Velveeta

[BetD]

Velveeta, mayo, horseradish, hot sauce....... melted together and cooled....... on a triscuit

pure "river food"

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I used to make an app of Parmesan and mayo on black bread triangles, quickly broiled then served. It was terrible how many one could eat, would want to eat, considering the high mayo content.

But I've never heard of "river food". Does that mean "food you go and hang out by the river to eat"?

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yes.... River Food would include anything that can be served on the top of the cooler

[Jaymes]

Velveeta, mayo, horseradish, hot sauce....... melted together and cooled....... on a triscuit

I used to make an app of Parmesan and mayo on black bread triangles, quickly broiled then served. It was terrible how many one could eat, would want to eat, considering the high mayo content.

And grated onion?

Velveeta melts so beautifully that many soups are enhanced by a chunk or two stirred in just before serving.

[Carrot Top]

yes.... River Food would include anything that can be served on the top of the cooler 

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Thinking back on rivers, I'd guess the only other parameter for "river food" is that it go well with beer.

I love the term. Makes me half think of real rivers and picnics upon them and half think of Wind in the Willows (where I think Mole may have set up a picnic on the riverbank . . .)

That was a very nice 7th post, BetD.

[Carrot Top]

Velveeta, mayo, horseradish, hot sauce....... melted together and cooled....... on a triscuit

I used to make an app of Parmesan and mayo on black bread triangles, quickly broiled then served. It was terrible how many one could eat, would want to eat, considering the high mayo content.

And grated onion?

Velveeta melts so beautifully that many soups are enhanced by a chunk or two stirred in just before serving.

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I never did the onion thing but it sounds excellent, Jaymes.

The soup thing was running through my mind earlier - wondering what Velveeta would do in a soup.

Does it melt to blend or does it stay in lovely little soft bundles of meltiness?

There's a vegetable soup that goes along with the Stone Soup story that I used to make in the kids' classrooms which even kids who don't like vegetables used to like. The secret ingredient was those little smoky sausages. Wooo hoo. Add Velveeta to that recipe and one could take over the world.

[MarketStEl]

I'm curious though, What is the percentage of milk in Velveeta.  It seems to be mostly other ingredients with a low percentage of actual dairy.

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Since it's called "pasteurized prepared cheese product", the short answer is that substances other than cheese account for at least 51% of the product by weight. (There's a whole hierarchy of terms for cheese and cheese derivatives spelled out in the Code of Federal Regulations. I believe that the hierarchy from most cheese to least cheese runs:

Cheese

Process cheese

Process cheese food

Process (or prepared) cheese food product

Process (or prepared) cheese product

Process (or prepared) cheese spread

and there may be one more level down. The 50% cheese line lies between "cheese food" and "cheese food product", I think.)

However, milk is the first ingredient listed, followed by water, milkfat, whey, whey protein concentrate, sodium phosphate (the first I would not consider natural for cheese -- though real cheese doesn't have water added to it either), and milk protein concentrate, so it looks to me like Velveeta may well be mostly dairy ingredients. It's just not mostly cheese.

Edited to add: Went to a party in the northern 'burbs yesterday, during which a clamor arose for some sort of Mexican dip from one of the guests. One of the hosts went into the fridge and handed me first a bag of Mexican four cheese blend from Costco (pray tell, what is "queso quesadilla"?), then a half-used-up two-pound box of Velveeta and a can of black beans.

Guess which cheesy item I used first to make a dip (with half the can of black beans, some chili powder, and bottled Chi-Chi's salsa).

Guess how long it lasted.

Guess who made more with what remained of the You-Know-What and some of the four-cheese blend.

Some of this remained at the time of my departure, having congealed into a cement-like substance as Velveeta dips usually do at room temperature. This does not harm the dip at all, as nuking it for about 30-45 seconds restores the gooey consistency.

Edited August 20, 2007 by MarketStEl (log)

[Kouign Aman]

I also used Velveeta to make cheese grits according to a specified recipe for a group dinner. They were freaking fabulous, and nothing McD's et al serve comes close to the wanton inclusion of fat and salt of those grits.

I'd absolutely love that recipe....

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Ditto. It would be great if you could post it if you still have it.

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It's on its way to RecipeGullet right now.

"Comfort Food" can be made with Ro-tel, but I prefer chopped canned green ortega chilies. The Mr prefers a specific salsa from the La Victoria line.

[Toliver]

re: Canned tamales

Of course they don't taste anything like the real McCoy, but I loved them as a kid.

