Dairy-free, vegan cashew cream is so wildly versatile, you are gonna love it. Sweet or savory, it’s perfect as a finishing sauce, a dip or even stirred into soups, stews and sauces. Learn how easy it is to make plus grab some of my most favorite cashew cream flavor variations, including a lightly sweetened vanilla bean and a smoky, cheezy, dairy-free chipotle cashew cream and LOADS of recipe ideas. Paleo, keto and Whole30-friendly.
If you’ve been reading Tasty Yummies for some time now, you know my love affair of cashews runs many, many years deep. It all started with a vegan cashew cheesecake I made, probably for the first time, like 10 years ago now and then finally shared here on the website in 2013 and it’s just exploded from there (see the bottom of the post for lots of recipes). Considering I exist somewhere between totally dairy-free and mostly dairy-free, cashews are absolutely heaven sent when it comes to recreating that creamy texture you get from dairy. From sauces to cheesecakes and even an amazing keto nut butter – I am continuously amazed at what I can create with cashews.
While I have LOADS of cashew cream based recipes from the past almost 9 years on Tasty Yummies, I am finally sharing my basic Cashew Cream recipe along with two additional flavor variations that I LOVE and make often. There really are an unending amount of variations of cashew cream depending on how you plan to use it and your taste and you can adjust the thickness and consistency by adding more or less water, plus there are also so many options for other ingredients you can add to adjust the flavors. But, I wanted to give you the basics so you could be on your way to create your own variations, too.
I have made versions of this cashew cream of mine so many times over the years from cooking demos at Whole Foods to private cooking lessons with dairy-free folks and EVERY SINGLE TIME, without fail, people refuse to believe that it’s cashews!!
Cashew cream has a really mild flavor, which I find allows it to be added to just about any type of cuisine or dish. Be sure to use raw unsalted cashews, not roasted, to yield the best texture and flavor. You can find raw organic cashews in the bulk aisle of most grocery stores or online with places like nuts.com, etc.
Be sure to scroll all the way through to get ALL of the many options for flavor options, ideas for how to use your cashew cream, along with some of my favorite cashew cream recipes plus I answer a few Cashew Cream FAQs!
BASIC CASHEW CREAM
- 1 cup organic raw cashews
- 1/2 – 3/4 cup filtered water (more or less depending on the texture you seek)
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Soak the cashews in filtered water for at least 2 hours and up to 12. To soak, just place the cashews in a bowl and cover with water by an inch or so, then cover and soak at room temperature ideally for a minimum or 2-4 hours, but put in the refrigerator if soaking overnight.
After soaking, discard the soaking liquid and rinse the cashews thoroughly.
Place the cup of soaked cashews, 1/2 cup purified water, lemon juice and sea salt into a high-speed blender, like a Vitamix. Starting on low, blend the cashews as you increase the speed to high (about 10 seconds to increase from low to high). Blend on high for a minute or two until very silky and smooth. You can add more water as needed to achieve your desired consistency. I recommend starting with less water and adding as you go.
Store cashew cream in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator up to a week. Cashew cream freezes well up to 6 months (see below)
SWEET VANILLA BEAN CASHEW CREAM
- basic cashew cream (see above)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder (or vanilla extract, vanilla bean)
- honey, maple syrup or other sweetener, to taste
Make the basic cashew cream, as directed, then add in the vanilla bean powder and sweetener. Blend again. Taste and adjust flavors as needed. Add additional water as needed to get your desired consistency.
CHEEZY CHIPOTLE CASHEW CREAM
- basic cashew cream (see above)
- 1 chipotle in adobo sauce (more or less to taste)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1-2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
Make the basic cashew cream, as directed, then add in the chipotle, garlic, nutritional yeast and lime juice. Blend again. Taste and adjust flavors as needed. Add additional water as needed to get your desired consistency.
CASHEW SOUR CREAM
- basic cashew cream (see above)
- additional 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- add water as needed to get desired consistency
Make the basic cashew cream, as directed, adding in additional lemon juice and the apple cider vinegar. Taste and adjust flavors as needed. Add additional water as needed to get your desired consistency.
OTHER FLAVOR OPTIONS:
Pumpkin Spice Cashew Cream: Blend the sweet vanilla bean cashew cream, add 1-2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice and if you’d like even a little pumpkin puree. Drizzle over sweet potatoes or roasted squash.
Warm Chocolate Pudding: Heat the sweet vanilla bean cashew cream with 1/2 cup cacao powder, sweetener of your choice (only maple syrup, stevia, etc) in a pan on a stovetop over low heat, until warm but not hot. Remove from the heat and stir in to melt 2 ounces of finely chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips. Enjoy warm as a pudding.
Coffee Creamer – Skip lemon juice and add additional 2-4 tablespoons coconut milk, almond, or cashew milk or other non-dairy milk after the cashew cream has been fully blended. Sweeten or flavor, to your liking. It froths up really nice for coffee and teas.
Sweet Options: cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, cardamom, nutmeg, espresso powder, orange extract, orange zest or other dried spices or extracts
Other Savory Options: chives, dill, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked parika, chili powder, chipotle powder or any other fresh or dried herbs/spices that you’d like
TOOLS + A SPECIAL OFFER:
All you need is a good blender! That’s it. I recommend a high speed blender for the very best results for super creamy cashew cream. Vitamix is my preferred high speed blender. Using this link, you, the Tasty Yummies community receives $20 off of your first purchase of an Ascent Series product (pictured above) plus FREE SHIPPING.
