How to Make Cashew Cream?

This plain vegan cashew cream is a delectable dairy-free substitute for sour or heavy cream. Simple ingredients create the creamy, flexible, tangy, and rich cashew cream. Water helps with blending, raw cashews make it rich and creamy, and extra virgin olive oil gives it a richer flavor. Salt, garlic, and lemon juice give it a tangy, fresh flavor. To make it, just put all the ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth. If required, scrape the canister’s edges to ensure that everything is thoroughly blended. Then enjoy it!Cashew Cream

What is Cashew Cream?

A dairy-free substitute for heavy cream and coconut milk is cashew cream. It is created by soaking and then thoroughly mixing raw cashews with water. It can be used as a thick and creamy basis for salad dressings, overnight oats, and ganache for desserts. It can also be used to add richness to soups and pasta dishes.

It can even be put to drinks once enough water has been poured and filtered! Surprisingly, cashew cream doesn’t taste like cashews. The base formula has a flavor that is a blend of 10% nuttiness, 30% buttery, and 60% smooth, creamy vanilla flavor while remaining neutral enough to work with everything.

Cashew Cream Variations

I also like to use cashew cream as a dairy-free alternative to heavy cream. It is richer and creamier than cashew milk, albeit not as thick as the sour cream above. It tastes great with my butternut squash stuffed shells, herb, garlic mushroom pasta, and other pasta dishes. I then use less cashew to water, which results in a runnier cream sauce.

On rare occasions, I combine my basic recipe with a creamy sauce to get a completely distinct flavor. For my Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes with Broccoli, I make a lovely, fragrant sauce out of cashew cream, baked sweet potatoes, and rosemary.

To create a sauce you enjoy, feel free to tinker with the basic formula below! To get the consistency you want, change the cashew to water ratio. Afterward, experiment with adding nutritional yeast for a cheese flavor, lime juice in place of lemon, fresh herbs, spinach, or a dash of your preferred spice.

How to Make Cashew Cream?

It would help if you first decided how to use the cashew cream. Alternatively, if you’re unsure, start with the amounts recommended for thicker cashew cream knowing that you can always add additional water to thin it out.

  • Use 1/2 cup cashews in place of light coconut milk.
  • In place of heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk: Add 1 cup of cashews.

After determining the number of cashews to use, soak the nuts in hot water for 20 to 30 minutes. We tested whether soaking makes a difference because we love to save time in the kitchen. Conclusion: It does!

In our side-by-side comparison, we discovered that soaking results in a more neutral and palatable flavor. The positive news Using hot water expedites the process and is just as effective as soaking in chilly water all day.

After the cashews have soaked, we drain the hot water and add the soaked nuts and new water to a blender.

A high-speed blender is necessary for a smooth and creamy consistency (see our blender review!). Additionally, it’s crucial to make sure you have enough food to cover the blender’s blades (1 12 cups seems to be the least amount required for most blenders).

Ingredients

  • 1 cup uncooked cashews
  • water, 1/2 cup
  • Olive oil, extra virgin, two tablespoons
  • Lemon juice, two tablespoons
  • One peeled garlic clove
  • 1/2 tsp. sea salt

Instructions

  1. A heatproof basin should be filled with at least 1-2 inches of hot water before adding the cashews. Spend 20–30 minutes soaking.
  2. After draining the cashews, add them with 1 cup (240 ml) of fresh water to a high-speed blender. About a minute on high speed will get everything smooth.
  3. Instead of dairy cream or coconut milk in spaghetti, soup, overnight oats, beverages (but only if you use fewer cashews and drain for the best texture), desserts, and anything else that would benefit from a creamy boost! We tried, but sadly it doesn’t work to make whipped cream.
  4. For three to four days in the fridge, keep extra cashew cream in a container that is well closed. Although it’s usually best when fresh, we haven’t tried freezing it, but we believe it would work.

Is Cashew Cream Healthier than Cream?

According to the American Heart Association, a diet high in saturated fat may raise your risk of developing heart disease. Because heavy cream has a lot of saturated fat, your blood may have more harmful cholesterol. However, the majority of the fat in cashew cream is unsaturated, which can lower harmful cholesterol. Even better, the difference in nutrition between the original recipe and the version in which I substituted cream for the cashew mixture was striking:

2.5 grams of saturated fat compared to 18 460 calories compared to 640. It should come as no surprise that cashew cream without additional spices and nutritional yeast would make the ideal heavy cream substitute since it is our go-to as a base for our vegan cheese sauces. Your cashews should first be soaked for at least two hours. (You can omit this step if you have a strong blender.)

