Cashew Sour Cream, Herbed Dip and a Festive Crudités Platter

I could write a whole post on why I have a love affair with sour cream. You can blame my Russian heritage for that, since it immediately makes me think of topping borscht (a very pink and hearty Russian beet stew), our crispy potato latkes, or potatoes of any kind for that matter, not to mention braised cabbage dishes and mushroom stroganoff. 

Vegan sour cream is so easy to find nowadays and I must say that the commercial varieties out there are incredibly delicious, but you know me and my love for a quick recipe, if I can make it at home with just a few inexpensive ingredients, I'm going to make it!

Today I'm teaching you how to make the quickest non-dairy sour cream that is so creamy you won't believe it came out of your kitchen. It's cashew based, gluten free, and I love it next to all my Russian favorites mentioned above, but also on top of my second and very real love affair with Mexican food. You can use it to top burritos, on 7 layer dips, tacos, tostadas, enchiladas, I mean... it doesn't get any better than that.

After making the cashew sour cream, we'll transform it into a delicious and easy vegan dip, and I'll teach you how to assemble the most colorful and festive crudités platter, perfect for the Holidays or Thanksgiving as a yummy appetizer or to pass around at a party.

 

Enjoy your video, printable and recipe everyone! Let me know in the comments what you like to use it for!

 

 

PDF RECIPE

 

CASHEW SOUR CREAM, HERBED DIP AND A FESTVE CRUDITÉS PLATTER

Yield: 1 cup sour cream or dip ⎮ Pre soaking time: 4 hours or overnight (for the cashews) (you can also boil the cashews for 12 minutes and skip the soaking) ⎮ Prep time: 10 minutes ⎮ Cook time: None

 

Ingredients

For the cashew sour cream:

• 1/2 cup raw cashews (previously soaked in water overnight or boiled in water for 12 minutes, this can be omitted if you have a high speed blender)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup water
• The juice of 1/2 a lemon

For the herbed dip:

 

 

Directions

1. Drain the cashews from the soaking water and add them to a blender.
2. Add the salt, lemon juice and water and blend until creamy, then transfer the sour cream to a bowl.
3. If turning the sour cream into an herbed dip, mix in the herbs and top with the reserved herbs for garnish.
4. Serve next to your favorite raw vegetables (or blanched harder vegetables like broccoli) and any other dips (if desired) and enjoy!