This homemade Vegan Ricotta Cheese Recipe uses slivered almonds — rather than tofu or cashew nuts — for a wonderfully creamy, thick plant-based ricotta. Use it on its own as a dip, added to lasagna, as a ravioli filling, dolloped on pizza, and so many other ways. It’s made in 5 minutes with just 5 simple ingredients in a high-powered blender.

White ceramic bowl filled with vegan ricotta, garnished with basil leaves. On a wood background with garlic, lemon, crackers, and nutritional yeast around the outside.

Are you a ricotta lover? I have been a big fan always, much before my vegan days — I’ve always loved the luscious creaminess that it adds to a good gluten-free pasta recipe and how it tastes dolloped on pizza. Naturally, it was something I missed when I changed my diet and started making all easy plant-based diet recipes. Since ricotta cheese is traditionally made with whey, a by-product of making cheese, it’s definitely not naturally vegan or dairy-free!

Thankfully, it’s easy to make a vegan substitute for ricotta cheese, and in my opinion, it tastes just as good as the original! It works so deliciously to make vegan lasagna with vegan ricotta cheese. We love that this vegan almond ricotta recipe is made in less than 10 minutes with just 5 ingredients! Between this and my favorite creamy vegan cashew cheese sauce, I’m in vegan cheese heaven.

Wood background with slivered almonds in a white ceramic bowl, nutritional yeast, garlic, and lemon around the board.

What you need to make dairy-free ricotta cheese:

  • Silvered Blanched Almonds: blanched is important here, as it helps keep the ricotta nice and white. If your almonds aren’t blanched, you’ll have flecks of the brown skin throughout. You can aso use cashews if preferred!
  • Lemon Juice or Apple Cider Vinegar: I generally go with lemon juice, but ACV also works if you don’t have lemons or prefer the flavor. They each as a slightly different kind of tanginess, but both turn out deliciously! You can also use a combination of both for a good balance of flavors – if you do that, go with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon ACV, and then adjust to your tastes.
  • Nutritional Yeast: a favorite for vegan cheeses for a reason! It helps add a delicious cheesy flavor to your vegan ricotta.
  • Garlic Cloves: not traditional, so leave out if you don’t want a garlicky flavor, but I love the extra flavor it adds when you’re adding this ricotta to something like lasagna, baked ziti, or pizza. You can also use roasted garlic. But definitely leave this out if you plan on using the ricotta for something on the sweeter side, like pancakes.
  • Sea Salt: adds a ton of flavor and really takes things from “almond-y” to savory and cheesy.
  • Water: just to help us get to the right, creamy consistency. The amount you use will depend on how thick or creamy you want your ricotta to be, and whether your nuts were soaked before blending or not.

Should I soak the almonds? If you’re using a high-powered blender, you don’t need to soak the almonds. If you have a weaker blender or are using a food processor, soaking the almonds in hot water for 30 minutes before blending and using can help make a creamier ricotta.

Metal Vitamix Blender container filled with sliced almonds, nutritional yeast, salt, lemon, and garlic.

How to make vegan ricotta:

We love a recipe so easy, it barely needs steps! To make this…

Step One: combine all of the ingredients in the blender, starting with the low amount of water, and blend until it comes together, about two to three minutes. I recommend using the tamper on your blender to help keep things going, or scrape down the sides often.

Step Two: Once it comes together, add more water as needed/desired, taste, and add more lemon/garlic/salt as you’d like to get to the flavor you’re after. That’s it!

Can I use this for sweet recipes? Yes, you can! If you plan on using this in a cake or other sweet application, just skip the garlic and nutritional yeast and use it wherever ricotta is called for.

How do I store vegan ricotta?

Refrigerator: If you’re not using it immediately, transfer it to a lidded jar and keep it in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Freezer: You can also store it in the freezer in an air-tight container for up to 3 months. When ready to use, transfer to the fridge for a few hours or overnight to thaw before using.

White ceramic bowl filled with vegan ricotta, garnished with basil leaves and drizzled with olive oil. On a wood background with garlic, lemon, flaky salt, and crackers around the outside.

Tips for the best vegan ricotta:

  • A high-powered blender helps get things super creamy, so if you have one, I definitely recommend using it.
  • If you don’t have a high-powered blender, be sure to soak your nuts first. It’s not necessary when using a high-powered blender, but if not, it will help you get the creamiest result!
  • Don’t skimp on the seasonings: lemon or ACV really helps bring out the tanginess, and a good amount of salt brings out the flavor.
  • Use this in any recipe that calls for ricotta! It’s so versatile and delicious.
White ceramic bowl filled with vegan ricotta, garnished with basil leaves and drizzled with olive oil. Cracker spread with vegan ricotta being held over the bowl.

My favorite ways to use almond ricotta:

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Creamy Vegan Almond Ricotta

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  • Author: Rachel Conners
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Yield: 1½ cups 1x
  • Category: Condiments
  • Method: Blender
  • Cuisine: Vegan
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

This homemade Vegan Ricotta Cheese Recipe uses slivered almonds — rather than tofu or cashew nuts — for a wonderfully creamy, thick plant-based ricotta. Use it on its own as a dip, added to lasagna, as a ravioli filling, dolloped on pizza, and so many other ways. It’s made in 5 minutes with just 5 simple ingredients in a high-powered blender.


Ingredients

Scale
  •  cups slivered blanched almonds or raw cashews
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice or 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 2 garlic cloves or 6 cloves roasted garlic (leave out for more neutral ricotta)
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
  • ½ to ¾ cup water

Instructions

  1. Add all ingredients, starting with ⅓ cup water, to a high-speed blender. Blend until smooth and creamy, scraping down sides as needed (~2 minutes). It should be well pureed and not chunky. If the mixture needs some help blending, add more of the water, a little at a time, until you’ve reached a thick, creamy texture. Use the tamper to help the mixture blend, if needed.
  2. Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more salt for overall flavor, nutritional yeast for cheesiness, and lemon juice for acidity.
  3. Use immediately, or transfer to an airtight container or jar and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

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