Creamy Serrano and herb cashew spread recipe

This past weekend, one of my dearest friends decided to host a dinner party for a group of her favorite  ladies. Though she is far from a vegetarian, most of the attendees were, so she decided to make the menu totally vegan. I was so proud and thankful for her efforts. It really touches and inspires me when I look to the people around me and see them adopting  more responsible food choices. I mean, this girl never even used to cook and now she is cooking plant-based!

My friend wanted to handle the majority of the menu herself, but asked me to bring a dip for crudité (sliced or whole raw vegetables). I decided to make a variation of cashew cheese spread by adding fresh herbs, almond meal for variation in texture and a fresh Serrano pepper for some kick. The dip was a hit!

The next time you are asked to whip up a crowd-pleasing appetizer in a flash why not make this creamy cashew spread your go-to recipe?

Creamy Serrano and Herb Cashew Spread Recipe

By Kat Barry

Yield: 1 cup (8 ounces) spread

Ingredients

• 1 cup cashews, soaked in water at least 1 hour, then drained
• 2 tablespoons almond meal (flax meal works too)
• ¼ cup nutritional yeast
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• ¾ teaspoon Batti Becco seasoning salt (or other Italian seasoning salt)
• 1 fresh Serrano pepper (or 1 jalapeno if your tolerance is lower), sliced
• ⅓ cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• ¼ cup fresh dill, clipped from stem
• 1-teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. Place cashews, almond meal, nutritional yeast, olive oil, garlic, seasoning salt, and hot peppers in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal “s” blade
2. Blend for about 30 seconds, scrape sides with a rubber spatula, then repeat
3. Add the fresh lemon juice and fresh herbs
4. Blend until smooth, about 30 seconds to 1 minute
5. Scrape the bowl of the food processor really well
6. Serve with crudite’ and crackers

*Pairs great with Chardonnay!

Have you ever tried creamy cashew spread before? Did you miss the dairy?