It’s summertime which means it’s the perfect time to take .. a DIP!
I’m not talking about a swan dive into a body of water, but rather a chip-dip into a creamy queso sensation. Who’s with me?!
I whipped up this dish a few years ago when I had family in town. I took a little blogging break, so it’s been filed away in my recipe folder.
Initially when I made it, it was pretty basic. I didn’t have a good idea of what all should go into a vegan queso, so I just winged it. My family who was visiting loved it, but to me, it didn’t entirely rival traditional queso.
Since then, Siete (an amazing, healthy, food company) has come out with a delicious cashew queso which has a hearty ingredients list chock-full of spices. I’ve incorporated a few of them and believe to have created a really solid recipe as a result.
It’s so easy to make too. You simply soak your cashews in water for a few hours. Drain off that liquid then blend your water, spices, tomato paste and nutritional yeast in a blender or food processor until creamy and serve!
You can serve it straight away with an array of veggies, or chips, or what I like to do is make my own chips.
You just pan fry or air fry some quality tortillas that have been sprayed with a little olive oil, sprinkled with garlic powder and a dash of salt, and cut into triangles. You get them nice and toasted and they are ready to rock.
You can have full control over what’s in your chips, like if you’re trying to stay away from gluten or corn, you can pick tortillas that suit those preferences. Genius, I know!
I started doing this when my kids were toddlers because I couldn’t find non-GMO taco shells. I would pan fry tortillas, then lay them over a rolling pin and they would bend into shells.
My chip idea was even featured by one of my fave brands, “Wrawp Organic Veggie Wraps,” on their Instagram page where I used their wraps to make chips with some hummus. (It’s a great brand if you’re looking for healthy tortillas!)
A dip-chip duo that’s healthy AND delicious? You bet your sombrero!
Here’s what you’ll need for this dreamy queso dip.
Creamy Queso Dip Ingredients:
- 1 cup raw cashews
- The juice of one lime
- 3 to 5 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- dash of cayenne pepper
Directions:
1. Place cashews in a bowl, cover with water and set aside for 30 minutes up to 5 hours. The longer, the better so it’s extra creamy.
2. Drain off cashew liquid then place cashews in a blender along with nutritional yeast, tomato paste, lime juice, spices and salt and 3 tablespoons of water. If you want your dip thinner add more tablespoons of water, one tablespoon at a time.
3. Serve room temp with veggies or chips, or place in refrigerator and serve when ready.
*NOTES
-store in refrigerator, will last up to three days sealed.
-For chips, spray both sides with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, garlic powder, or any other spices you like, air fry 6 minutes, 330, flip half way through. You could also pan fry them.
