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Tasty tofu ricotta? Apparently so!
I love cheese. I love it by itself, mixed in sauces, as a topping, melted, sliced, shredded, string, whatever. I have had plenty of non-dairy and/or vegan cheeses in my life, and frankly none of them have been too tasty. A few nut cheeses from a raw food restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area were good, but it was quite clear I was eating fake cheese.
All this vegan cheese disappointment ended last night. Well, maybe not all of it, but certainly in regards to ricotta.
I had a plan for pesto with penne rigate. We love pesto at my house, and I had basil, pine nuts, olive oil and parmesan on hand, but something left me feeling wanting more. I remembered seeing a ricotta recipe in my copy of Veganomicon, had some firm tofu begging to be used, so I figured what the heck. The meal was missing a decent protein source anyway.
When served, my wife did not even realize she was eating tofu cheese until I told her. She was amazed–as was I. Even the next day straight out of the refrigerator the tofu cheese had a creamy texture and wonderful, ricotta-y flavor. This is a fantastic meal for meat eaters to feed their vegetarian friends and family, or vice versa. All but those allergic to soy or wheat can enjoy this one.
Dishes like these are the type that may one day push me to be a vegan.
Recipe
I am not going to steal Isa Moskowitz’s ricotta recipe, but you can see it on Post Punk Kitchen. Gotta give the credit on this one. OK, I always will give credit, but this one extra credit.
First get the tofu pressed. If you have not done this before, slice the tofu into six equal parts, wrap them in paper towels (a lot of paper towels), place them on a plate. Then put another plate on top, as well as something else to add more weight and press the tofu. About 10 minutes should be enough. If you do not press the tofu you will have too much liquid in the finished ricotta.
Next set a pot of water on to boil. While the tofu is pressing and water boiling, set the oven to 350F and get your other ingredients together.
While the pasta is boiling, you should have enough time to make the ricotta. Follow the directions I linked to above. Also lightly toast some pine nuts in a little olive oil to add some crunchy, nuttiness to the dish.
Once the pasta is done, drain it and throw it in a 9″x13″x2″ pan. Mix in the ricotta with your hands, really covering the pasta. Sprinkle the remaining basil on top, then the pine nuts. Pour a small can of tomato sauce over the top, just enough to give a little bite to the dish.
Bake this in the oven for about 20 minutes, though I only baked it for 10 and it was great.
Ingredients
This ingredient list does not include what you will need for the Veganomicon Tofu Basil Ricotta.
- 16 ounces penne rigate (one standard store-bought size)
- 1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
- 5-10 chopped basil leaves (aside from those in Isa’s recipe)
- 1/8 cup pine nuts
- 2 tsp olive oil
Sides
Last night I only served this with French bread, but a green salad or some lightly seasoned steamed veggies would have been fantastic, too.
March 7th, 2008 at 10:39 pm
I’m not usually into tofu cheeses but this sounds pretty good. Oh and easy too..
March 8th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
I’m typically not into tofu cheese, or any kind of soy-based cheese. This pleasantly surprised me. Sorry for the delay on moderating. Akismet caught the comment as spam and I didn’t notice until today.