If I Close My Eyes, I’d Swear This European-Style Vegan Butter Is Real Butter
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It’s become very cool torenounce dairy, but I am and will always be shamelessly addicted to it. I’m the last person in the world to order an almond-milk latte, and when I had my baby last fall, my mom made me a cheesecake and I ate the entire thing in a week. In December, though, I found out that my baby wasallergicand I’d have to completely eliminate it — including any and all foods where it’s hidden as an ingredient — to continuebreastfeeding, something I’d always planned to do.
I can’t tell you why, but upon hearing the news, I asked my daughter’s doctor, “Even butter?” She laughed. In my initial shock, the idea of giving up feta and yogurt made me sad, but the thought ofdry toastin the morning or a northeastern winter without my signature browned-buttercookiesmade me choke up. In recent years, I’ve grown particularly fond of European-style butters from brands like Vermont Creamery, Ronnybrook, and Straus (when I’m visiting California).Europeanbutter is cultured, giving it a subtle, buttermilk-y flavor, and it has a higher fat content (a minimum of 82 percent butterfat), which makes it softer and creamier than your average American stick.
I’ve given up dairy once before, for a brief stint as aveganin college. That’s whensoy milkwas still cool, though, so I had a lot of sampling to do this time around. Things have improved in the dairy-free section — bless you, Oatly — but a lot of it is stillprocessed garbage. After a few failures, it became less depressing to avoid the dairy impostors. But then I discovered Miyoko’s European Style Cultured Vegan Butter.
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Unlike Earth Balance, which is, in my opinion, thoughtfully branded margarine, Miyoko’s is made out ofreal ingredientslike coconut oil and cultured cashews (which gives it agreat tangthat’s slightly more intense than cultured butter’s and makes me think it’s good for my gut health). It’s wrapped in wax paper, so it’s a similar experience, and it comes in a nice eight-ounce block reminiscent of Kerrygold. It’s salty, creamy, browns like butter, makes a phenomenalfried egg, and tastes insanely good melted onpancakes(I make them with Oatly), grilled corn, and my favorite sunflower-seed bread withcreamy honey.
The texture is butter-esque, but more crumbly than creamy while it’s cold, and because it’s mostly coconut oil it tends to go soft even quicker on your countertop (making it ideal forspreading). I also love that it’s from Northern California, which happens to be where my favorite all-time dairy bands are based (Cowgirl Creamery, Straus), so I feel like I’m getting the good stuff. I wouldn’t say it’s got the same warm flavor as true butter because, well, it isn’t — but then again, my Alabama-born best friend, who knows a thing or two about butter, was fooled into eating Miyoko’s for months by hishealth-freakboyfriend and was none the wiser. It’s justthatgood.
Miyoko’s is even more expensive than craftEuropean-style butters — at $8 for eight ounces, it’s multiple dollars more than Ronnybrook or Vermont Creamery at my localWhole Foods. But if you’re avoiding dairy or can’t have it like me, it’s worth the extra cost if you’re craving. I’d love to say that I use less of it and it lasts a long time, but I find myself eating even more of it than I did regular butter. It’s just that addictive.
My only remaining test is if it holds up inbaking, but for now, if I close my eyes while I eat mytoast, it’s just as good as Straus.
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