Treeline Treenut Cheese

Isn't it crazy how far vegan cheese has come? I remember just a decade or so ago, in the dark days of veganism, when our cheese only came in three flavors — cheddar and mozzarella blocks and American slices. The cheese was rubbery and tasted weird. I learned to like it back then because it was all we had. But it wasn't good.

Today, vegan cheese is available in just about any form that dairy cheese is, including in fancy, aged, artisanal varieties made from raw cashews. I love a good aged nut cheese for crackers or as a sandwich spread, and while I can always make my own, it's much more convenient to purchase vegan cheeses. Aging nut cheeses takes patience and time, something I don't have much of these days.

Treeline Treenut Cheese has long been one of my faves, but until a couple weeks ago, it wasn't available in Memphis. I had to stock up in Little Rock or Jonesboro (my hometown) and transport it back to Memphis. But Treeline sent me some samples about a month ago, and not more than two weeks after my shipment arrived, my neighborhood Kroger started carrying three flavors of Treeline! Here are my review goodies.

They sent me three flavors of their Creamy Soft French-Style Treenut Cheese — Chipotle Serrano Pepper, Herb-Garlic, and Scallion. Treeline also makes harder-style cheeses, and those are great too.

I first tried the Chipotle Serrano because that was the one flavor I've never had. It's made with cashews, water, lemon, smoked serrano pepper powder, and chipotle flakes, so it's got a smokiness and a little touch of heat. 

The cheese is soft and spreadable, and it has a slight tang, just as any good aged cheese should. I enjoyed most of this tub spread onto these awesome seeded everything-style crackers. 

Next up, I tried the Herb-Garlic because I'm a garlic fiend. I put so much raw garlic and garlic powder in my food that I'm surprised anyone wants to be near me ever. And this garlicky cashew cheese didn't disappoint. The flavor was very prominent, making this easily my fave of the bunch. 

It was great as a sandwich spread paired with Field Roast Wild Mushroom slices, sea salt and cracked pepper Sabra Spreads (the new hummus condiment), tomato, and lettuce.

I had the Scallion schmeared all over gluten-free bagels for breakfast several days last week. Nothing pairs better with a bagel that oniony cream cheese, and this cheese has just the right consistency. It's not a cream cheese per se, but it's just as spreadable as one and with way more complex flavor.

The Scallion spread also made a wonderful quesadilla binder! On National Taco Day (Tuesday), I was all out of corn tortillas, but I had some larger burrito-size tortillas. Now, I know a quesadilla is not a taco. But I figured one fold made it close. This was stuffed with Scallion Treeline cheese, BBQ Soy Curls, and sauteed mushrooms.

As you can see, Treeline soft cheese is extremely versatile. It can be paired with almost any type of cuisine, and it's spreadable! I'm so glad I can buy it locally now.