This baked vegan “goat cheese” with spiced cranberry spread is essentially this recipe all dressed up in a fancy holiday outfit.
During my vegetarian days, whenever someone would ask me if I’d considered going vegan, I’d quickly retort that I could never be vegan because I loved cheese too much. My oh my, how time changes us and opens our minds to new possibilities. Like the possibility reality that vegan cheese is delicious and so, well, cheese-like. From stretchy to creamy to spreadable to melt-able, non-dairy cheese delivers. My vegetarian self is off cringing in a moment of cheese-indulgence past, but let her cringe and bring on the vegan cheese.
For this recipe, I took my previous cheese recipe, stripped away the garlic and herbs, added in a bit more tang, and baked it. The result is a tangy, spreadable or even slice-able (if you bake it long enough), creamy cheese that will make you feel all fancy at your holiday parties. Soaking and baking time aside, this cheese is super simple to prepare. Seriously! It’s as simple as adding a short list of ingredients to your food processor, processing for a few minutes, and turning the cheese out into a baking dish.
Then, you’ll bake the cheese at a low temperature for anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours depending on how firm you want it to be. The cheese in the photos was baked for the full 2 hours, so it’s on the firmer side, yet still spreadable.
If the spiced cranberry sauce is giving you déjà vu, it’s probably because you saw it in this recipe just last week. It, too, is incredibly simple to make requiring just a casual-cool toss of ingredients into a pan, 15-20 minutes of simmering and the occasional stir, and a swift transfer into a cutesy mason jar. The sweet, tangy flavor of the cranberry sauce balances the richness of the cheese and adds holiday flare.
This is a straightforward and undeniably tasty solution to those holiday cheese cravings. Go get your cheese on.
Baked Vegan "Goat Cheese" with Spiced Cranberry Spread
Tangy, cashew-based vegan cheese is baked until firm, dry, and nearly sliceable. The texture of this cheese is reminiscent of a classic goat's cheese log, and just like goat cheese, it pairs incredibly well with a sweet spread and fresh baguette slices.
Ingredients
For the Baked Goat Cheese
- 1 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 2-3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons water
- 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
For the Spiced Cranberry Sauce
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
Serving Ideas
- Sliced baguette
- Seeded crackers
- Pita chips
Instructions
To Make the Baked Goat Cheese
- Soak the cashews for at least two hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 225F.
- Add the soaked cashews, apple cider vinegar (adjust amount to desired level of tang), lemon juice, olive oil, water, and sea salt to a food processor. Pulse a few times and then process for 4-5 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides as needed.
- Transfer the cheese to a 6-inch cast iron skillet or small oven-safe baking dish that has been lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 45 minutes for a softer cheese and for up to 2 hours for a firmer, slice-able cheese. The cheese in the photographs was baked for 2 hours.
- Serve alongside the spiced cranberry sauce.
To Make the Spiced Cranberry Sauce
- Add the cranberries, maple syrup, water, cinnamon, and cardamom to a large sauce pan. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the cranberries have burst and broken down into a chunky sauce, stirring occasionally.
- Let cool and transfer to a glass jar.
- Refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use.
Oh my goodness!.. This recipe is to die for… I am running to my pantry to soak those cashews tonight and make it tomorrow!.. I could eat this everyday without a problem!!! Thanks Ashley!
You’re welcome, Rosanna! Thank YOU. I hope you enjoy/enjoyed the recipe!
Do you recommend serving the cheese fresh from the oven? If I wanted to make it a few days before serving, how long would it last?
Hi, Anna! I like to serve it straight from the oven if possible but honestly, it’s also good straight from the fridge too! If you want to prep it ahead of time, I would make the cheese, store it in an airtight container, and bake it before serving. I usually stick to the 4-5 day rule for cashew cheese, but it can last longer. To be safe, I’d make it no more than 3 days before and then bake it. I hope this helps!
oh gosh YUM!!
Thanks, Cristina!
I’m a goat cheese lover….this just might win me over.
I haven’t ventured into the world of vegan cheese yet, but judging by this picture I’m completely missing out!
The cheese looks amazing.
Hi, I am making everything tonight and I am so impatient to take it out of the oven. Would you just write how much water you put in the cranberry sauce. It does say in the instructions that you put everything together, but it doesn’t say the amount of water in the ingredients section. Thank you very much for sharing such a delicious recipe!!!!
Hi Velemira! I hope you’re enjoying the recipe after all that waiting :) Thank you for catching that error in the recipe — I just added in the amount for the water (1/3 cup). I find that sometimes I add more depending on how juicy the cranberries are, but 1/3 cup water is a good place to start.
Hello Ashley, I came across this recipe and it looks absolutely scrumptious!! I was wondering though, since I can’t have cashews, if Brazil nuts would work?
