This recipe was a raw foods assignment for my Rouxbe Plant-Based Professional Certification Course. It was a challenge for me as most of my raw dishes are simple salads. I love Mexican flavors and also love cashew spreads and wanted to see if they would go together well. I wanted a dish that was spicy but not overpowering and I thought that the sweet peppers would be a good contrast. Since the cashew filling was fairly smooth, the textural contrast of the crunchy peppers was also excellent. My taste testers loved it, and I hope you do, too!
Ingredients:
2 c. raw cashews (I used a small handful of raw almonds with the cashews for a total of 2 cups)
1 large clove of garlic or 2-3 small cloves
Juice of one lime
Ground cumin
Chili powder
Chipotle powder
About 2 tablespoons of fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 bag of mini sweet peppers or 18-20 jalapeno peppers if you prefer some spice
Soak the nuts in warm water for about 2 hrs. I chose to add the almonds to add some textural interest as I knew that they would not blend as smoothly in my Nutribullet as the cashews.
Drain the nuts and add them to a bullet, high speed blender, or food processor with the garlic, lime juice, a couple of shakes of cumin, a few shakes of chili powder and about 1/4 teaspoon of chipotle powder. You can adjust the spices to your liking. Add a small amount of water and blend and then keep adding water and reblending until mixture is smooth. Add the cilantro the last time you blend the mixture. My goal was a moist mixture that will spread easily and be slightly spicy without being overpowering.
Remove the ends of the peppers and seeds, and stuff the peppers with the cashew filling. You can also cut the peppers lengthwise and fill them. Spoon some salsa on top as desired. The cashew filling is also delicious on whole grain crackers, such as Wasa crackers, which are low calorie and low sodium, or on toasted whole grain bread and topped with the lime salsa. Enjoy!
Lime salsa
Ingredients:
1 chopped tomato
Juice of one lime
1/2 of a purple onion chopped
1-2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro
3-4 turns of a Sea salt grinder or just a pinch of salt (optional)
2-3 shakes of ground cumin.
It is difficult to find ripe delicious tomatoes this time of year in Northeast PA, but even without perfect tomatoes, this simple salsa is very tasty.
Remember to have fun with your food and enjoy!