Gebhardt brand, I believe, is one company that makes them. They come individually wrapped in some sort of paper along with a little bit of sauce.

And no, you don't have to heat Velveeta up in order to eat it. Again, as a kid, I had many a Velveeta & Miracle Whip on white bread sandwiches. We'd have to make our own lunches for school and I remember using one of those adjustable wire-cutter cheese slicers on the brick of Velveeta and was amazed at how smoothly it would slice through it. There's no such gliding with real cheese!

Thanks MarketStEl for mentioning the Velveeta keepers! I think we had a Tupperware version. You always left the cheese brick wrapped in its foil wrapping inside the keeper and peeled the foil back only as necessary.

I haven't checked the ingredient label but I do recall the "cheese" as having a sweet note to it. I'm almost positive sugar or HCFS has to be an ingredient.

[dividend]

How has no one mentioned the song yet? I sing it to myself whenever I am confronted with Velveeta. Sing along if you know it:

It's Velveeta

Versus cheddar

Our Velveeta

Melts much better

Cheddar's lumpy

Cheddar's oily

Cheddar drips down off you plate onto your doily...

This thread is pretty timely - I just yesterday had an encounter with Velveeta for the first time in a long time. My best friend's step-dad was making mac and cheese to go with dinner, and his recipe apparently consists solely of melted Velveeta over bow-tie pasta. It had been many years since college, when I ate a lot of Velveeta shells and cheese, and I have since then grown accustomed to real mac and cheese, the kind made with bechamel sauce with grated cheese folded in. With the first bite of his mac and cheese last night, I was struck by the strange texture, and the feel of melted plastic and fat, gooey and heavy and fake. Ugh. I think my tastes have evolved somewhat since college, because I found it downright unpleasant in a fake-food kind of way.

Velveeta does have it's place in my repetoire, and that's sliced in equal proportions on a liver loaf sandwich. But that's the only use for it, as far as I'm concerned.

re: Canned tamales

Of course they don't taste anything like the real McCoy, but I loved them as a kid.

Gebhardt brand, I believe, is one company that makes them. They come individually wrapped in some sort of paper along with a little bit of sauce.

Oh man, that brought back memories. On the rare occasion that my dad would be left with the dinner responsibilities when I was little, he's sometimes open a can of chili, and a can of tamales, mix them together, nuke them, and call it dinner. It was always a junk food style treat for my brother and I.

Edited August 20, 2007 by dividend (log)

[Pierogi]

Of course they don't taste anything like the real McCoy, but I loved them as a kid.

Gebhardt brand, I believe, is one company that makes them. They come individually wrapped in some sort of paper along with a little bit of sauce.

Gebhardts.........oh man. Now *THERE'S* a memory.

About 15 years ago, when SoCal was blasted by wicked winter rain storms, there was one day that it literally took me 6 hours to drive 22 miles home from work. The rain had stopped by the time I'd left, but the damage had been done. A tornado (or a "water spout") had come through my neighborhood, the freeways had all flooded out and been closed, it was brutal. Especially for an area that doesn't ever see actual weather. And it was the first time I'd faced a crisis without a parent.

I had been scheduled to go out to dinner with a friend that night, who had called me at work and said, you'd better get home, the roof's off the neighborhood grocery store ! This was before cell phones, so I said, ok, I'll call you when I get there, thinking I'd still be home at a reasonable time to go get something to eat. I left work at about 3:30, pulled into home about 9:30 and called, almost in tears from the utter frustration of the drive. Vicki said, did you eat? Me.......NO...sniff.....snivle. Over she came with a can of Dennison's chili and a can of Gehbardt tamales. That and a glass of scotch made one hell of a dinner.

Gebhardt's.......haven't had 'em since. Only had 'em a few times before that, but they certainly do have their place.

[LittleChef22]

I love Velveeta Mac and Cheese!! Now I want some.......

[Carrot Top]

I love Velveeta Mac and Cheese!! Now I want some.......

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My daughter loves it too. Neither my son nor I like it very much - we don't eat it. But to her it's like a bowl of solace. She even has an exact ratio of cheese sauce to macaroni that she has to do herself or it's just not right.

She's a Virgo. That explains much.