SOAKING THE CASHEWS // NUTRITION:
I recommend soaking your cashews in filtered water at least a few hours 2-4, but you can soak them as long as overnight, if you wish, too. I find the longer they soak the more creamy your cashew cream. If you forget to soak the cashews, you can soak them for 15 minutes in very hot but not boiling water.
Always drain and discard the soaking liquid and rinse the cashews before blending. Use fresh filtered water for making the cashew cream.
As you may recall from my big nut milk tutorial, soaking nuts is quite important. Soaking the cashews breaks down the natural chemicals found on most nuts, seeds, grains and beans, these enzyme inhibitors and toxins protect them while growing, both from sprouting prematurely and also from predators, they are phytates (phytic acid), polyphenols (tannins), and goitrogens. Once harvested, those same chemicals, the major one being phytic acid is not digested well by the human body. When food containing phytic acid is consumed, the acid combines with important minerals like calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and especially zinc in the intestinal tract and blocks their absorption which inhibits our digestive systems’ ability to break the nut down properly.
So, the very simple process of soaking releases these chemicals, helping you to digest them and absorb your food’s essential minerals and nutrients. Cashews contain a good source of plant based iron, zinc, magnesium, and selenium, so by soaking your cashews for the appropriate time, you are actually making these nutrients more absorbable and available to our body! Cool, huh? Additionally, by soaking the nuts with the removal of these nutritional inhibitors and toxic substances, the flavor and taste is much more ideal and appealing.
How To Make Cashew Cream
Ingredients
BASIC CASHEW CREAM
- 1 cup organic raw cashews
- ½ - ¾ cup filtered water, more or less depending on the texture you seek
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
*(see above for additional flavor variations and ideas)
Instructions
- Soak the cashews in filtered water for at least 2 hours and up to 12. To soak, just place the cashews in a bowl and cover with water by an inch or so, then cover and soak at room temperature ideally for a minimum or 2-4 hours, but put in the refrigerator if soaking overnight.
- After soaking, discard the soaking liquid and rinse the cashews thoroughly.
- Place the cup of soaked cashews, 1/2 cup purified water, lemon juice and sea salt into a high-speed blender, like a Vitamix. Starting on low, blend the cashews as you increase the speed to high (about 10 seconds to increase from low to high). Blend on high for a minute or two until very silky and smooth. You can add more water as needed to achieve your desired consistency. I recommend starting with less water and adding as you go.
- Store cashew cream in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator up to a week. Cashew cream freezes well up to 6 months (see below)
Notes
HOW CAN YOU USE CASHEW CREAM?
SAVORY:
- Use as a sauce. A few of my favorites: Roasted Baby Bok Choy with Lemon Garlic Cashew Cream, Grain-free Veggie Enchiladas with Roasted Hatch Chile Cashew Cream, Butternut Squash Noodles with Harissa Cashew Cream and Crispy Brussels Sprout Chips, Smoked Salmon Cucumber Bites with Asparagus Ribbons and Dill Cashew Sour Cream, Sweet Potato Noodles with Sage Cream Sauce, Collard Wrap with Briny Cashew Cream, Slow-Cooked Black Bean Tacos with Vegan Chipotle Cream, Pasta with Creamy Roasted Tomato Basil Sauce, Vegan Spicy Butternut Squash and Kale “Cheezy” Mac
- Blend into soups and stews to make creamy or swirl on top as a finishing sauce
- Drizzle over roasted veggies
- Use as a creamy salad dressing, season with your favorite herbs
- Use as a dip for chips, crackers or veggies or a spread on sandwiches / wraps. Try this creamy Savory Herbed Cashew Pumpkin Dip or Creamy Dairy-Free Spinach Dip
- The basic cashew cream recipe can be used as a pasta sauce on it’s own, a dairy-free alfredo. Add nutritional yeast to amp up the cheesy flavor and some fresh herbs. Cashew cream can also be added to create a rich tomato sauce, a dairy-free penne a la vodka, or a creamy pasta primavera.
- Use in place of dairy in mashed potatoes or cauliflower mash
SWEET:
- Drizzle over tarts, pies, crumbles, cobblers, cakes and other sweet treats
- Use as a dip for fresh fruit
- A topping on chia pudding parfait
- Swirl into cereals, porridge or oatmeal
- Drizzle over roasted sweet potato, squash or pumpkin
- Thicker cashew creams made with less water can be used to make cheesecakes, try these No-Bake Vegan Cheesecake, Dairy-free Mini Cheesecakes, Dark Chocolate Peppermint Vegan Cheesecake, Grain-free Mini Pumpkin Cashew Cheesecakes, Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake Pops
- Sweeten with maple syrup and add a little tapioca starch (approximately 1/4 cup per cup of cashews), as needed and blend, use as maple icing for a cake (you have to ice the cake just before serving)
HOW LONG WILL CASHEW CREAM KEEP?
I find cashew cream lasts about 5-7 days in the fridge, in a tightly sealed glass container. You can also freeze cashew cream for up to 6 months. Try freezing in small molds or ice cube trays for smaller use. Re-blend the cashew cream after it is fully thawed to get that creamy consistency back. I honestly recommend making it fresh for best results.
