Dairy Free Ricotta Cheese Recipe

Dairy free ricotta cheese made with almonds on plate with almonds and lemon behind it.

Dairy Free Ricotta Cheese Recipe

Dairy free ricotta cheese made with almonds is creamy and mild flavored. Enjoy in your favorite recipes that call for ricotta, sweet or savory!

Course Antipasto, Main dish, Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 10

Resting time 8 45

Servings grams (total recipe)

Calories 1454kcal

Author Nadia Fazio

Equipment

Ingredients

250 grams whole almonds with skins on
30 ml lemon juice (2 tbsp.) freshly squeezed
1 liter water divided
6 grams salt (1 tsp) optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Soak the almonds

The almonds may be blanched in boiling water for 1 minute, then cooled and skins removed by slipping them between your thumb and index finger. Cover in water and soak for 6 hours or overnight. Drain well.
or...
Alternately (and easier in my opinion), cover the almonds with water and soak for a minimum of 6 hours or overnight. Then drain and remove the skin as described above.

Process the almonds

Process the almonds, alone, in your high power blender until finely ground in your blender for 1 minute.
Pour in 500 ml water and process for 1 minute.
Add the remaining 500 ml of water and process one more minute. The result will be a thick, creamy almond milk.

Curdle the almond milk

Pour the almond milk in a medium sized sauce pan and heat over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until it reaches 85 degrees C or until it is just about to come to a boil.
Turn off the heat and stir in salt (if using) and lemon juice. Be sure to stir in the lemon juice thoroughly. Cover and let sit for 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, line a fine meshed sieve with cheese cloth or a nut milk bag and place over a bowl.

Drain and refrigerate

After 45 minutes, gently pour the curdled almond milk into the lined sieve and let drain at room temperature for about an hour.
Remove the whey as it fills the bowl. Discard it or reserve it to replace water when making bread or pizza. If may also be frozen for future use.
Place the almond ricotta in the refrigerator, cove it, and let drain for another hour or so or overnight depending on how dry you want your ricotta.
Transfer the drained almond ricotta to a sealed container or ricotta mold (if you have one) and keep refrigerated until you are ready to use it or for up to 3-4 days.

Notes

More Tips:

-Omit the salt if you wish to use the ricotta for making desserts.
-I strongly recommend weighing your ingredients for perfect results.
-The almond milk will curdle once the lemon juice is added. Do take note that the curds are much more fine as compared to those made with dairy milk.
-Reserve the whey to replace water when making pizza or bread. If not using immediately, whey can be frozen for up to 1 month.

How much ricotta does this recipe make?

Yield may vary slightly however this recipe will produce about 3 cups (690- 720 grams) of ricotta give or take a few grams.

Serving Suggestions

-When the ricotta is drained, you may stir in some herbs such as parsley; thyme; oregano or others of your choice and serve with crostini.
-Use the ricotta for your favorite recipes that call for ricotta such as cannoli; stuffed pasta; gnocchi; cookies; dips or spreads and more.

Storage

Keep refrigerated, well sealed, for up to 3-4 days.

Can this ricotta be frozen?

I have not tried freezing this ricotta and I have doubts that the texture would be ideal once defrosted, therefore I can not guarantee the results.

Nutrition