[LindsayAnn]

Look what you ALL made me do now....I am in velveeta heaven Actaually truth be told, was babysitting all week last week and yesterday (6:30AM-8PM....LONG DAY). Said family had an opened velveeta in their fridge cheese drawer (as well as three non-opened venveeta's....although these were the smaller ones). I took half a can of salsa (HOT salsa, chunky style) and a little bit of the opened jar of pasta sauces (I thoguht it would be a good addition) and chunked up the velveeta, nuked in the microwave.....YUM. Actually we had to go tot he store to get tortilla chips (I wanted GOOD, authentic ones, so I purchased brand).

So what did I do upon return to my house last night? Obviously, I purchased (made a trip back to the grocery store just for the occasion) a LARGE block of velveeta, jar of medium salsa, and a bottle of Ortega taco sauce - medium again. I am about to go mix it all up and nuke it....I think the Ortega will be a nice addition. It's runnier than the salsa....so I think it will smooth it all out nicely.

BTW - the pasta (red sauce) sauce was really good in the velveeta/salsa mixture. I used to mix a can or chili (beef and bean variety) with velveeta, and it was always good. Since i bought the BIG block of velveeta, I will have to give this a go very soon...

I have also been thinking (ever since the birth of this tread) that if I brown some ground meat, add some salsa and velveeta and nuke it all....that would be good too - no?

[LindsayAnn]

Sorry, I forgot to insert the brand of tortilla chips that I purchased - I meant to type in that I purchased El Ranchero brand - with salt.

They are very crunchy, thicker than the typical tortilla chip. Very restaurant style...at least my preferred restaurant style!

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

I can't eat the stuff... my grandfather always used it as catfish bait, and the smell reminds me of those nasty smelling cheese flavored marshmallow bait things.

That said, my sister puts Velveeta into the Green Bean Casserole that she makes for Thanksgiving.

[Naftal]

I know you've seen my first foodblog and the fridge shot therein.  'Nuff said?

Yes, Velveeta is, like, totally industrial* and about as far from natural cheese as you can go and still call it cheese (the only substances beyond it are Cheez Whiz -- essential for authentic Philly cheesesteaks, say I; an abomination, say others -- and the aerosol stuff), but in certain foods, it's an essential ingredient.

Though I have become comfortable enough making macaroni and cheese using real cheese that I can forgo the Velveeta, it does have a certain comforting (oleaginous?) quality about it that for some reason the genuine article doesn't. (Edited to add: And the funny thing is, to my taste, it's actually sharper than most Cheddars -- to top it, you have to go at least to a very good extra sharp variety.)

*The folks at Sargento mock Velveeta (or is it Philadelphia Brand?) in their current TV commercials depicting boxes labeled "cheese" moving in lockstep along mazes of conveyor belts.  It's not clear to me which Kraft product they are mocking, but the label design and colors make it clear they have Kraft in mind.)

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Hello- I enjoy reading this thread. It has restored my belief that true foodies are really terrific people I realize that this may be off-thread but since it was mentioned: Does anyone remember a TV movie-host from the late 60's-early 70's for whom cheez whiz was an essential prop?

Edited August 21, 2007 by Naftal (log)

[MarketStEl]

I can't eat the stuff... my grandfather always used it as catfish bait, and the smell reminds me of those nasty smelling cheese flavored marshmallow bait things.

That said, my sister puts Velveeta into the Green Bean Casserole that she makes for Thanksgiving.

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(emphasis added)

NOOOOOOOOooooooo.....

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

I can't eat the stuff... my grandfather always used it as catfish bait, and the smell reminds me of those nasty smelling cheese flavored marshmallow bait things.

That said, my sister puts Velveeta into the Green Bean Casserole that she makes for Thanksgiving.

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(emphasis added)

NOOOOOOOOooooooo.....

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That's what I told my mom when she told me. Made me glad I never go "home" for Thanksgiving.

[viva]

I like both Velveeta and Green Bean Casserole as individuals... but together? Yeesh. Only cheap cream of mushroom soup has a place in my green bean casserole... not cheap "cheese"!

I also think a distinction needs to be drawn between the Velveeta Mac n' Cheese in a box vs. homemade with the big ass block of Velveeta made according to the good old Kraft recipe. The latter is clearly superior.

[Dejah]

Memories of 1958: arrived in Canada from China via Hong Kong - first taste of cheese - Velveeta!

Dad had the typical prairie town restaurant, and his grilled cheese sandwiches were made with the square sandwich slices, thick cut-it-yerself slice of velveeta and browned on the big grill. The bread would be golden brown with oozy cheese peeking out on all sides.Yummmm.

