The Best Cream Cheese Substitutes for Your Holiday Recipes During Shortages
We’ve all tackled our fair share of hurdles in 2021, but it got to the point where even your holiday menu requires some gymnastics from the ingredients. If you haven’t heard: we are experiencing a shortage of cream cheese in the country. Prices have risen, and in some places it is difficult (or impossible) to find. Even if you’ve got your hands on a few precious silver bricks, there is an extra charge for them: cream cheese guilt. Making New York’s famous cheesecake doesn’t have to cost too much, run up to five grocery stores, or look over your shoulder. ( Plus Kraft will pay you not to.)
Holidays is not the time for “par for the course” substitutions, but luckily for you, we have a ton of sweet and savory holiday menus to help you forget your bagel. As they often say at my place: let’s start with dessert.
Another cheesecake
Ricotta cheesecake might just replace your favorite American standard. It is also called “Italian cheesecake” and you will find that it is very similar to its creamy cheese cousin – it is creamy in color, has a slightly toasted top and is available without or with a crusty crust. Ricotta has a lighter and more crumbly texture, so you may have room to fit a few more slices on your plate. Pro tip: Check the recipe’s ingredient list before you fall in love with the photos to make sure it uses all the ricotta cheese, like this classic one from Food Network or this orange ricotta version from Vintage Kitchen (which has a more Basque toasted cheese. crust).
Combo Cheesecake
For those bakers who just need to make a traditional cheesecake, there are ways we can do it. You can mix and match soft cheeses with equal amounts of cream cheese. Mascarpone, Neuchâtel (French cream cheese) or ricotta can join the team to ease the load and raise the bar. If using ricotta, be sure to plan ahead and drain it through cheesecloth for a couple of hours or in the refrigerator overnight to remove excess moisture. The mascarpone does not need to be drained, but when mixed with other cheese, you will notice a creamier texture, especially in the center. Yes, you might still need to use a package of cream cheese, but there will be much less of it and your guests will appreciate the familiar scent combined with the silky texture that mascarpone provides or the cloudiness that ricotta provides.
Vegan cheesecake
Hear me out: even if you are not a diet restricted person or choose to follow a vegan diet, you can still enjoy vegan desserts. Perhaps you will really like them. Vegan cream cheeses have come a long way from soft and boring to creamy, tart and delicious. In addition, with the growing demand for vegan recipes, more talented chefs have begun writing recipes for our common good. Look for recipes that use a blend of vegan cream cheese and rich saturated fats like coconut oil, and even better, soaked cashews. (I like this Vegan Delish cheesecake or this raspberry vegan cheesecake with two different filling options.) Soaking cashews allows them to soften and blend easily, transforming them entirely into sumptuous, creamy sauces or, in that case, your batter cheesecake feast.
Alternative to brownie cheesecake
Maybe your family doesn’t make a full-fledged cheesecake (who even needs a water bath?), But you love your brownie pot with a decadent whirlpool of cream cheese. Many of the above substitutions apply here. A swirl usually takes a few ounces of cream cheese, so it is best to replace the mascarpone with lemon juice or use vegan cream cheese. You can also give up cheese altogether and use this flaw as an excuse to try something new. Why not try peanut butter (or any peanut butter), Nutella, cookie butter, or sprinkle with chopped hard candies?
Okay, now that you have a few dessert options, we can think of savory solutions.
Cheese ball
While many cheeseball recipes use cream cheese by default, this is not required. Since you’re just looking for a substitute for soft processed cheese, you can add the same amount of other soft cheese without any problem. Try using goat cheese this year to secure the decoration to the cheese board. Opt for a creamy texture over drier and chalky varieties for maximum flow.
Another tasty option is the soft, spicy Gourne cheese. You may already know it as garlic and herbal bursen, and it’s the perfect cheese for lazy cheese balls (because it’s already seasoned). Vegan cream cheese, ricotta cheese, or Greek yogurt ranks second among alternative dishes. For the latter two, you must drain them and add other stabilizing ingredients such as grated cheeses – both ricotta and Greek yogurt have a fair amount of moisture that can prevent you from getting the ball you want. Drain the water through cheesecloth overnight, placing a weight on it to remove moisture before mixing with other ingredients.
Creamy sauces
Nothing says New Years Eve like sauces. This is the best friend of all snacks and the only reason I will ever eat raw broccoli. When it comes to replacing cream cheese in sauces, you can rely on a few persistent ingredients: sour cream, plain yogurt, and mayonnaise. Sour cream and yogurt will be spicier, and mayonnaise will be salty and juicy. Use a mixture of one hot ingredient and mayonnaise for a well-balanced flavor, then add the other ingredients for the dipping. Keep in mind that all of these substitutes contain more water than cream cheese, but you can reduce the amount of liquid in other parts of the recipe or strain the sour cream or Greek yogurt.
Snacks stuffed with cream cheese
Party snacks like crab rangoon, jalapeno poppers, or cream cheese stuffed mushrooms are essentially little jars that put hot melted cheese in your mouth so you don’t have to live without it. These snacks usually have a delicate shell (thin layer of bread crumbs, soft vegetable, or thin crust) and high temperatures, so it’s important to remember that the filling will melt or explode from the snack if it’s too crumbly. If you are using Greek yogurt or sour cream, you should add something to stabilize and bond the mixture so that it does not leak out completely. Add shredded cheddar, goat cheese, or feta and toss well with egg yolk for a cheese so delicious you can forget the Great Cream Cheese Shortage in 2021.