The creamiest, tangiest, most delicious Easy Vegan Cashew Cream Cheese Recipe! Made with just 4 ingredients. You’ll never look at cashews the same again!
Can I just say that this is perhaps the coolest thing to have ever graced my lips?!
It never ceases to amaze me what you can do with plants. Now let me tell you how this vegan cashew cream cheese recipe came to fruition. We knew we wanted a kick-ass plant-based cream cheese for the bagel sammie on Alchemy 2’s menu. I originally planned on buying it pre-made, but then I thought…that’s a cop out. (Not to mention the fact that the store-bought versions are hella expensive.) I was up for the challenge!
Making fermented foods and dealing with bacteria can be a risky business, but it’s also SUPER easy. Set it and forget it! To ensure your vegan cashew cream cheese making experience will be a total success, you want to make sure everything you’re working with is squeaky clean. Give the bowl you’re using a nice rinse in really hot water before you start.
Now let’s talk tang. The first time I made this cashew cream cheese, I let it sit for 24 hours. When I tasted it, it was good, but it wasn’t great. It needed more tang. So I let it sit for 12 more hours and OMG, best decision I ever made. The hardest part is waiting. And no peeking!!
The end result was so tangy and luscious and honestly so freaking SHOCKING because of how much it tasted like regular dairy cream cheese. Just picture me happy dancing my tush across the kitchen!
I was so pumped when I saw that you all were just as excited as I was about this recipe. As you saw in so many of my What I Ate This Week posts, this cashew cream cheese is such a dream on sourdough toast or bagels with everything bagel spice. It also worked like a charm in my Chai Carrot Banana Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting and in my Broccoli Mushroom Breakfast Strata! I’m pretty confident that you can use this in any recipe calling for cream cheese.
Looking at the ingredients, you’d probably guess this would taste like cashew butter. Not at all! It tastes like tangy, yummy cream cheese heaven. It’s crazy. Magical. It’s science!
And guess what? It gets thicker and even more wondrous after you refrigerate it! The other amazing this about this recipe is that it lasts a while. Like, two weeks.
At Alchemy, we source our vegan probiotics from Terra Soul, so I used the bulk bag we had on hand for this recipe. My pal and tried n’ true Hummusapien recipe tester Dylan used these ones and said they worked great. You should be able to break any probiotic capsule open and measure out the powder for this recipe. Regarding the cashews, please use raw ones for this recipe.
Cashew? I mean, kapeesh?
I also tested this recipe in this yogurt maker and it made it SO MUCH FASTER! I made the recipe the exact same way except I only let it sit for 9 hours and it was done. So basically you can make it four times faster if you have a fancy machine. It also starts cooling it once the time runs out, so you don’t have to worry about getting home right in time to refrigerate it.
If you make this Vegan Cashew Cream Cheese recipe, please let me know! Use #hummusapien if you share on social media so I can see your beauteous creations!!!
YOUR LIFE IS ABOUT TO CHANGE.
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The creamiest, tangiest, most delicious Easy Vegan Cashew Cream Cheese! Made with just 4 ingredients. You’ll never look at cashews the same again!
Ingredients
- 2 cups raw cashews, soaked
- 1/4 cup filtered water
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp vegan probiotics
Instructions
- Place cashews in a medium bowl. Cover with water and let soak overnight or for 8 hours.
- Drain and rinse cashews. Place in a food processor with 1/4 cup water and the sea salt. Blend until very smooth and creamy (about 7 minutes), scraping sides with a rubber spatula as needed. (I’ve also made this in a Vitamix and it worked but I had to add a bit more water).
- Spoon mixture into a glass bowl or container of choice that has a lid (I used a 4-cup Pyrex). Using a plastic or wood spoon (metal can disrupt fermentation), stir in probiotics.
- Cover and let sit out on the counter, unrefrigerated, for 36 hours.
- It should taste tangy and very similar to dairy cream cheese. Store in the refrigerator. It will last up to two weeks!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
Been looking for a reliable cashew cheese recipe for a long time! I know this one will be good from you! :)
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Alexis says
It’s so yummy! I hope you try it!!
