Holiday Recipe: Vegan Cashew Cream

Easy, Dairy Free Whipped Cream Dessert Topping

This simple cashew cream recipe was adapted from the one on the UK Website Uncaged, a peaceful international animal protection organisation based in Sheffield, England.

They also have simple recipes for homemade soy cheese, cream cheese and yogurt, which I thought was great, as those items are expensive to buy.

Cashew cream is a delicious topping for fresh fruit salad, stewed fruit, pumpkin or fruit pies, fruit crumbles and crisps.

You'll need a good blender to make cashew cream. If you want to double the recipe, make it in two batches so you don't overtax your blender.

A blender stick could work better than a jar blender, to make a thick cream. It would also mean you don't have to work hard to get it out of the blender! Plus you can make a double batch in one go. If you feel the need to run out and buy a blender stick - I recommend Braun as a strong but reasonably priced model.

This recipe makes about 2 cups of cashew cream. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 qt filtered white grape, pear or apple juice
• 2 Tblsp sunflower seed oil, or melted coconut oil
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar or to taste
• 1 tsp vanilla or to taste

Directions:

1. Bring the cashews and juice to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the cashews soften (5 - 10 minutes)
2. Cover, and leave to cool for a couple of hours, or overnight in the fridge
3. Drain the cashews, reserving the liquid
4. Blend the cashews with the oil and vanilla, adding a small amount of the reserved juice as needed to help things along. Use as little liquid as possible - the cream should be thick
5. Add the sugar gradually, testing until it has the right amount sweetness for you
6. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the cream from the blender to a covered storage container, and refridgerate until needed