Cashew ‘Ricotta’ Cheese
Vegan Cashew Cheese – Thick and creamy, this versatile cashew ricotta cheese is ready in as little as 10 minutes and tastes fantastic! It’s the best vegan ricotta ever and can be used anywhere ricotta is called for!
As vegans and those eating a plant-based diet, you will be thrilled to have this easy, vegan cheese in your culinary library! I absolutely love this stuff and so does everyone else who tries it, vegan or not!
Why We Love This Recipe!
Vegan cashew ricotta cheese tastes just like the ricotta I was accustomed to for many years before becoming vegan. It’s soy-free (no tofu) and a simple recipe with lots of possibilities. You can add your own tastes to this basic cheese by adding herbs and spices.
The ingredients for this vegan ricotta cheese are very common making it a great basic recipe for anyone starting out experimenting with vegan nut cheeses. Make yourself some fresh cashew ricotta cheese and taste and feel the difference compared to processed cheese products. You will not be disappointed!
- Quick and easy to make
- Healthy, dairy-free option
- WFPB
- Clean eating
- & So incredibly delicious!
Use this vegan ricotta in Lasagna, Manicotti, or Stuffed Shells, as a topper for crackers or as a spread for sandwiches. I’ve even used it in a Persimmon Ricotta Scone recipe that came out wonderful (I omitted the pepper, onion powder, and garlic). You can use this with a few adjustments for any recipe that calls for ricotta.
If you are allergic to nuts or want a lower fat and calorie option, try this Tofu Ricotta.
How To Make Cashew Ricotta Cheese
Step 1: It’s best to soak your cashews in water before starting. There are 2 ways to soak:
- Soak cashews in cool water for 2 – 3 hours, drain, and rinse (this method is best for digestion).
- For a quick method of soaking, let cashews sit in hot water for 5 minutes, drain, rinse, and continue with the recipe.
Why soak cashews? Soaking will help soften the cashews by plumping them up with water and helps the cashews blend easily. Soaking is also said to be beneficial for digestion and mineral & vitamin absorption. If you’re in a hurry, you can still make this cashew ricotta cheese successfully without soaking. You just may need to add a bit more water while blending.
Step 2: Next, place cashews, water, lemon juice/apple cider vinegar, garlic, onion powder, salt, and pepper in a food processor/blender and blend until creamy. Place in a covered container and refrigerate until ready to use. You can also use it right away in any recipe calling for ricotta cheese.
And that’s it, vegan cashew ricotta cheese made easy and delicious!
How To Use Vegan Ricotta
You may find yourself eating it right out of the bowl. Enjoy everywhere you would use ricotta cheese!
- Served as is, vegan ricotta is great smeared on crackers with fruit.
- Use it in Vegetable Vegan Lasagna or Simple Lasagna and Asparagus
- Use it for stuffing, like these Cheese Manicotti, Spinach Vegan Stuffed Shells, or Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells
- It’s wonderful in this Zucchini Ricotta Pasta with Basil + Mint
- Use in baking for these Ricotta Persimmon Scones
How To Store + Freeze
- Refrigerator: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days in a covered container.
- Freezer: Cashew ricotta is freezer-friendly and can stored in freezer-safe containers for up to two 2 months.
More Kitchen Basics Recipes!
If you try this vegan ricotta, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintCASHEW ‘RICOTTA’ CHEESE
A fabulous replacement for traditional ricotta. Use it anywhere you would use ricotta. This will be a welcome addition to your plant-based lifestyle!
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: Makes 2 Cups, Serves 8 1x
- Category: Condiment
- Method: blend
- Cuisine: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, soaked
- 1/2 cup water
- juice of 1 large lemon or 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 – 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, optional
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- himalayan sea salt & cracked pepper, to taste
Instructions
Soak Cashews: First, it’s best to soak your cashews in water before starting. There are 2 ways to soak:
- Soak cashew in cool water for at least 2 hours in a bowl of water, covering the cashews about 2 – 3 inches of water as they will swell up.
- For a quick method of soaking, let cashews sit in hot water for 5 minutes.
Blend: Drain cashews and place all remaining ingredients into a blender or food processor, process until creamy stopping to scrape down the sides every few minutes. Taste for flavors adding any additional ingredients. Some like a salty ricotta so feel free to add as much salt as you want.
