Vegan Cream Cheese

Ingredients Needed

Here are the 6 basic ingredients you'll need and a few notes before you begin:

• Raw slivered & blanched almonds - you can also use raw cashews. See the blog post below for the method.
• Unsweetened non-dairy yogurt - If you can't find it you can use plain. Look for one that has the least amount of sugar to avoid a slightly sweet taste. Some yogurt brands have an off-white color, which will make your cream cheese off-white. It won't affect the tastiness though. I prefer the So Delicious brand for its color, taste, and thickness.
• Fresh lemon juice - you can also use lactic acid in its place. It adds a similar tangy flavor to cultured cheese. I usually add 1 ¼ teaspoons. If you use it, you may need to add a few teaspoons of water or non-dairy milk to make up the liquid portion of the lemon juice. Blend first and then decide.
• Apple cider vinegar - this will add a similar zing that dairy cream cheese has.
• Onion powder - you can also use garlic powder
• Sea salt - brings all the flavors together.

That's all you'll need, but feel free to add a hint more seasoning to suit your taste. Fresh dill or chives are a nice addition! 

How to make Vegan Cream Cheese

This part is SO easy! Just blend the 6 ingredients together in a high-powered blender until it's smooth and creamy! If it's too thin, just add a splash of unsweetened non-dairy yogurt or milk.

If it needs more flavor, you can add what is needed. It's very forgiving, but just remember to add a little at a time, so it doesn't turn runny or over-seasoned.

Success Tips

Once the almonds have soaked, it's pretty straightforward from there. Here are some additional tips to help you along:

• You'll need a high-powered blender to get super-smooth results. If you don't have one, you may want to use soaked cashews instead because they break down easier. However, a good blender is still recommended for a creamy-smooth texture.
• I have tried making this in my food processor, but I seem to get creamier results in my blender and much faster. If you have a processor that produces smooth results you may want to try that. Also, make sure the almonds/cashews have soaked long enough or it will produce gritty results.
• I've tried soaking the almonds covered in hot water to make it quicker, but I didn't like the flavor afterward, but it did soften them much faster. I may need to experiment with this again since I've only tried it once. Let me know if you try it.

Ways to use it

This vegan cream cheese is delicious on a homemade vegan bagel with all the fixin's, but there are other ways to use it, too. Use it to amp up Dips, Sauces, Dressings, Casseroles, Baked Goods, or Soups and Salads.

Can I use cashews?

YES! If you don't have slivered almonds, you can use the same amount of soaked cashews instead and reduce the yogurt to ⅓ cup and add more as needed. The cashew cream cheese won't be as thick as the almond one, but will still be creamy and delicious.

You'll only need to soak them for 2-4 hours or you can soak them in very hot water to make it quicker. Just boil water and remove it from the heat. Then add cashews and cover for 20 minutes or until softened.

More vegan cheese recipes to try

• Vegan Ricotta Cheese
• Vegan Cheddar Cheese
• Vegan Mozzarella Cheese

And here are 14 more Vegan Cheese Recipes by Karissa's Vegan Kitchen that you might want to check out. So many to choose from!