frosting recipe!
What had been a positive aspect previously was now a big negative- Too soft to properly pipe, thanks to that more spreadable texture, I tried to compensate with more confectioner’s sugar, but to no avail. The frosting remained more gooey than desired, and became too sweet through the process of trying to correct the issue.
Adding a bit more of a savory spin to things, the Chive & Garlic cream cheese introduces a few pale green flecks of herbs into the mix. Impressed by the concept but not so much the execution, I could barely taste either of the star ingredients. They’re subtle flavorings, to say the least. Taking that idea and running with it, though, I rolled balls of the cream cheese in a mixture of fresh chives, lemon zest, and chopped pine nuts, and was thrilled with the results. Perfect for serving at a party to spread on toast or crackers, those simple additions accentuated and greatly enhanced the existing herb essence.
Compared to existing non-dairy cream cheeses or tasted without any point of reference, this is unarguably a highly viable and tasty substitute to anything made with cow’s milk.
Thank you so much for this review! I really want to try this brand now. It’s always fun finding new staples!
Excellent review! I’ve never tried either brands, but now you’ve inspired me to do a little taste test myself!
Great review! I love how you rolled it in the chive/pinenut mixture, it looks tasty.
Oh my goodness. I need to remember to eat before I start reading blogs. ;) Yummy
Great review! I’ve used a lot of those Tofutti tubs in my days, especially for cream cheese frostings and other recipes!
I would love to try their cream cheese…. I like tofutti OK, but really, I like making a cashew/tofu cream cheese the best.
The chive/lemon/pine nut photo is stunning.
Oh I just read about this stuff on another blog…..finally there’s some cream cheese competition out there. Although I haven’t seen this stuff in stores yet….can’t wait.
This stuff sounds really good! ANd so much that you can do with it!!
I’ve never heard of that kind of cream cheese. Looks tasty :)
those little cheese balls are so pretty! well done and thanks for sharing!
what do you think about the Follow Your Heart brand? i like that one, too!
Sounds good — I’ll have to give it a try!
mmm very interesting! I guess anything new and vegan in the supermarkets is always a plus! I still need to try making cheesecake with the toffuti cream cheese. I have made it using kingland cream cheese, but seen as I am not keen on the kingland its all I could taste in the cheesecake.
Rose
It’s always nice to have options, will have to see if my store carries it!
Mope mope mope whine whine whine can’t find non-hydrogenated tofutti in Australia let alone another brand cry cry… Okay, time to get over myself! :P
awesome job with this review Hannah! Good to know it is a softer one – has its place, but I would hate to buy it when I needed a really firm cream cheese alternative and be disappointed.
Thanks for that detailed review. I have the consistency problem with real cream cheese frosting, so I can definitely relate. I wonder if it would help to use the method I’ve learned to keep things firmer with dairy cream cheese frosting. First beat the margarine and powdered sugar together (room temperature), then add chunks of cold cream cheese and don’t overbeat. LOVE the cheese balls. Great idea to up the ante on those flavors.
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