Homemade tofu cream cheese is a wonderful thing to have lying around in your fridge. Dairy-free, nut-free, and gluten-free, it makes for a delicious and healthy snack, tasty spread for sandwiches and wraps, or nice addition to a pasta sauce.
This oil-free recipe is low in fat while still delivering the goods, with the miso paste and fresh dill adding layers of flavour for your tastebuds to enjoy. Everything then comes to life with lemon juice, salt, and chives (optional).
If you're in the market for more plant-based cheese, take a look at these recipes for 4-ingredient cashew parmesan and vegan cheesy pasta.
I create new content every single week. Subscribe to keep in touch and get a free download of The Vegan Kitchen – My Top 10 Tips.
Jump to:
- What is it? 🧀
- Nutrition 🌱
- Herbs 🌿
- Uncooked tofu 👌
- Ingredients 📋
- Step by step 📷
- To serve 🍽️
- FAQ ❓
- Variations 🔀
- Recipe 👨🍳
What is vegan cream cheese?
Vegan cream cheese is a plant-based twist on dairy cream cheese products. Commonly made with tofu or nuts such as cashews or almonds, it's becoming easier to find in supermarkets – at least here in the UK.
While many products might use vegan cheese cultures for flavour and/or coconut oil for a smoother texture, this simplified version is oil-free for a homemade alternative that's lower in calories.
Is it healthy?
This oil-free recipe results in a soft cheese substitute that's low in fat and also a complete source of plant-based protein (meaning it contains all nine essential amino acids).
Tofu contains healthy nutrients such as iron and calcium, and has been shown to lower LDL cholesterol. Just one small serving of this recipe contains:
- Calories: 77 kcal
- Protein: 8 grams (16% of RDA)
- Iron: 1 mg (6% of RDA)
- Calcium: 88 mg (9% of RDA)
(Amounts based on a third-party nutrition calculator)
For more ways to use tofu in your cooking, check out these recipes for tofu jalfrezi curry, vegan Singapore noodles, and baked tofu pancetta.
Herbs for vegan cream cheese
Herbs aren't essential in this recipe, but they do take the final product to another level and you'll often find them added to dairy cream cheese products. If possible, I'd recommend using the winning combination of fresh dill and chives.
Does tofu need to be cooked?
Tofu does not need to be cooked before eating. Available in varying degrees of firmness, it can make its way into desserts, smoothies, and recipes like this vegan cream cheese.
If you prefer to apply some heat to your bean curd, try out these recipes for miso baked tofu, smoked tofu risotto, roasted sprouts with tofu bacon, and grilled teriyaki tofu.
What you'll need
This simple recipe involves a few essential ingredients and a few optional extras. You'll need:
- Extra-firm tofu for the base
- Nutritional yeast for a slightly cheesy flavour
- Acidity from the cider vinegar and lemon juice
- Optional extras including white miso paste, dill, and chives
How to make tofu cream cheese
If using extra-firm tofu, you shouldn't need to press the water out of it.
Simply drain the tofu, break it into chunks, and add to a food processor.
Add the apple cider vinegar, lemon juice (start with a small amount and adjust up to taste), nutritional yeast, miso paste, dill, and a pinch of salt.
Blend for a minute or two, stopping to scrape down the sides as you go.
If the mix is looking too thick or crumbly after a couple of minutes, add a little water or plant-based milk and blend again until smooth. I'd start with a few tablespoons of extra liquid and work up from there as necessary.
Once you have a smooth consistency, mix in chopped chives (optional) and adjust the seasoning to taste. I'll sometimes add a little extra salt and usually extra lemon juice, but this totally depends on your own taste.
Serve and enjoy!
Serving suggestions
Enjoy the tofu cream cheese on vessels such as oatcakes, crackers, or toast.
You could use it as a dip, add it to wraps with other fillings, or have yourself some fancy schmancy vegan cucumber sandwiches.
It also works well as a way to add creaminess (and protein) to sauces, especially for pasta. It'll thicken or dry out the sauce on its own, so be sure to add extra liquid (such as pasta cooking water) to get the desired consistency.
Recipe FAQ
I like the texture that you get from extra-firm tofu, however softer varieties or even silken tofu would probably be fine here. Note that the water content will vary, so you may want to press your tofu and/or limit the amount of extra liquid you add.
Provided you use a GF miso paste and plant-based milk, this recipe will be gluten-free (those ingredients usually are GF, but it's worth checking if you're concerned). If you're unsure, simply omit the miso paste and use water instead of plant-based milk.
Store the tofu cream cheese in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. I would avoid freezing it as the texture may change once defrosted.
If you'd like a slightly silkier texture, try adding a few tablespoons of melted coconut oil (note that this will drastically increase the amount of saturated fat in the recipe).
Variations and tips for tofu cream cheese
- Texture: You'll want to blend this for a good minute or two to get an idea of how much extra liquid you'll need to add.
- Herbs: I love the combination of dill and chives, but you could easily leave these out.
