Roasted Veggie Cashew Crema Sauce (dairy-free)
Introducing my new favorite creamy sauce, Roasted Veggie Cashew Crema Sauce. It's made in a blender, dairy-free, and packed with nutrients. Made with cashews, nutritional yeast, and a blend of hidden vegetables like sweet potatoes, this recipe is not only delicious but also vegan and gluten-free.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 98kcal
Equipment
- 1 lined, sheet pan
- 1 small, deep glass bowl
- 1 high speed blender
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil *For the roasted potato chunks and carrots
- ¼ cup peeled, cubed sweet potato chunks
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
- ¾ cup soft cashews *soaked overnight in water
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 cup vegetable stock *water can work, also
- Juice from 1 lime
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon of the following spices: onion powder, smoked paprika, turmeric, cumin, salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Optional:
- pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- If your cashews are not soft, you will want to make sure to soak them first. Simply place the cashews in a deep, glass bowl and add either hot or boiling water to the bowl until they are completely covered, for at least 20 minutes. Or, place lukewarm water over the cashews, and place them in the fridge overnight.
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the sweet potato chunks and carrot chunks onto a lined cookie sheet. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of avocado oil, salt, and pepper, and cook for about 17 minutes. Skip this step if you are not adding roasted vegetables.
- Place all of the ingredients into a high-speed blender in this order: drained cashews, roasted vegetables, garlic cloves, nutritional yeast, lime juice, vegetable stock, spices, and optional red pepper flakes. Add more salt as desired. Blend until you have a very creamy sauce. Side note: if you are not adding roasted vegetables, add a little bit less broth.
- Eat immediately!
Notes
Storage:
Transfer the completely cooled veggie cashew crema to a mason jar or an airtight container and in the fridge for up to a week.
The crema thickens in the fridge, so you may need to add a splash of veggie stock to make it thinner.
Reheat:
Remove the lid, and place a paper towel over the mason jar. Microwave the crema for 30 seconds, stir, and reheat for another 20 seconds. Continue until the desired temperature is reached.
Tips + Modifications:
To speed up the softening process, soak the raw cashews in hot/boiling water for 20 minutes.
You can leave the roasted vegetables (carrots and sweet potato chunks) out of this recipe, but you might need less broth.
Optional: Add in 1 deseeded jalapeno to kick up the heat.
If you are looking for a thinner sauce, add additional vegetable broth.
Nutrition
Serving: 0.25cup | Calories: 98kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 127mg | Potassium: 154mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1928IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 1mg