How do you make cream cheese (including vegan)?

SandwichShortOfAPicnic

SandwichShortOfAPicnic

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[Mod.Edit: This and following few posts have moved here to form a new thread (MG)]

Very much hoping to bog off some jobs and get to making that cream cheese today!

Does anyone know (SatNavSaysStraightOn) what vegan milks make good cream cheese? They need to be nut free due to allergies.
 
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Its difficult to make it with plant milk. You need high protein. I think soy milk is the best bet but I've not tried it despite cooking vegan for a few years (some time ago now).
 
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SandwichShortOfAPicnic said:
Very much hoping to bog off some jobs and get to making that cream cheese today!

Does anyone know (SatNavSaysStraightOn) what vegan milks make good cream cheese? They need to be nut free due to allergies.
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I do know a brand of vegan cream cheese called 'tofutti' exists, that's made of silken tofu.
 
Windigo said:
I do know a brand of vegan cream cheese called 'tofutti' exists, that's made of silken tofu.
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Yes, that brand is in the US as well, my SIL buys it. I am guessing vegan cream cheese is hard to find in Spain?
 
SandwichShortOfAPicnic said:
Ah thanks. I buy vegan cream cheese all the time I was more thinking of a vegan milk I can make my own cream cheese from?
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The closest I've come to making my own is from soy yoghurt that is then strained. I've B made some that is thick enough to be cut, and others that are spreadable. I tend to think of it as more of a thick yoghurt but I guess it might count as a cream cheese because the alternative name is yoghurt cheese.
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
The closest I've come to making my own is from soy yoghurt that is then strained. I've B made some that is thick enough to be cut, and others that are spreadable. I tend to think of it as more of a thick yoghurt but I guess it might count as a cream cheese because the alternative name is yoghurt cheese.
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That would be like ymer in Denmark I think.
Or close to hangop (hang up) in the Netherlands
 
badjak said:
That would be like ymer in Denmark I think.
Or close to hangop (hang up) in the Netherlands
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Hangop is known as Labneh in the Middle east. I posted a recipe for that. It's just yoghurt drained of fluid in a cheesecloth. I'm sure there's an English word for it too, but I can't think of it right now.
Maybe that would work with soy yoghurt too.
 
SandwichShortOfAPicnic said:
Not an entry but I thought I’d share this -

Bought nice Gold top milk due to the higher fat content.
View attachment 113089

Heated it

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Added 2 tbsp of lemon juice
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Drained it
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Processed it
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Added some whey and it was done
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At this point I could say I added salt and fridged and it was a delight and looking at that you’d probably believe me but it was awful 😂
Went from dry crumbly bits to wet n grainy. Had to bin it!

I think I did a couple of things wrong.
I left it draining in the cheesecloth for too long and it lost too much moisture. I didn’t go in on a high enough processor speed with the extra liquid until far too late.

I have another litre of normal full fat milk and will have another go tomoz.
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Slightly puzzled as this is the same milk I've used in the past. I would not have added the whey. That has already separated from the cheese. Trying to combine it again doesn't make sense. That is more likely the issue. For mine I never used a processor at all just mixed by hand. Now I'm going to have to try it again to see... its a while since I made it.
 
Morning Glory said:
Slightly puzzled as this is the same milk I've used in the past. I would not have added the whey. That has already separated from the cheese. Trying to combine it again doesn't make sense. That is more likely the issue. For mine I never used a processor at all just mixed by hand. Now I'm going to have to try it again to see... its a while since I made it.
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It was advised in the recipe steps “If the mixture seems grainy and stiff then add in a splash of the whey or cream to loosen it.” so I did.

I really think I left it out draining for too long and it got too dry.

How to Make Cream Cheese (The Easiest Cream Cheese Recipe)
 
SandwichShortOfAPicnic said:
It was advised in the recipe steps “If the mixture seems grainy and stiff then add in a splash of the whey or cream to loosen it.” so I did.

I really think I left it out draining for too long and it got too dry.

How to Make Cream Cheese (The Easiest Cream Cheese Recipe)
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'How to make soft cheese' by Gerard Baker uses 500ml whole milk, equal amount of single cream and 200ml plain yoghurt to make cream cheese. He also uses rennet rather than vinegar/lemon juice. The curd separates into a layer which can be sliced and then drained. The book came from Lakeland.

In terms of what I made in the past I think it was indeed a but grainy and technically curd cheese rather than cream cheese.
 
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