Then I discovered Velveeta, tomatoe and lettuce sandwiches. These would be made in the morning, kept in my lunch box, and became a googy mess on slightly soggy bread by lunch time. Sounds and looked disgusting, but I actually enjoyed them like that - for a little while. Now the thought kinda turns my stomach.

Does anyone remember the rolls of Velveet or Velveeta-like processed cheese? I remember these little round slices served on Ritz biscuits at community wedding showers. Then they came out with the squeezable tubes with the hole on the side. You poke thru' the opening with a knife, squeeze, and the cheese came out in a "decorative" swirl.

[Jaymes]

I have also been thinking (ever since the birth of this tread) that if I brown some ground meat, add some salsa and velveeta and nuke it all....that would be good too - no?

Here you go, sweet stuff:

Carnes con Queso

1 lb ground beef

1 lb chorizo (Mexican-style)

1 white or yellow onion, chopped

1 can whole tomatoes, drained

1 2-lb box Velveeta

chopped jalapenos to taste (I used the canned or jarred pickled jalapenos, "en escabeche"; often you can find them sliced, for nachos)

In a large skillet brown the meats. Drain well. Either remove the meat from the skillet and set aside, or make the sauce in a separate pan.

Coarsely chop the tomatoes and chunk the Velveeta and place in a pan along with the onions and chiles and cook slowly, simmering, until Velveeta is melted and smooth.

Stir in the meats and serve hot with tortilla chips.

Now...I used to be a huge hit at cocktail parties with this dip. Often somebody else had brought the good ol' Velveeta & salsa/Ro-Tel dip, and this is a step up, so it would disappear much more quickly, with kudos all 'round. (Not that 'dips' should be a competitive event, you understand, but still...)

I haven't made it in years, though, so if you're reading it and you're asking "what SIZE 'can of whole tomatoes'?" I'd say, good question - I don't remember. You'll just have to experiment and get back with us.

And way back then, when I was making it several times a month, there was only one kind of Velveeta, so I don't know how it would be to use one of the "Mexican" versions.

And insofar as the "heat quotient" goes, you can buy mild or hot chorizo, and you can adjust the number of jalapenos to suit your taste. I usually dumped in a small jar of the sliced jalapenos.

But this stuff is delicious.

Football season is almost upon us, you know.

Edited August 25, 2007 by Jaymes (log)

[LittleChef22]

You can't beat Velveeta, esp. for chees dip! Yum!

[MarketStEl]

I can't eat the stuff... my grandfather always used it as catfish bait, and the smell reminds me of those nasty smelling cheese flavored marshmallow bait things.

That said, my sister puts Velveeta into the Green Bean Casserole that she makes for Thanksgiving.

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(emphasis added)

NOOOOOOOOooooooo.....

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That's what I told my mom when she told me. Made me glad I never go "home" for Thanksgiving.

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Mind if I ask your race or ethnicity?

--Sandy "click the link in my prior post" Smith

[MarketStEl]

I also think a distinction needs to be drawn between the Velveeta Mac n' Cheese in a box vs. homemade with the big ass block of Velveeta made according to the good old Kraft recipe.  The latter is clearly superior.

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True.

But you'd be amazed what you can do when necessity dictates.

[viva]

Nice!

In my poor college days, I used to just add slices of American and cans of tuna and/or some tomato paste to my mine.

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

I can't eat the stuff... my grandfather always used it as catfish bait, and the smell reminds me of those nasty smelling cheese flavored marshmallow bait things.

That said, my sister puts Velveeta into the Green Bean Casserole that she makes for Thanksgiving.

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(emphasis added)

NOOOOOOOOooooooo.....

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That's what I told my mom when she told me. Made me glad I never go "home" for Thanksgiving.

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Mind if I ask your race or ethnicity?

--Sandy "click the link in my prior post" Smith

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My mother's family is Japanese-American, my father's family is Caucasian.

I don't go "home" for Thanksgiving because "home" 400 miles away, and my husband rarely gets the day after Thanksgiving off.

My sister lived in the South (Jacksonville, FL) for about 5 years, and developed a taste for things like deep fried okra, boiled peanuts, sweet tea, grits and velveeta.

We did grow up eating Kraft Mac N Cheese though... Mom used to put sliced weiners, chunks of ham, or a can of chili in it. Her sister, my late aunt Ivy, used to put 2 whole bunches of cilantro into her Kraft Mac N Cheese, turning in Mac N Cheese that made a journey to Chernobyl and back.