A fantastic plant-based alternative for ricotta cheese using tofu and slivered almonds. An ideal addition in lasagna, stuffed pasta shells, casseroles, blintzes, and dips.
This plant-based ricotta recipe is super easy and super quick.
It only uses five ingredients, featuring slivered almonds, firm tofu, unsweetened plant milk, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice.
Plus, it literally takes about five minutes to make – three minutes to gather your ingredients and about two minutes to plug in your food processor to process the ricotta mixture.
It doesn’t get much simpler than that.
This may be simple and easy, but the results are fantastic!
The trick is to use slivered almonds. Since the almonds are blanched, the skins are removed. The finished product is a softer more tender almond. And that results in a much better texture and consistency for this ricotta.
If you aren’t able to find or use slivered almonds, you can use raw almonds. The color may be slightly darker, with speckles of brown mixed throughout. But that depends a lot on your blender or food processor.
Allergy note: If you’re unable to use almonds, I recommend using soaked raw cashews, hemp hearts, or hulled raw sunflower seeds – any of these should work similarly, though the texture, flavor, and color may vary.
Seriously, this Almond Tofu Ricotta makes the best Classic Vegan Stuffed Shells, is great in my Zucchini Lasagna and Classic Lasagna, and the not-so-secret ingredient in my Vegetable and Potato Breakfast Casserole (recipe posting soon!!).
Essentially, this Almond Tofu Ricotta can be used as a great substitute any time a recipe calls for ricotta. Simply add in whatever spices, seasonings, or herbs needed to vary the flavors for the recipe.
It even works great in sweet treats and dessert recipes like cannolis and Cheese Blintzes. Though you may want to process the Almond Tofu Ricotta just a touch longer to get a slightly smoother texture and consistency.
I hope you enjoy this Almond Tofu Ricotta as much as I do.
I would love to see your results! Please leave a comment and rate it down below, tag a picture @pebblesandtoast and #pebblesandtoast on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook! Enjoy!!
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Ingredients
- 1½ cups slivered almonds*
- 1 cup plant milk
- 8 ounces firm tofu
- 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Salt to taste (optional
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a food processor or high-speed blender.
- If using a food processor, process for 60-90 seconds. If using a high-speed blender, turn the knob to medium power (setting 5-6 on Vitamix) for 60-90 seconds. Use the tamper as needed. Blend or pulse until the almonds are broken down and finely chopped but not smooth. Taste the mixture to ensure the almonds aren’t too course. The mixture should resemble ricotta – not chunky or crunchy, but not too smooth.
- Adjust seasonings to taste.
Notes
* Any raw almonds may be used; however slivered almonds don’t have their skin on, which results in a creamier and prettier finished ricotta product. Cashews also work great if you can’t have almonds. If you can’t have nuts, hemp hearts or hulled raw sunflower seeds should work. Though this may alter the texture, flavor, and color of the ricotta.
Almond Ricotta (plant-based)
Equipment
- food processor
Ingredients
- 1½ cups slivered almonds*
- 1 cup plant milk
- 8 ounces firm tofu drained
- 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Salt to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor or high-speed blender.
- If using a food processor, process for 60-90 seconds. If using a high-speed blender, turn the knob to medium power (setting 5-6 on Vitamix) for 60-90 seconds. Use the tamper as needed. Blend or pulse until the almonds are broken down and finely chopped but not smooth. Taste the mixture to ensure the almonds aren’t too course. The mixture should resemble ricotta – not chunky or crunchy, but not too smooth.
- Adjust seasonings to taste.
Hi Richele – I love the idea of using almonds in this recipe you created. You’ve provided yet another healthy alternative to dairy, and almonds are loaded with calcium! Here’s a link to a comprehensive review of the latest research on dairy – https://www.drmirkin.com/nutrition/milk-is-not-essential-for-health.html
Jessica, thank you!! This plant-based ricotta contains loads of healthy fats and nutrients. And it’s versatile so it can complement most recipes well. And thank you so much for sharing this article about milk. I appreciate that they list that there is no evidence of us requiring the USDA-recommended amounts of milk. I’ve always been allergic to dairy so I’ve had to either do without, suffer the consequences, or adapt. Now that I avoid meat/dairy altogether as a lifestyle, I’ve learned that most food is extremely versatile and can be used in many different ways – plus, it’s fun to try different things. 😉