Oh a whim, I decided to make lasagna last week. It was a cold, dreary day, and I was seriously craving some comfort food – and lasagna is my comfort food of choice!
The only thing standing in my way of a delicious pan of hot lasagna was that I didn’t have any cheese to use. I only had a bit of Daiya shreds left (and I don’t like to eat much processed food, so I keep my Daiya consumption to a minimum, even though it’s delicious!), so that wouldn’t work.
After a bit of pondering, I figured I’d make my vegan ricotta cheese to spread throughout the lasagna. Thankfully, I had already soaked some cashews early that morning to use for something at lunch, which I never ended up making, so I used those cashews to make the cheese.
It came together so easily, and in no time flat. After making this in my food processor, I scooped the ricotta into an air-tight container and let it sit in the fridge for about 20 minutes, while I prepared the lasagna noodles and marinara sauce. This gave the ricotta ingredients a bit more time to marinate.
This cheese spreads on lasagna very well, but – it’s not just for lasagna! Use this ricotta as a dip, spread on crackers, or even add a dollop to your salad. It’s very versatile. Any way you choose to eat it, this cheese is incredible!
- 2 cups raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours, then drained
- 2 garlic cloves
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ cup plain non-dairy milk (I used soy)
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tbsp dried basil
- ⅓ cup fresh chives
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ½ tsp salt
- Add soaked cashews, garlic, emon juice, non-dairy milk, maple syrup, oil, basil, and chives to your food processor.
- Process until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary. If your ricotta is too dry, add a bit more non-dairy milk. It took me about 5 minutes to process my cheese until it was smooth enough for me.
- Season with salt & pepper, to taste.
*You can use agave instead of maple syrup.
*You can use apple cider vinegar instead of lemon juice.
erin from canada says
February 16, 2017 at 9:14 AMThis is my go-to recipe for non-dairy ricotta! My Sicilian stepfather didn’t even know the difference in a lasagna! 😉
Always a hit! Only change we make to the recipe, is we add 2 tbsp nutritional yeast.
Alison says
February 1, 2017 at 11:56 AMHave been vegetarian for a few years, but am committed to becoming a vegan. I wanted to make a zucchini lasagna, but did not want to use dairy. Found your recipe and O. M G. ! It is delicious, and the lasagna is the best. Thank you soooo much!
Michelle says
December 28, 2016 at 3:45 PMWhere do you buy your raw cashews??
Ron says
December 22, 2016 at 10:06 AMHow many days will the vegan ricotta cheese last in fridge ?
Sharon Wegner says
December 11, 2016 at 7:12 PMI’m looking for an alternative to ricotta for cannoli filing, which is sweet rather than savory. Would this work?
Erin says
December 31, 2016 at 9:02 AMWell I am not completely sure. If you try it I would suggest unsalted cashews and be sure to soak them over night not boil them. Better texture.
I also would not put in garlic, chives or basil. It does have a pretty good texture if you mix it in a food processor long enough. If you make it please repost here. I would love to try it if it works. I love this recipe!
Tammy says
August 16, 2016 at 7:58 AMWould this hold up in a spinach and “ricotta” cannelloni? I tried making it with a store bought vegan ricotta but it turned into melted cheese where as normal ricotta doesn’t really melt… So I’m just wondering if this melts?
Daureen says
June 29, 2016 at 11:05 AMWould a high-speed blender work as well? I don’t have a food processor. Can this cheese be kept in the freezer?
Skye says
July 24, 2016 at 11:40 AMHi! I tried this with a high speed blender just now (I have a Blendtec) and it got way too liquidy, so most likely either you’d have to pulse it in the blender or get a food processor (I have a mini one, but was too lazy to get it out since I rarely use it haha…whoops :P) There’s a lot of relatively cheap but good ones on amazon (~$20-$35) so there’s always that option 🙂
Lynn says
April 24, 2016 at 11:00 PMWonderful substitute for the ricotta in a freezer Alfredo lasagna I was making. Loved just eating it on crackers too! Thanks for the recipe!!
Cassie says
April 25, 2016 at 5:40 AMYou’re so welcome!
Diana says
December 1, 2015 at 8:41 PMThanks for this easy recipe! Used in lasagna and people couldn’t believe it wasn’t dairy ricotta. It’s been added to my Foodfolio 🙂
Mike says
November 1, 2015 at 12:52 PMTried this last night in a lasagna soup recipe. The only thing I did differently was boiled the cashews for 10 minutes, which I read as a cheat/tip on another vegan website, instead of the hours of soaking. It was my first attempt at a vegan ricotta and I have to say I was super impressed with how flavorful and how close to the dairy version this tastes. We absolutely loved it! Thanks so much for sharing.
Suzanne says
October 11, 2015 at 10:08 PMThis recipe is just what I was looking for. I’m making a roasted vegetable galette (free-form tart) and I used to use feta back when I ate cheese. I was looking for something to dollop on the top of the tart before baking, to give it a cheese-like taste. This will be perfect! And I can think of lots of other possibilities with this recipe as well!
Gail says
October 7, 2015 at 6:14 PMTYPO
Leila says
August 21, 2015 at 9:10 PMAmazing. Love it. Thank you for sharing your inspired recipe.
Desiree says
May 14, 2015 at 7:11 PMHi, how long will this keep for if I make a big batch to refrigerate?
Cassie says
May 15, 2015 at 12:08 AM3-5 days.
how to trade forex says
August 16, 2014 at 5:53 PMThanks for the auspicious writeup. It in truth used to be a amusement account
it. Look complex to far introduced agreeable from you!
By the way, how can we keep up a correspondence?