Keep in touch
Subscribe below to get your free download of The Vegan Kitchen – My Top 10 Tips, featuring 10+ pages of personal experience and advice to set you up for success with your plant-based cooking. 👇
More vegan recipe ideas
If you liked this recipe, you may also enjoy:
- Smoky Mushroom Pâté
- Moroccan Zaalouk
- Vegan Cheesy Pasta
- Vegan Cashew Cream
- Basic Hummus Recipe
- Spicy Kidney Bean Dip
- Lemony Butter Bean Dip
- Super Seed Mix
You can also check out my full list of vegan dips and snacks.
Full recipe
Tofu Cream Cheese (Oil-Free)
Ingredients
- 14 oz (400 g) plain extra-firm tofu
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice (start smaller and adjust to taste)
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon white miso paste (optional, see GF note)
- 5-6 sprigs fresh dill (plus more to taste, optional)
- Salt to taste
- Water or plant-based milk
- Chives (optional)
Instructions
- If using extra-firm tofu, you shouldn't need to press the water out of it. Simply drain, break into chunks, and add to a food processor.
- Add the apple cider vinegar, lemon juice (start with a small amount and adjust up to taste), nutritional yeast, miso paste, dill, and a pinch of salt. Blend for a minute or two, stopping to scrape down the sides as you go.
- If the mix is looking too thick or crumbly after a couple of minutes, add a little water or plant-based milk and blend again until smooth. I'd start with a few tablespoons of extra liquid and work up from there as necessary.
- Once you have a smooth consistency, mix in chopped chives (optional) and adjust the seasoning to taste. I'll sometimes add a little extra salt and usually extra lemon juice, but this totally depends on your own taste.
- Enjoy the tofu cream cheese on oatcakes, as a dip, or in savoury dishes such as cucumber sandwiches or pasta sauce (see notes).📸 Recipe steps >📖 Table of contents >
Notes
- Smoky Mushroom Pâté
- Easy Cashew Parmesan
- Baked Tofu Pancetta
- Vegan Cashew Cream
- Basic Hummus Recipe
- Vegan Jalfrezi with Tofu
- Lemony Butter Bean Dip
- Broad Bean Dip with Mint and Lemon
Nutrition
Social follow
🌱 Follow along @thepeskyvegan on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.
Further reading
📩 Fancy keeping in touch? Subscribe to my weekly newsletter.
📖 Find out more about my story.
🍽️ Want to get straight to the food? Hop aboard the recipe train.
🌿 Got a question about veganism? You might find the answer in these vegan FAQs.
Christopher G
The first time I made this I suspected that the amount of lemon juice would be too much and I was correct. Maybe my lemon was bigger, not sure, but it was definitely too lemony sour.
Making it a second time I tweaked it by using just a little lemon juice, maybe about a teaspoon, and leaving out the dill. The omitting of the dill wasn’t for any real reason, just tried it without it.
I just noticed another comment about the lemon juice. Three Tbsp of lemon juice was too much for my tastes.
The Pesky Vegan
Hi there, thanks very much for your feedback! You're right that there have now been a couple of comments about lemon juice, so I've tweaked the recipe to hopefully make it clear that you should start very small and work your way up according to taste. I personally like it quite lemony, but I shouldn't assume that others will and it's an easy fix. Cheers for your contribution – I always take helpful feedback on board!
Christopher G
This is now my go to vegan cream cheese recipe. I tweaked it a little, but just on the lemon juice. With the apple cider vinegar I’m not sure the lemon juice is needed, but I have yet to leave it out all together. When I make this I used high protein tofu and double the recipe. Even doubling I cut the lemon juice to only 2 teaspoons and I like it. I’ll probably cut it all together the next time I make it and add a little more ACV.
My two main reasons for loving this recipe:
1) no oil
2) cashew cream cheese is more expensive
Even if those reasons aren’t anything I cared about I think this recipe just tastes better.
The Pesky Vegan
Glad you enjoy the recipe, cheers!
Vince
Hi There!
Could you please suggest an exact amount of lemon juice to start with?
There’s too much of a lemon size variation here in the USian markets.
The Pesky Vegan
No problem – 1 medium lemon (as used in this recipe) would provide around 2 or 3 level tablespoons of juice. UPDATE: Another reader felt that the amount of lemon juice was too much, and so I've updated the recipe to make it clear that you should start very small and work your way up according to taste. Thanks everyone!
Kate
First time trying a vegan cream cheese recipe and this one was delicious! I used a vitamix blender and it worked really well. Having it the second day after letting it sit overnight in the fridge made the texture much better. Thank you!
The Pesky Vegan
Thanks for the review and I agree it's great after sitting in the fridge overnight - cheers!
Susanna
Love the simplicity of this spread. I added a tablespoon of milk to thin it a little, & a 1/2 tsp. garlic salt. Flavor was great!
The Pesky Vegan
Great to hear you enjoyed it - thanks very much for the review!
Mark Holland
Too bland even compared to cream cheese, nor did it stay on the bagel unless super careful. I'd say the consistency was off- more like ricotta cheese than cream cheese. Wrong tofu?
Was passable with more flavouring.
The Pesky Vegan
Hi Mark, sorry to hear you didn't get good results - especially since others have messaged me to say they really enjoyed this. It sounds like you probably didn't blend it enough, and that it could have used more additional liquid as the recipe states.