Tofu garlic-herb cream cheese
| Tags: | Cheap, Gluten free, Holidays, Quick recipes |
|---|---|
| Time: | Preparation time , cooking time , total time |
| Serves: | 500 gram |
This tofu-based cream cheese is a new favorite. It's like vegan Boursin! It's a really quick recipe too. Just wizz everything in a high speed blender or foodprocessor, dump it into a container and put it in the fridge overnight to firm up. No long fermentation or hard to find ingredients. I've already brought it to a few potlucks and family events and everybody likes it, vegans and omnis alike, so it's a real winner!
The tofu and cashews make this cream cheese quite nutritious. It's higher in protein and lower in carbs than Tofutti. It also has less sodium and lots more useful nutrients like calcium and other minerals. It tastes good on (low carb) bread or crackers, but I also really like to use it in warm dishes like pastas, soups and casseroles.
Ingredients
- 250 gram (9 oz) firm tofu
- 1/2 cup unroasted cashews, soaked for at least 4 hours
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup neutral tasting coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
Cut the tofu into slices and press them between two clean towels with your hands to get rid of the nasty tasting tofu liquid. Drain the cashews and put them into the jar of your high speed blender, foodprocessor or immersion blender, together with the pressed tofu, garlic, salt, coconut oil, vinegar and water. Blend until it forms a completely smooth mixture. Depending on the power of your food processor, this may take a few minutes. If the mixture seems too dry, add a little extra water or coconut oil to make blending easier.
Taste the mixture and add some extra garlic, salt or vinegar if you want a stronger flavor. Stir in the thyme and oregano (don't do this earlier, or the herbs will be blended up along with everything else.)
Line a bowl with some plastic wrap and pour the cheese mixture into it. Smooth out the cheese and cover it with a lid or more foil. Put the cheese into the fridge to firm up for at least 8 hours (if you're in a hurry 3 hours in the freezer will also do the trick). Neatly covered, the cheese will keep in the fridge for at least two weeks, or you can freeze it for up to several months although it might get a bit crumbly in the freezer.
100 grams of this tofu cream cheese (that's a lot!) contains about 273 kcal, 24 g fat (3.4 g saturated), 4.1 g net carbs, 1,7 g fiber and 10.8 g protein.
34 comments
Made this yesterday😊 Delicious!! Although I used a bit more garlic and herbs but that's personal taste!!
Great MJ, thanks for the feedback! Glad I said in the recipe to taste it and add more flavor if you like.
Not sure what you mean by "neutral tasting coconut oil"?
Hi Nicole, I mean a coconut oil that does nog taste like coconut. This is also called 'refined coconut oil'. Hope this helps!
How would lemon juice be instead of white vinegar? Would apple cider vinegar be too strong?
Hi Raewyn, lemon juice works very well instead of white vinegar. I personally also like the cheese with apple cider vinegar, but if you are sensitive to the taste, it could be too strong for you.
I made this 2 days ago. It is fantastic. We've had it on toast and on crackers. Next we will slather it thickly on bread, add tomatoes and sprouts, and have great sandwiches. Thanks for another great "cheese" recipe. I think I now have a chance at being a vegan!
Sounds wonderful Sheree! Glad you like it so much.
I have to try this coming weekend. Sounds amazing!
Hi Ursula, I hope you liked it!
Can I replace the coconut oil with vegetable oil? Any other replacement? I need to reduce the solid fats in my diet. Thank
Hi Maya, you can use a little less coconut oil or replace some or all of it with vegetable oil. The cheese may come out less firm and more liquidy, but it will still taste good.
What could I replace the coconut oil with. Allergic to coconuts.
Hi Charlie, you can use any neutrally flavored saturated plant fat, such as palm oil, deodorized cocoa butter or even margarine or Crisco.
Hi! I still don't understand what refined coconut oil means. Is Cocosa a refined coconut oil? Any brands you can mention?
