Creamy Cashew Ricotta

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5 from 12 votes

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: dairy-free cheese

Servings: 1/4-cup servings

Calories: 186kcal

Author: Judy DeLorenzo

Equipment

food processor

Ingredients

1 cup raw cashews, presoaked (or precooked)
6 garlic cloves, roasted (do not use raw garlic)
1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon water
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Presoak (or precook) the cashews; see notes.
Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Put an untrimmed garlic bulb, with at least 5 cloves, into a small covered baking dish. A ramekin or garlic roaster works well, or any small covered baking dish. Roast it in the preheated oven until the garlic aroma starts to fill the kitchen and the cloves begin to soften; this will take about 15 minutes.
Put the presoaked (or precooked) cashews in the food processor bowl with 5 cloves of roasted and peeled garlic. Add the lemon juice, water, salt, and pepper.
Run the processor until the cashew ricotta is creamy, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. This will take at least five minutes.

Notes

To Presoak Cashews

Place the cashews in a quart-sized canning jar (or in a bowl) with at least 2 cups of water; cover and let them soak overnight in the refrigerator. Pour into a strainer, rinse, and drain well. Now the cashews are recipe-ready.

To Precook Cashews

Gently simmer the cashews in at least 2 cups of water for 15 minutes. Pour into a strainer, rinse, and drain well. Now the cashews are recipe-ready.

Nutrition