Chill: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for an hour or two, this will stiffen the mixture a bit. You can also prepare your dish straight away without refrigeration if needed. Refrigeration will thicken the mixture a bit. If it becomes too thick, add a tad of water and mix well.
Store: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a 5 – 6 days. To keep longer, store in the freezer for up to 2 months in a freezer safe container. Let thaw in the refrigerator. Give a good stir before using.
Makes approx. 2 cups
Serves 8 – 1/4 cup per serving
Notes
You could do just as well without the nutritional yeast if you don’t have it. I only added a small amount, probably pretty unnoticeable. I will be trying more next time to play around with it a bit. If you do add it, it will add a bit more cheesy flavor and some good nutritional value.
If you have trouble with the mixture blending on it’s own try this because it’s too thick, add a little extra water.
Allergic to nuts or want to keep it lower in fat and calories, try this Tofu Ricotta.
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The simplicity of this recipe is genius. What would happen if I don’t add the nutritional yeast?
Hi Lisa, great question! I never use it personally when making this, it tastes great without, but it may add a little extra flavor and nutrition. So you can experiment with it if you like, as it is just an option. Enjoy!
Hi Julie, I initially used this recipe in an eggplant dish because I didn’t have any regular ricotta. Now I use it because I prefer it in some dishes. I keep raw cashews on hand just to use in this. Thanks so much for sharing.
So glad you love this too! It’s amazing how much it an replace ricotta. Thank you so much for the comment! Cheers :)
Hi, I just made the receipt but I want to know can I freeze it?
Yes, you can freeze it for up to 2 months in a freezer safe container. Enjoy :)
I just made this recipe this afternoon. I used 1/4 tsp garlic granules in place of fresh garlic, the AC vinegar, and a full 2 T of nutritional yeast. I then made a pizza and used this with fresh vegetables. Amazing! Its my first time ever having a nut cheese — got interested as I saw a photo of a pizza made with some and thought what’s the worst that can happen? The worst is that I now have a new recipe that I expect to make often. Thank you so much!
Hi, what is serving size? I mean how much it is? :)
Each serving size is about 1/4 cup.
You are my hero. Every recipe that I read tells me how amazing it is going to be and how I’ll never know that it’s vegan…but they lie!! Haha! This is so incredibly delicious it really and truly will be able to satisfy my desire for cheese. I just made it and stuffed some shells with it. It was amazing! I can’t thank you enough! You win!
Well, thank you! lol Yep, cashews are pretty darn amazing. Who would’ve ever thought. So glad you loved it, makes my day! Cheers :)
I’m a new vegan and my experience with nutritional yeast has not gone well. But THIS was absolutely delicious. I might have overblended it a bit so now it’s more like whipped cheese, but I seriously want to eat it with a spoon!
I have to come back again. Two days later, this ricotta is about the best thing to ever happen to me. I DO NOT have the words to describe just how good this is as the cheese on a portobello mushroom pizza cap. Also delicious as topping for a baked sweet potato. I put it in homemade ravioli on Sunday and my husband went to work the next day and told all his coworkers.
This is also great in a vegan Pasta alla Norma. I follow Mary Taylor Simeti‘s recipe, but substitute this vegan ricotta for the dairy ricotta. A vegan spin on a classic from the beautiful east side of Sicily. Everyone thought it was fantastic. Thank you for the wonderful vegan ricotta recipe!
This was delicious. I put together the recipe and added it to a package of tofu that I needed to use up. Blended it together as much as possible so it was thick and creamy. I added extra salt, onion powder, and nutritional yeast to make up for the flavorless tofu, and it came out superb. It was actually superb without the tofu, but I needed to use it up; so next time I’ll make it without the tofu. It is sooooo good, and provides a soy-free alternative. Thank you!
We would love to make this for Miss 21 (almost vegan) but Miss 23 (almost vegetarian) is allergic to cashews (and pistachios) what could we substitute instead, especially as most vegan dishes use cashew cream for protein, what could we substitute in savory dishes and/or sweet. Thank you.
Sorry just saw Jennifer M’s comment above, might try substituting Almonds :) but any other suggestions would still be appreciated. :)
I would suggest blanched almonds. Enjoy!
I saw another recipe for almonds so I think that would also work.
I am so glad I found this! I recently went dairy free and was able to make lasagna with this cashew ricotta cheese. It was amazing!