How to make the best vegan Tofu Ricotta – a healthy, nut-free, low calorie, zero cholesterol alternative to ricotta cheese, perfect for lasagna, cannelloni, and other baked dishes where you want a creamy, “cheesy” texture.
Helloooooooo FIVE minute, nut-free, VEGAN ricotta! This vegan Tofu Ricotta Recipe is sooooooo easy to make and is great in baked dishes like lasagna, cannelloni or even enchiladas or chile rellenos. It is surprisingly flavorful and has great ricotta-like texture, without the calories of nut “cheeses”. The texture mimics whole milk ricotta very closely, and the ingredient list is short!
Feel free to add different fresh herbs to the basic recipe to customize it- for example, if going Mexican or using this for enchiladas or chile rellenos, add fresh cilantro or Mexican oregano instead of basil. It’s very adaptable!
How to make vegan Tofu Ricotta:
It starts with a 14 ounce block of firm tofu. Do not use silken tofu.
Just drain it, and place it and the remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse.
That’s it. It’s done.
It will be creamy, with a ricotta-like texture.
Here I’ve added fresh basil to the vegan tofu ricotta, to use in lasagna.
But you could use a different herb based on what it is going in. For example, in Mexican dishes , I’ll sub fresh oregano or cilantro.
It’s is very adaptable!
Use vegan tofu ricotta in No Boil Mushroom Baked Ziti with Spinach
or in these Zucchini Rolls with Spinach and Basil
or in this Roasted Chile Relleno Recipe!
This recipe for vegan Tofu Ricotta is so easy and surprisingly delicious!
Vegan Tofu Ricotta
Vegan Tofu Ricotta – a healthy, nut-free, low-calorie alternative to ricotta cheese, perfect for lasagna, cannelloni, and other baked dishes!
- Prep Time: 6 mins
- Total Time: 6 mins
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
- Category: vegan
- Method: Blended
- Cuisine: gluten free
Ingredients
- 14 ounces tofu, firm, drained.
- 1 garlic clove
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- small handful fresh herbs- basil, Italian parsley, cilantro, chives, scallions or use 1 teaspoon herbs de Provence, Italian herbs or even dried oregano!
- 2 tablespoons olive oil add more for extra richness
- optional addition : 1-3 teaspoons nutritional yeast (gives it a “cheesy” flavor, other spices)
Instructions
Drain the tofu, ( no need to press it dry) break it up with your hands and place it, along with the other ingredients in a food processor.
Pulse repeated until combined well and coarsely ground, but not totally smooth.
That’s it!
Use it like you wold ricotta cheese- great in lasagna, manicotti, etc…
Notes
Herb options:
- For Italian dishes try basil, oregano or Italian parsley
- For Mexican, try cilantro or Mexican Oregano
- For French, thyme, chives or Herbs de Provence
- For a smoky flavor: add 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
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Just out of curiosity, why does silken tofu not work for this recipe?
You can use it but it will not have that ricotta-like texture ( which is more granular) like regular tofu will give it.
Thank you for this amazing idea! Tonight I made the ricotta. I caramelized mushrooms and then added the garlic to that and cooked it a min then added fresh spinach and cooked a few minutes. Then added it all to the food processor. Made stuffed shells with it. OMG so fantastic!!!
This is such a great idea! thanks I may use it!
I don’t have a blender or food processor – is this something you could make by hand?
I’m not sure you could get the consistency of doing it by hand. But I’ve never tried. You’d have to really mash it up, and whip it. If you do try let me know!!! Curious!
This was absolutely delicious and super easy to make! This will become a staple for me to use often – and it was delicious with the Roasted Chili Relleno recipe.
★★★★★
Awesome Jill-yes it comes in handy!
Which herbs did you use for the ricotta we using it with the Chile relleno recipe?
You could use a little fresh cilantro or dried Mexican Oregano
How long can this keep for?
1 week.
Every picture looks gorgeous and I can’t wait to make this, but does one simply drain the tofu or use a press to get all water our first? I only have one package of tofu and I can’t figure if the extra water will help, or harm. Thank you, I’ll report back after I’ve made a batch of vegan, but how can they not be great with this recipe?