Versatile vegan cooking cream


If you are familiar with my recipes, I'm sure you know my love for creamy dishes. I often have a couple of packs of vegan cooking cream at home. Usually it's made of soy or oats. But since I live in the country side, it's not always available for me. And after reading your many comments, I know it's not that available for you too. So I decided it was about time to write down a simple homemade vegan cream recipe. 

You only need some cashews or sunflower seeds and some water. You can use this delightfully silky and healthy cream where you would normally use regular light or heavy cream. So different delicious pastas and curries are now even easier to make. I know that some of my dear readers from the US have been craving to make this luscious lemony mushroom pasta, but only proper vegan cream was missing. There you go! No need to crave anymore, just roll up your sleeves and cook away. If you are allergic to nuts or just want a cheaper option, then sunflower seeds are the answer. But I must say that cream made with cashews is a bit better and smoother.


So were would you use this cream? Anywhere you would use regular light or heavy cream. May it be creamy sauces, soups, pasta dishes, curries and casseroles. You can also use this cream as a cold sauce or instead of mayonnaise and use it in salads.

Are you also crazy for creamy dishes? And where would you normally use a cream like that?

Cashew cream

Preparation time: 3 minutes + soaking or boiling the nuts

Serves: 1,7 cups / 400 ml

  • ¾ cup / 100 g cashews (or ⅓ cup / 50 g sunflower seeds)
  • 1 cup / 240 ml water (or 0,7 cups / 170 ml for a thicker cold sauce)

Directions:

Soak the cashews or sunflower seeds a couple of hours or over night. If you are in a hurry, you can boil them for 15 minutes instead of soaking. Drain and put them into a blender along with water. Blend for a couple of minutes, until you have a smooth cream. It's now ready to use. It has a neutral taste, so it suits into almost every dish. But if you want to season it more, add some salt and about a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar or some lemon juice. The cream will thicken a bit when you heat it. 

When I want to make a cold sauce, I usually season it with some salt, apple cider vinegar, herbs and chopped onion. 

The cream will keep in the fridge for a few days.

Sunflower seed cream