When I performed a product review of vegan cream cheese, all 7 failed to bake well into a simple custard (one that might be used to fill a Danish).
The spread from Miyoko’s Creamery, however, was most promising; it behaved almost exactly like my conventional control during heating and cooling. And upon tasting, it delivered a similar texture too!
But it failed nevertheless. The resultant color of this plant-based schmear when baked could be compared to the greige of oyster mushrooms. Moreover, sugar and 350°F/180°C did nothing to mute the over-cultured “Sour Patch”-like taste my friend Liz and I noted during the taste test.
Miyoko’s Instead of…Miyoko’s?
Miyoko Schinner, former CEO of Miyoko’s Creamery, was a cookbook author before she was a business owner. Her 2012 publication Artisan Vegan Cheese: From Everyday to Gourmet features an array non-dairy indulgences including “cream cheese”. (Several blogs such as Your Vegan Mom have reposted that particular recipe and more.)
With a range of 24-48 hours for culturing – AKA “souring” – the puréed cashew base, her instructions empower cooks to control how much pucker their spread assumes!
Measure Twice, Cook Once
I’m not going to bore you with all the calculations behind the amount of each ingredient. Yet I will l list everything I considered:
- water content of block cream cheese (55%)
- water content of raw cashews (5%)
- capacity for cashews to absorb water (45%)
- extent to which adding vegan yogurt would disrupt the end product being 55% water
I’m proud to say all my mathing to produce 32 oz (904 g) cashew “cream cheese” with a 55% water content to mimic the consistency of dairy cream cheese mathed exactly 32 oz (904 g)!
But does it turn grey?
It does not!
I intend to publish several follow-up posts featuring my vegan cream cheese. For now, please accept these pictures of my (appropriately colored) Vegan Cherry Amaretto Cheesecake:
Vegan Cream Cheese for Baking
Description
This recipe yields 8 oz/226 g "cream cheese".
However, unless you have a small food processor, double or even triple it; the blades of a standard appliance won't have enough substance to work well otherwise.
But regardless, use gram measurements if you can. The ingredients truly produce 8 oz/226 g "cream cheese" when weighed precisely.
Ingredients
Instructions
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In a glass vessel, cover cashews with 2 in/5 cm water. Soak 8 hrs or overnight.
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Drain cashews. Place in food processor with yogurt and salt, then blend thoroughly until creamy.
This process takes around 15 min! Pulse mixture and scrape sides 2-3 times. Then, allow machine to run undisturbed. Via sight or sound, note when mixture hits the dough ball stage. (I have an illustrative video linked under Notes.) Continue to process 5 min more. -
Return mixture to vessel. Cover and store at room temperature tasting the mixture with a clean spoon every 12 hrs until desired tanginess is reached.
36 hrs is generally perfect for me!
Note
Taken from my hummus post, this unlisted YouTube video demonstrates what I mean by the "dough ball stage". Cashews and chickpeas - indeed, all nuts and cooked beans - behave similarly in these applications!
