Homemade Vegan Mascarpone Cheese
Questa ricetta è disponibile anche in italiano
Mascarpone cheese is one of the most decadent things to ever come out of Italian cuisine - it’s rich, thick, and utterly divine!
Traditionally, mascarpone is a cream cheese that is made with double or triple cream. It’s extremely fatty, and therefore very calorific as well. However, I’ve cracked the code with this recipe!
This vegan mascarpone tastes very close to traditional mascarpone, plus it’s also completely free from any added fats, and very high in proteins and essential nutrients. What’s not to love about that?
The reason that this cheese is almost considered to be fat-free (that obviously depends on the ingredients you pick to start with) is that the recipe simply doesn’t call for added fats of any type. Other recipes might, which is where the calories can creep up on you. The fact that this version of the classic cheese is so much healthier than the traditional version means that you open the door to making healthier versions of your favorite decadent treats - how ideal!
We love that this mascarpone is nearly indistinguishable from the real thing - it’s just as smooth and creamy! Truly, this is a revelation.
We also love that it comes together really quickly (in only three steps) and can be made in bigger batches too. In our modern world, we’re always looking to save a bit of time, and batch cooking can be a great way to do that!
How To Make Homemade Vegan Mascarpone Cheese
First things first, let’s combine all of the ingredients. This is always a great place to start, especially considering the cheese needs to sit and drain overnight. Therefore, getting everything together first will allow us to eke out a few more minutes - ideal!
Once everything is mixed, put two layers of cheesecloth over a colander or a cheese mold, and then transfer the mixture into the cloth. Allow everything to drain overnight.
If you want to accelerate the draining process, you can place a weight on top of the cheesecloth. This will press the cheese very slightly, allowing more and more liquid to come out of the mixture in no time at all.
Depending upon how thick you’d like your mascarpone, you’ll have to leave the mixture to drain for different amounts of time. Another variable that will affect the time that this takes is the thickness of the yogurt used.
Essentially, you can think of it this way: the longer you leave it, the thicker it will become. If you already have fairly thick Greek yogurt, then it will need less time to thicken.
We would suggest draining for a minimum of twelve hours, and a maximum of thirty-six. This is a great window - twelve hours will yield a lighter cheese, while thirty-six will yield a very thick cheese.
Now that your vegan mascarpone has been fully made, you can use it however you might use traditional mascarpone. We love to use this cheese in vegan tiramisù, frostings or even savory muffins (recipe coming soon)!
Homemade Vegan Mascarpone Cheese Recipe
Ingredients:
400 g Yogurt (Vegan, pref. Greek Style)
3 g Baking soda*
10 g Sugar
1 pinch of Salt
Method:
1. Mix everything, transfer in a double layer of cheesecloth over a colander or cheese mold and let it drain overnight in the fridge.
2. A small weight can also be placed on top or the cheese cloth to accelerate the draining.
Depending how thick you’d like it or on the thickness of the yogurt used, you will want to drain from a min of 12 h to a max of 36.
3. Use in your favourite preparations as in dairy free tiramisù or savoury muffins.
*it will increase the pH by giving the cheese a sweeter aftertaste, typical of this Italian cheese. This cheese has normally a pH value between 5 and 6.
Please note: These measurements yield approximately 150 g of vegan mascarpone.
You can't get enough of vegan cheeses? Try out these other amazing recipes already on the blog!
- The Easiest Vegan Ricotta Recipe
- Vegan Overnight Cream Cheese
- The BEST Homemade Vegan Mozzarella (meltable)
- Aged Chickpea Cheese
- Vegan Stracchino
- Soy Ricotta
- Almond Ricotta
- Baked Camembert
- Vegan Buffalo Mozzarella (perfect for caprese salad!)
- Turmeric Cheese Sauce
- Vegan Cauliflower "Cheese" Bake
Mireille
Very happy to have found your recipe to make mascarpone using yogourt. (All other recipes use cashews which I will not use for ethical reasons).
I am not vegan, but lactose intolerant. I used Lactose-Free yogourt, it worked really well. THANKS SO MUCH!
Mireille in Canada
Adriana Z.
Hi Mireille, I'm very pleased to read this. So glad I could help 🙂
Annelies
Hi Adriana. I was looking for a vegan mascarpone recipe and yours looks great! Just wondering: which yoghurt did you use ? Coconut ? Soy? …
Adriana Z.
Hi there and thanks! I used (and suggest) Greek stile soy milk for best results!