Heather says
Wonder if this would work with pecans?
Alexis says
I don’t think so! Pecans aren’t as mild in flavor as cashews and they’re also dark in color so I’d def stick to cashews :)
Vanessa says
where do you buy the vegan probiotics?
Alexis says
I chatted about that and linked to one in the post :) enjoy!
Rachel says
Are you referring to the protein powder blend from Terrasoul? They don’t have any products that are explicitly called “probiotics”. Just want to be sure I’m getting the right stuff!
Alexis says
Hey Rachel! They’re only available wholesale right now through Terra Soul unfortunately but nope—not the protein. I linked to another brand available from amazon :)
the Budget Epicurean says
Absolutely genius! I might try to halve this just to see how I like the finished product. Thanks for the inspiration!
★★★★★
Alexis says
It does make a lot but it lasts a WHILE :) Hope you love it!!
Kori says
This is so fascinating to me! I hadn’t thought to use probiotics in our food prep at home. How incredible that something so divine only came from less than a handful of ingredients. Awesome job!!
Dylan says
I put that shiz on everything!
Lisa says
I always use cashew pieces when making cashew sauce of any kind. Are you sure I couldn’t use cashew pieces for this recipe? They are much more affordable. I’m really excited to try this recipe!
★★★★★
Alexis says
Hey Lisa! My experience with cashew pieces was that they’re darker and lower quality (hence why they’re cheaper, but I feel ya!) so the cream cheese turned out a darker, less white color. If you’re fine with that, that’s fine! Just make sure they’re raw.
Kate says
When soaking the cashews overnight in the first step, should they be refrigerated? Thank you!
Alexis says
Nope!
adele says
Hi! Can’t wait to try this! We stumbled on Alchemy while driving through Ohio after I randomly googled healthy food Columbus, and now we stop every time we drive home to Indiana! It is so amazing!!!! Even my husband who loves fast food is obsessed with it. I wish we had one in DC.
I didn’t realize that you were behind the restaurant until I found your blog, but now it all makes sense. :) Just wanted to drop you a note and say you’re doing an awesome job!
Alexis says
Awww thank you so much! I’m so thrilled you found us!
Mary says
Amazing sounding recipe. I can’t wait to try it since I cannot eat dairy. Do you think I could use vegetarian probiotics instead of vegan? They’re lactose free. I just already have them.
Alexis says
Yes any probiotics work—I just said vegan since the recipe is called vegan cream cheese :)
geometry dash says
Thank you for sharing the tutorial! It’s so easy.
★★★★
Alexis says
So glad you liked it!
Beth R. says
For the initial 36 hours, do you let it rest on the counter or in the fridge? My cream cheese had a nice purple layer after 24 hours.
Alexis says
Hey Beth! Per step 4 in the recipe, it should be unrefrigerated for 36 hours. I’ve never had the purple color–not sure what that’s about! Sorry I can’t help ya more there!
Saumya says
Just curious why you can’t use cashew pieces if they’re going in the food processor or blender anyway.
Alexis says
It was more an issue of better quality with whole cashews versus pieces but you can use either one.
Jacqueline says
Do we need to use the probiotics? What are their purpose?
Thank you!!
Alexis says
Yes—that’s what makes it taste like cream cheese! It ferments it :)
Shayna says
Hi! It’s way too hot for me to be comfortable leaving this out on the counter- if I refrigerate, will it still culture?
Thanks!
Alexis says
Nope, it won’t! It needs to be left at room temp.
Cheryl says
You can use the Instant Pot on Yogurt setting instead of a yogurt maker! One less appliance!!Thanka for the recipe…making it tomorrow!
★★★★★
Carol says
Can’t wait to try this!! Do you think I could take a teaspoon or so of already fermented cashew cheeseand and blend it into a fresh batch of soaked and creamed cashews instead of additional probiotics? Probiotics are not cheap.
★★★★★
Alexis says
I’ve never tried it but let me know if that works!
patricia says
Have you ever tried to freeze this, just in case I cannot use it all at one time?