When you start to eat more plants and fewer animal products, creamy sauces may be one of the things you first miss the most. That’s how it was for me anyway. Cream sauce and cheese sauce was always my favourite. And even though I occasionally indulge in the “real” thing, I mostly stick to this vegan cream sauce, which is why I am absolutely in LOVE with cashew cream. On top of being incredibly versatile and ridiculously EASY to make, it’s also loaded with healthy fats and minerals like copper, manganese, zinc, iron and magnesium. Cashews also have a hefty dose of vitamin K as well as a host of other important healthy phytonutrients. And don’t worry about the fat in cashews; it’s mostly the heart-healthy and cholesterol-lowering monounsaturated fats. I’m not saying you should eat 2 cups of cashews a day, but cashews, when consumed in moderation are a healthy addition to the diet.
The following is a basic recipe for cashew cream sauce, which can then be enhanced with other ingredients like fresh herbs and spices to change the flavour.
Use organic ingredients when possible
- 1-cup cashews
- ½ cup filtered water
- Juice of ½ lemon
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- Soak cashews at least 30 minutes up to overnight.
- Drain and rinse well.
- Add all ingredients into high-speed food processor or blender and blend until smooth. (Scrape down sides with spatula when necessary and adding more liquid to achieve desired consistency)
- Makes about 1 cup and will last in the fridge for 5-6 days.
I’d love to hear how you use nuts, seeds and other plants to make your own creamy sauces! Hit me up in the comments below and tell me all about it. You can also find me hanging out here, here and here @kimdeoncom.
— KD
