Made in Vermont: Vermont Cheeseless

HARDWICK, Vt. (WCAX) – Their tasty desserts look and smell like cheesecake, but they’re missing one key ingredient.

”Cheese-less cheesecake, we call it,” says Erin Shea, who owns the appropriately-named Vermont Cheeseless.

The Vermont Food Venture Center in Hardwick is home to many Vermont food producers, including this one. Shea bought the hobby business from her neighbor four years ago.

“He was selling the business, I loved the product, and I bought it on a whim,” says Shea.

Looking for change to her workday, Shea dove right in to making these gluten-free, plant-based desserts, despite having no professional culinary background.

“But, it’s also not unlike me to dive into something that I don’t know a whole lot about,” she explains.

It’s a move that didn’t come as a surprise to her kids.

“It wasn’t very out of character,” says Maya Shea, one of two twin daughters.

Maya and her sister, Isabella, have played a key role in the family business. Isabella, who is now off at school in Boston, helped Erin get the business baking. With her gone, Maya has stepped up to help.

“Before my sister left for school, she trained me on how we operate for production,” Maya explains. “Now it’s mom and I doing it.”

When there’s no reporter on site peppering them with questions, the duo will pump out 1,500 cheesecakes over three days.

“Usually we’ll make 150 pounds of crust,” says Erin, talking through the process.

They do crust, filling and freezing at the Venture Center. When that’s done, they send all of the desserts to their New Haven home kitchen to be topped.

They offer two sizes and three flavors — chocolate, raspberry and maple walnut, plus a seasonal rotation. All of them have a cashew and tofu base with no refined sugar and as many local ingredients as possible.

“Since I’ve bought this now, 53% of our ingredients come from Vermont,” says Erin. “And so that’s something I feel really passionate about.”

In addition to supporting other local businesses, Vermont Cheeseless is also supporting sweet tooths statewide. Erin says that’s the best part.

“It’s serving a niche of people that frequently tell me that they don’t have dairy-free desserts or gluten-free desserts… and this meets both of those,” she says.

You can find these cheesecakes at co-op grocery stores across the state and both the Shelburne and Waitsfield Farmers Markets in the summer months.

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