Tofu ricotta is a full-bodied, umami-rich addition to your vegan lasagna, stuffed shells, and mushroom pizzas.
It’s made with just a few ingredients in the food processor. And it comes together in only minutes. Vegan & gluten-free.
Come sit with me around the fire as we talk about the old days of veganism.
When I went vegan in 2007, vegan cheese was sold in bright orange blocks with a vaguely jell-o like texture.
If you squinted, it had the appearance of cheese…
It was less convincing once it landed in your mouth.
So instead of buying non-dairy cheeses from the natural grocery store, we’d make them at home.
There was flour-based queso for nachos.
Vegan parmesan was made in the food processor with walnuts, nutritional yeast flakes, and salt.
And vegan ricotta was made with tofu and nooch.
Now we are living in the golden age of vegan cheese.
There are high-end varieties for cheeseboards, slices for sandwiches, and shreds for tacos.
And the taste is off the charts. I’m thrilled vegan cheeses have come so far.
But you know what? Sometimes I still enjoy the old school classics like today’s tofu ricotta.
It’s like listening to The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades. Those retro hits just feel good.
Making your own vegan ricotta at home is inexpensive, convenient, really fast, and downright delicious.
It has umami-richness from miso paste, tang from lemon juice, cheesiness from nutritional yeast flakes, and a fatty edge from tahini.
Step by step instructions
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for dairy-free ricotta.
Be sure to grab a block of super firm tofu in vacuum packaging. (I use the kind sold by Wildwood or Trader Joe’s.)
Break up the following in a a food processor:
- Super firm tofu
- Miso paste
- Nutritional yeast flakes
- Lemon juice
- Tahini
- Salt
Turn the food processor to low for a few seconds.
Then scrape down the sides to incorporate anything that’s sticking.
Process for a few seconds longer.
And you’ve got tofu ricotta!
For a family of two (not including cats), I usually make a half batch of this tofu ricotta.
Just cut your block of tofu in half. And you can use what’s remaining for a vegan tofu scramble.
Make it your own
It’s easy to adjust this dairy free ricotta to suit your preferences.
Make it your own by adding:
- Fresh or dried basil
- Minced garlic or garlic powder
- Granulated onion
How to use it
Most of the time, I use tofu ricotta for vegan lasagna.
It makes a great creamy layer along with lasagna noodles, spinach, fresh basil, zucchini, and/or vegan sausage.
I like to make mine in the air fryer. It’s ready in only 30 minutes!
Use tofu ricotta to stuff shells.
Or add dollops to pizza. It’s not going to melt, obviously. But it gives body to pizza with added creaminess and cheesy flavor.
Smear vegan ricotta onto crackers or toast. It plays nice with grilled artichoke hearts, olives, olive tapenade, and/or avocado.
You can even blend the tofu cheese until smooth, roll it into balls, and turn it into a snowman cheese ball or vegan cheese balls holiday wreath!
Tofu ricotta
Ingredients
- 16 ounces super firm tofu in vacuum packaging
- 4 teaspoons white miso paste
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons tahini
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Use your hands to crumble tofu into food processor in chunks. Then add the remaining ingredients.
- Process at a low speed until everything is evenly incorporated. Stop once to scrape down the sides, so that all of the ingredients get mixed into the ricotta. You want the texture to be crumbly, not smooth. So don't over process. Time will vary depending on your food processor. However, you'll likely only need about 30 seconds.
- Remove from food processor. Use right away in pasta dishes or on pizza. Or move the tofu ricotta to a covered container, and refrigerate until you're ready to use it.
Pixie A Vincent
“Come sit with me around the fire as we talk about the old days of veganism.” lol I could tell some stories, as well! One of my nursing babies couldn’t tolerate me consuming dairy at all in 1994. I was already vegetarian, but now I had more things to figure out. Silk brand didn’t even exist in our grocery stores – in fact, I’d never seen it anywhere, or heard of it before a new refrigerated shelf showed up with White Wave products in it years later. The aseptic packages on the shelf of soymilk were so thick and strong tasting that I couldn’t stand them on cereal and would put apple-berry juice on it instead for the first year or so. Eventually, we discovered that if you thinned it with water half and half that the flavor was okay. The “cheese” available was so awful that I chose to go without anything that needed it. And recipes? Vegan cookbooks were not in mainstream bookstores. Internet and blogs? Nope. We didn’t even have dial up at our house until 1999! Even if we had, there weren’t blogs yet. I found a few plant-based cookbooks at a Christian bookstore. Most of the recipes were labor intensive and weren’t amazing for all of that work. It was out of this culture that I learned I had to think outside of the box and not follow the “rules” home ec. class had demanded were unassailable, creating my own recipes. My family deserved it. This is the culture that allowed people to invent cashew cream, tofu ricotta like this recipe, and more, and eventually things such as aquafaba of all craziness! lol The inner cry for tasty, exciting food and sharing the new recipes birthed vegan recipe blogs. I’m thankful for your blog, Cadry, and all the good stuff you share with us!
Cadry
Thanks, Pixie! It is truly amazing the strides that have been made – especially in recent years. Now there are so many vegan products on the shelves, there’s no hope of even trying all of them. And like you said, we’ve all learned so much about what a person can do with cashews & aquafaba, it makes home cooking a lot more interesting. Who knows what more will be discovered!
Susan
Oh, the old days of veganism! We had this tube of cheese you could get in supermarkets and it was… well, what it was. LOL Now there are so many other options! But when it comes to ricotta, I love a good solid tofu version. Easy to make and oh so tasty.
Cadry
Haha! Yes, if only we could use a time machine to go back to those days, and give ourselves some seitan bacon or cashew cheese… Admittedly, there are probably more advantageous ways of using the powers of a time machine. But none more satisfying to the palate!
I’m glad you agree with me on the joys of tofu ricotta. Easy, fast, tasty, and inexpensive! Some of the classics pass muster.
Shell
This looks very easy, delicious and versatile!
Cadry
Thanks, Shell!