Hi Trine, it means a coconut oil that tastes completely neutral and does not have any coconut flavor. I looked up Cocosa and it says 'extra virgin', so this probably has coconut flavor and is not refined. I usually get my refined coconut oil from Asian stores, the KTC brand: https://abnfinest.co.uk/food-essence/94-ktc-pure-coconut-oil-1kg-501363510181.html
Great recipe! cant wait to try! One question, like your rice-flour cheese recipes - for this one; can I sub the cashews for riceflour instead? Or just something else to sub the cashews with (just not nuts) Thanks a lot!
Hi Mathilda, you could leave the cashews out entirely and use a bit more tofu instead. Seeds like sunflower or hemp seeds might work too, but the result might be a bit more grainy, depending on the strength of your blender.
Hello again. We got the neutral tasting coconut oil, and the texture improves as opposed to using vegan butter from the store. However, I find the vinegear taste really strong, is it supposed to be like that? Lemons was a little bit better. Do you think it's possible to use less vinegear/lemon juice and still get a nice result?
Hi Trine, I find that some people are more sensitive to the taste of vinegar than others. If you do find the vinegar flavor too strong, just replace it with lemon juice. If you want a less sour cheese, you can also use less of all the sour ingredients. This does not affect the texture, only the flavor. If you have access to it, lactic acid is also a really good substitute for the vinegar/lemon juice. This is acid is commercially made from plants, but it the same type of acid as is found in dairy cheese.
Please could you tell me the quatity of lactic acid to use as i have some. Thanks
Hi Julie, the quantity of lactic acid depends on the form you buy it in. From what I have read, the powdered form can be substituted 1:1 with vinegar or lemon juice. The liquid form I have is much more concentrated, so I use it in a 1:4 ratio.
[…] Bagel recipe from here (hot for food), cream cheese recipe adapted from this recipe […]
Made today for a party tomorrow. It tastes phenomenal! I used silken extra firm, so not sure if will setup as well as using block tofu. If it's not setup in the morning I'm out to the market to make an additional batch. I've tried several and this is to me the tastiest!
Thanks Margaret! I hope it set up well with the silken tofu. I think it should be okay, but I'm not 100% sure.
Oh my goodness, I've made a ton of vegan cheeses, and this is BY FAR the most delicious one I've tried! My husband's niece isn't vegan and couldn't believe it was not cheese. She also couldn't believe there was tofu in it, saying she wouldn't have tried it if she knew. LOL It's so good, and I can't wait to try it again with other herbs and flavors. I used lemon instead of vinegar for the bright citrus notes, and it was AMAZING. Thank you for this recipe!
That's wonderful Sandra! Thanks for sharing.
"nasty tasting tofu liquid" I cracked up laughing because I can so relate its so gross haha
Haha! I truly love tofu, but the liquid is not very appealing. :D
I made this whilst hubby was away this last week. I was a touch apprehensive because I have been unable to source refined coconut oil im sold form (I can get it in a very expensive liquid at form) so had to use the virgin coconut oil instead. I doubled the garlic & herbs and because I have a Vitamix blender, I was able to omit the extra water completely. Initally I could taste the coconut oil, but after leaving the cheese to harden and mature overnight in the fridge, I wasn't able to taste it. Hubby is more sensitive to coconut flavour than I am and when he got home 2 days after making has confirmed he can't taste it either, and wants to know if he can use the cheese in his sandwiches for work! Win. Thank you
I'm very happy this recipe worked out for you Emma! If you are able to source shortening, that's a good flavor neutral alternative to try.
Do I measure the 9 oz of tofu before or after draining off the excess liquid? My container is 14 oz, so I need to weigh it out. Thank you!
I tend to avoid coconut oil and am wondering if you feel that other oils (olive, canola) would work as well as the coconut oil? Thanks for a great vegan low carb resource.
I have been making red lentil tofu and looking for different recipes I could sub regular tofu for. Red lentil tofu works really well for this. I almost double the thyme/oregano to up the flavor, but otherwise, this is really a great Boursin alternative.
Write a comment