I never thought vegan ricotta cheese could taste so good – until now. Friends, let’s make 5-ingredient vegan cheese!
Origins of Ricotta
Ricotta is a soft, mild “cheese” popular in Italian cuisine and used in dishes such as ravioli, lasagna, tortellini, and crepes. It’s believed to have roots dating back to ancient history (source).
But did you know that ricotta is not technically cheese (source)?! We were surprised too! It’s actually made from whey, which is a by-product of cheese making.
Either way, we love its taste and versatility, but wanted to make a dairy-free version for those who can’t or choose not to consume dairy products!
How to Make Vegan Ricotta
The base for this seriously easy 1-blender, 10-minute ricotta is blanched slivered almonds. Because they’ve already been soaked and the skins removed, the almonds don’t need to be soaked before blending! Time = saved. In fact, I tried soaking them and didn’t like the end product nearly as much.
Because ricotta doesn’t typically have an intense cheesy flavor, the only additions it needs are nutritional yeast for a little cheesiness, lemon juice for tang, salt for saltiness, and a dash of garlic powder for depth of flavor.
Once blended, the “ricotta” is ready to go! Or you can set it in a cheesecloth and set it in the refrigerator to chill and harden a bit more. But if you’re in a hurry, the finished product is ready like that (in just 10 minutes)!
I hope you all LOVE this almond ricotta! It’s:
Creamy
Tangy
Cheesy
Satisfying
Versatile
Easy to make
& SO delicious
Add this ricotta to things like my Zucchini Lasagna, My Favorite Vegan Pizza, or Stuffed Shells! It would also make a delicious addition to things like my Lentil Bolognese Sauce to make the sauce creamier and cheesier. YUM.
For more vegan “cheese,” check out our Easy Garlic & Herb Vegan Cheese, Spicy Pimento Cheese Ball, 5-Minute Macadamia Nut Cheese, Easy Vegan Mozzarella Cheese,” and 30-Minute Cashew Alfredo!
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Whipped Almond Ricotta (5 Ingredients!)
Ingredients
- 2 cups slivered blanched almonds*
- 2-3 tsp nutritional yeast (plus more to taste)
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 – 3/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 dash garlic powder
- 3/4 – 1 cup water
- 2-3 Tbsp fresh basil, oregano, or parsley (optional)
Instructions
- Add all ricotta ingredients (starting with the lesser amount of water (3/4 cup/180 ml and salt (1/2 tsp) as original recipe is written) to a high-speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy, scraping down sides as needed (~2 minutes). You are looking for a well-puréed mixture with only very small bits of almonds intact. Add a bit more water a little at a time if the mixture is having a hard time blending until smooth.
- Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more salt for overall flavor, nutritional yeast for cheesiness, and lemon juice for acidity. For even more flavor, you can add in some fresh basil, oregano, or parsley (optional).
- At this point, the “cheese” is ready to enjoy, especially in dishes like Lasagna, Pizza, or Stuffed Shells. However, it can also be wrapped in cheesecloth, formed into a ball, and placed into a fine mesh strainer set over a mixing bowl up to 3 days. This will allow the “cheese” to firm up a bit. However, this is optional. You can also transfer straight from blender to a storage container and refrigerate.
- Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator up to 5-7 days.
Notes
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
*Recipe adapted from Hot For Food.
*Recipe makes ~2 cups ricotta.
Heather says
Can you bake with this vegan ricotta?
Yes, it works beautifully in lasagna! Is there something specific you’re hoping to make? It may not behave like dairy ricotta in all recipes.
Betty Ching says
Not sure if I missed something, but ingredients list almonds. but your notes say you haven’t tried this with any other nuts besides macadamia. Did you use almonds or macadamia?
Thank you.
Sorry for the confusion, Betty! What we mean by that is that other than almonds, we’ve only tested with macadamia nuts. Though we’ve now also made a cashew version, so that should be updated :)
Claire Nash says
I just made this for the Lentil Eggplant Lasagne and wish I had made more. Its absolutely delicious! I included basil and got my son to taste it as well (he’s not a fan of ricotta) and he enjoyed the taste, likening it to pesto (which he loves).
Amazing! We’re so glad you both enjoyed it, Claire. Thank you for the lovely review! xo
tricia says
Can we bake with this ricotta recipe? I am looking to make a dairy free lemon ricotta cake.
Hi Tricia, we haven’t tried it in sweet recipes, but we think it should work!
Sarah says
I’ve used this recipe a couple of times, this last time I was using it for a stuffed ravioli and I decided to use ground almonds to save some dishes and time and it worked out perfectly.
Amazing! Thank you for sharing, Sarah! xo
Pix says
Hi, what can I use instead of nutritional yeast ?
Hi, you can leave it out!
Miranda says
You can probably use white miso paste or mushroom powder to bring in an umami/cheesy flavor.
LAF says
Amazingly delicious and easy to make! Goodbye cashew cheese…
We’re so glad you enjoy the recipe! xo
Chloe Webster says
Really delicious recipe! We didn’t have any blanched almonds, so used almond flour instead and worked really well.
Amazing! Thank you for sharing, Chloe! xo
Greg says
Hi! Can I double this? Will it still come out the same? Or should I run one batch and then another? Please let me know. Thanks so much!
Hi Greg, we recommend making this in batches for the best results!
Carole says
Cooking for a vegan recipient with Lasagna Love helped me push out of my comfort zone and try this. I only had cashews in the pantry, so I used those. Oh my goodness, this was so easy and TASTY!! It worked perfectly in the dish. Thank you!
Woohoo! Thanks, Carole!
Kelly says
I made this with cashew pieces and can confirm it comes out great, too. Note, I didn’t soak the cashews, and maybe it’s because they’re pieces it came out okay. But I also have a Vitamix blender, so that probably also makes a difference.
Anyhow, my old favorite dairy-based lasagna recipe has been resurrected to a vegan favorite now. Thank you.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kelly. Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Wendy says
Would I be able to use the same amount of almond flour, blanched, as the almond slivers?
Hi Wendy, we haven’t tried it with almond flour, but other readers have reported it works. They’ve mentioned using an equal amount of almond flour. Let us know if you try it!
Rahbyn DiFranco says
I had a little trouble pureeing. Took a little longer but my blender is old. I was also going slowly as this was my first attempt. It turned out great! I’m making vegan ravioli with vegan pasta dough.
We’re so glad it worked out! Thanks so much for sharing, Rahbyn!
Laura W says
I really liked this recipe! I made this to put in a vegan/gluten free lasagna to accommodate my friends with dietary restrictions. I am not vegan nor gluten free, but I really loved this as a ricotta replacement. I have made it twice and the first time I used slivered almonds as the recipe states, but the second time I used dry-roasted marcona almonds. The slivered almonds definitely had a better result. The marcona almonds were not bad, but you could definitely tell they were roasted almonds because it had a more toasty flavor. If I make this again I will use the slivered almonds. Overall a great alternative to traditional ricotta!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Laura! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
nadine plingos says
Whoops. Just saw that you can’t freeze.
nadine plingos says
This is fabulous. I used the pulp left over from making almond milk in the Almond Cow. It tastes really good. I am going to freeze a new batch today. I am not sure how it will be once thawed. Has anyone else tried to freeze this???
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Nadine! Thanks so much for the lovely review. We don’t think this would freeze well, but if you give it a try, we would love to hear how it goes!