Hi Payton! Yes, you should be able to substitute Brazil nuts. I haven’t tried them in this particular recipe, but based on my other nut cheese experiences with them, they’ll work like a charm. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you give it a try!
Hello! I am now dairy free but missing my comfort food—a grilled cheese sandwich or cheese pizza or Cesar salad.
Any suggestions for cheese that does not use cashews? I am fine with all the other nuts but cashews, as I cannot tolerate. sigh.
This looks like a wonderful tasty recipe and I just need cashew replacement. I really want to try.
Thank you Ashley. :)
Hi, Donna! I totally hear you on missing those comfort foods, and I promise you that there are so many delightful plant-based versions that you’ll find as time unfolds.
As for suggestions for non-cashew substitutes in this recipe, I’m not entirely sure because I haven’t tested any myself, but raw almonds typically work well in plant-based cheeses. The texture won’t be quite as creamy and you may need to adjust the amount of liquid, but they should do the trick. Enjoy!
Forgot to click the checkbox.. Ashley….I made this last night to go with a vegetarian chili. And it was awesome! Hope your pregnancy is going well…. Will you be moving when the baby comes? I know you loved my Tower Gardens and if you are moving and have a place it could make life easier to get basil!!!
Thanks, Lynette! We’ll be staying in the city for the foreseeable future, but I’ll definitely reach out if that changes. Hope you’re having a beautiful summer!
This recipe sounds AMAZING!! Do you think sunflower seeds would be an okay sub for cashews? I’d love to make this for a dinner party coming up but someone has a nut allergy. Thanks!
Thanks, Becca! Although I haven’t tested it myself, my gut reaction is that I don’t think sunflower seeds will substitute well here flavor-wise or texture-wise. They’re quite a bit earthier than cashews and not nearly as creamy when ground/blended. This isn’t to say that the recipe won’t work with sunflower seeds (I think you’d still come out with a nice seed-based vegan cheese), I just think the swap will significantly alter the flavor and texture of the recipe.
How is this vegan goat cheese? You have provided every textbook “cheese” base, not a specialty cheese. I’m sure it’s delicious because I’ve used this base many times, but it’s not /goat/ cheese: very misleading.
Hi, Sophia! The amount of acid (via the lemon juice and apple cider vinegar) is much higher in this particular nut cheese recipe (compared to other nut cheeses on my site and elsewhere), which creates a bright and tangy flavor reminiscent of “goat cheese”. I’m a very honest person, and it’s never my intent to be misleading in any way. I’m not sure what you expected when you arrived at this particular recipe, but I’m sorry to have disappointed. Thanks for your opinion and insights.
Wow… Just wow. Happened to find this recipe today and decided to give it a shot. I was skeptical about the simplicity of ingredients. As of late I have discovered the magic of miso paste and nooch in cheesey, creamy, dairy substitutes like tofu feta cheese, vegan cheddar mac n cheese sauce, vegan sour cream and vegan yogurts. I have been dairy free for nearly a year now and have missed goat cheese and cream cheese the most. This recipe right here is MAGIC!! The cheese is currently baking in the oven but I tried it as I was pouring it into the pan and omg it tastes like magic!! This is the perfect recipe for a nice vegan cream cheese as well! I used three tbs apple cidar vinigar and two tbs lemon juice and it tastes so much like goat cheese… I feel like two tbs of each acid would be the perfect flavour for a cream cheese just so happy I found this recipe. Easy as heck to make as well. 10/10 👌🙌👏
Hi, Tamara! Thrilled to hear you’re enjoying the recipe so much! Warms my heart. Thank you for taking time out of your day to come back and share your thoughts—means so much. Also, if you’re looking for a vegan cream cheese recipe, be sure to checkout my recipe for cultured cashew cream cheese. It’s super simple to make and has that authentic tanginess thanks to culturing overnight (sounds complicated, but I promise it’s not)!
It was worth my time to share with you and others reading this how YUM and simple this recipe is! After writting my comment I decided to poke around the website and see what other cheese recipes you have here and I came across the cream cheese post! I have been so scared to try culturing nut cheese myself but after reading that recipe I absoloutely have to give it a shot! I’m super excited to showcase some amazing vegan cheeses this Christmas. I tried the goat cheese this morning and was just blown away all over again with how darn good it is! Perfect consistency, texture, and flavour. I added dried cranberries to the recipe (tossed them into the Vitamix at the end and pulsed a few times) and my taste buds did not know the difference between this vegan cranberry goat cheese and the $8 teensy tiny cranberry goat cheese I used to buy for the hollidays before going
plant based. So not only is it tastey and healthy, it’s CHEAPER than the real thing and available year round! So again, thanks for introducing me to homemade cheeses on a whole new level.