Cashew Cream Tips

Even while I adore cashews, that’s not the goal here. Cashews should be used raw, not cooked. The cream will taste nutty and cashew-like if the cashews are roasted. In contrast, raw cashews produce a neutral and creamy taste and go great in all savory recipes.

Which should I soak? That is the query, and your blender will determine the answer. There is no need to soak cashews if you have a high-speed blender. However, I advise soaking cashews for at least 4 hours if you have a less powerful blender. Put the cashews in a bowl, add water to cover them, and let away. Your cream will be gritty if you don’t. Drain and rinse the cashews after they have soaked, then continue with the instructions below.

Purchase a powerful blender. Investing in a strong blender is worthwhile if you frequently want to prepare handmade staples like cashew cream. Whether or not you soak any nuts beforehand, you’ll be able to whip up plant-based bowls of milk and sauces instantly, and they’ll be creamier than they would be with another blender. Although I use a Vitamix, high-speed Blendtec and KitchenAid blenders have also received positive reviews.

How Long does Homemade Cashew Cream Last?

For five to six days, keep cashew cream in the refrigerator. Cashew cream can also be frozen; when it thaws, blender or whisk it thoroughly. Thoroughly drain and rinse the cashews. Salt, filtered water, lemon juice, and cashews should all be added to a powerful blender or food processor. Blend until desired consistency is reached, occasionally pausing to scrape down the sides. This cashew cream can be refrigerated for up to six months and kept in the refrigerator for three to four days. Your cream can be frozen and will keep for at least four days in the refrigerator.

Are you interested in using cashew cream in ways outside, just eating it with a spoon? Most homemade nut butter, like this cashew butter, keeps well for three to four weeks. Mason jars are my preferred container for mine. When kept in the fridge, it will last longer. In the refrigerator, homemade cashew milk keeps for 3–4 days. Though I believe the first two to three days are the greatest for consumption. You can cut it in half if you don’t believe you’ll finish this recipe. You may also prepare the entire recipe and freeze any leftovers in silicone ice cube trays for later use.

Can you Make a Cashew Cream with Cashew Butter?

The cashews should be processed or blended until glossy and easy to stir (the oil is separated from the rest of the nut). Blend in water until creamy. Alternatively, puree or process roughly 1/2 cup of store-bought cashew butter. Use half the amount of whole nuts specified in the recipe when substituting raw cashew butter. This implies that you would use 1/2 cup of butter instead of the recipe’s specified 1 cup of whole, raw cashews.

Some advice pouring an adviser’s of water into your glass nut butter jar and place it in a pan of warm water on the stove to loosen it up. In a medium-sized pot, add the cashew milk, and over medium-high heat, whisk it occasionally, and bring it to a boil. Allow the mixture to simmer for 10 to 20 seconds after it reaches a boil before turning off the heat. It will have significantly thickened.

How do you Thicken Cashew Milk?

In a medium-sized pot over medium-high heat, add the cashew milk and bring it to a boil while stirring it occasionally. Let it simmer for 10 to 20 seconds after it reaches a boil, then turn off the heat. It will have become noticeably thicker. The easiest technique to regulate viscosity is to heat and thicken some almond milk while reserving the remainder unthickened, then blend the two for real milk-like consistency. To do this, pour the remaining thin almond milk into a big saucepan and set aside about half of it in a pitcher.

Overnight cashew soaking (or at least 8-12 hours if using a high-speed blender). Almonds are drained and cleaned. Blend the almonds and water in a high-speed blender for 60 to 90 seconds. Over a sizable basin, pour into the nut milk bag and squeeze or drain the milk out. The soaked almonds, filtered cold water, sugar, sea salt, and vanilla extract should all be combined in a high-speed blender. Until the mixture is thoroughly combined and the nut milk is smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes on high.

Conclusion

We’ve been holding you up. We have used cashew cream in many meals, such as soups, spaghetti, and desserts, but we have never developed a recipe specifically for its creamy, smooth perfection. Now make some cashew cream! Don’t you believe it merits a special place in the Minimalist Baker universe? Try this quick and easy dairy-free “cream” if you don’t like the flavor of coconut milk or are looking for a simple alternative to traditional heavy cream in recipes. It is versatile and has no taste (thanks to a quick soak in hot water).