Ricotta Cheese Substitutes: For Lasagna and Baking
Making lasagna or cannoli but out of ricotta? Learn how to use cottage cheese, mascarpone, or goat cheese as a delicious substitute.
Best substitutes
| Replace with | Ratio | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Small-Curd Cottage Cheese | 1 cup (blended smooth) | lasagna, stuffed shells, baked ziti |
| Mascarpone Cheese | 1 cup | cannoli, cheesecakes, pancakes |
| Firm Tofu (Vegan) | 1 cup crumbled | vegan lasagna, dairy-free baking |
Understanding Ricotta
Traditional Italian ricotta (which literally means “recooked”) is made from the whey left over from the production of other cheeses. It has a distinctive fine, slightly grainy texture, a mild, sweet, milky flavor, and is incredibly versatile. It is the backbone of baked ziti, stuffed shells, and lasagna, while also starring in sweet desserts like cannoli and cheesecakes. A good substitute depends entirely on whether you are cooking a savory Italian dish or baking a sweet dessert.
The Best Savory Substitute: Cottage Cheese
For baked pasta dishes like lasagna, stuffed shells, or baked ziti, small-curd cottage cheese is the absolute best 1:1 substitute. It shares a very similar moisture content, mild flavor, and caloric profile.
However, cottage cheese is much lumpier and slightly saltier. To mimic ricotta perfectly, put the cottage cheese in a food processor or blender and pulse it until it becomes smooth. Then, slightly reduce the added salt in your recipe. This trick works so well that many people prefer it to actual ricotta in their lasagna.
The Best Sweet Substitute: Mascarpone
If you are making cannoli filling, a ricotta cheesecake, or sweet pancakes, cottage cheese won’t work well due to its savory undertones. Instead, use Mascarpone cheese. Mascarpone is essentially Italian cream cheese. It is much richer, smoother, and sweeter than ricotta. You can use it 1:1. Because it has a higher fat content, your dessert will be significantly richer and denser, which is rarely a bad thing.
Goat Cheese (Chèvre)
If you need ricotta for spreading on crostini, topping a pizza, or stirring into a savory tart, fresh goat cheese is a phenomenal alternative. It has a similar spreadable, crumbly texture. Note that goat cheese has a strong, tangy, earthy flavor compared to the mild milkiness of ricotta, so it will noticeably change the flavor profile of your dish, usually for the better.
Tofu for Vegans
If you need a vegan ricotta substitute for lasagna, firm tofu is excellent. Crumble the tofu with your hands until it resembles the grainy texture of ricotta, then mix it with a squeeze of lemon juice, nutritional yeast, salt, and olive oil to mimic the tangy, fatty profile of dairy cheese.