The best tasting vegan cashew ricotta cheese recipe made with raw cashews, lemon and garlic. Extra creamy and luscious, only 5 ingredients and perfect for lasagna or to spoon over a thick piece of bruschetta!
Cover the cashews with hot water and soak for 20 minutes. Drain and rinse and transfer them to a powerful blender or food processor. (If using a Vitamix or another extra powerful blender you can skip the soaking )
Blend the cashews together with the water, lemon juice, garlic and sea salt until smooth and creamy.
Transfer the ricotta to a bowl, cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours until chilled and thick or serve right away. You can spoon over bruschetta or use in lasagna and for other pasta dishes. Keeps well in the fridge for about five days.
WFPB + Plantricious
Notes
For a Dessert Style Ricotta to be used in cannoli and other sweets, just omit the garlic, onion and sea salt; sweeten to taste with maple syrup or powder sugar instead. I used it to make these little Pumpkin Cheesecakes over the holidays and they were a major hit with everyone.
To make Cashew Cream for savory uses, follow the same recipe and stretch it out a bit with more lemon juice or water until desired consistency and tanginess is achieved.
If planning to serve this on a cheese Board I suggest lining a sieve with cheese cloth, transfer the ricotta, tie the pouch and place to drain over a bowl in the refrigerator for a couple of hours or overnight. This will yield a dryer but still super creamy vegan ricotta can serve sprinkled with fresh basil, thyme, chives, some lemon zest + a drizzle of good evoo. It's lovely spooned over crostini or crackers.
On Storage - Cashew ricotta can be stored in the refrigerator up to 5 days or frozen in freezer proof lidded containers up to 4 months.