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Vegan “Queso” Dip

January 28, 2015 by Maggie Jones 9 Comments

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This creamy vegan queso will satisfy all your cheese dip cravings
I’ve mentioned before that queso is very serious business in this family. I could comfortably survive on a diet of just margaritas and queso – and have, in fact. For about three days, anyway. Then it becomes a little… er… uncomfortable.

But still worth it.

Dairy free, lightened up Vegan Queso Dip
The purist Jones queso as passed down through the years by Brad has just two ingredients: velveeta and rotel. While I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that velveeta is vegan in the same way that oreos are vegan (so gross), I’ve long been working on a vegan queso that is made from actual food.

This creamy vegan queso will satisfy all your guests on game day
Cashew crema is, of course, the classic deliciously creamy yet animal-product-free sauce but it’s a little heavy on the calories for me. I’ve lightened things up here with pureed cauliflower and a small amount of carrot for extra veggie-based creaminess and color. The result, while certainly distinguishable from the real thing, is perfectly satisfying.

Creamy, cheesy-tasting Vegan queso dip
If you’re laying off the animal products but can’t imagine game day without a bowl of queso, this is the recipe for you. As an added bonus, it’s accidentally gluten-free and intentionally low fat!

Vegan “Queso” Dip

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 10 servings

Serving Size: 1/4 cup

Calories per serving: 84

Fat per serving: 3.9g

Vegan “Queso” Dip

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c cashews
  • 3/4 c cauliflower
  • 1 oz carrot
  • 1.25 c unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/4 c vegetable broth
  • 1-2 chipotle peppers, to taste
  • 1/4 tsp mustard powder
  • 1/2 tsp white vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 6 tbs nutritional yeast
  • olive oil spray
  • 1/4 c onions
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne
  • ground chipotle pepper, to taste
  • 1 15-oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles (I use Muir Glen Organic), well drained

Instructions

Pour boiling water over the cashews and let sit at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, place cauliflower and carrot in a large bowl, ad 1/4 c water, and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Microwave for 10 minutes. (Alternatively, if you don't have a microwave, you can boil the vegetables until tender.)

Drain cashews. Add soaked cashews, cauliflower, carrot, almond milk, vegetable broth, chipotle peppers, mustard, vinegar, garlic, and nutritional yeast to a blender. Puree until smooth.

Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat and spray with olive oil. Add onions and saute, stirring, until softened and translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Pour almond milk mixture into the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add salt, cumin and black pepper and simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in diced tomatoes and adjust seasoning to taste.

Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy.

Nutritional Information

Calories 84
Total Fat 3.9g
Saturated Fat 0.7g
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 178mg
Potassium 357mg
Total Carbohydrates 8.9g
Dietary Fiber 3.0g
Sugars 2.2g
Protein 5.1g

3.1
https://www.homesweetjones.com/2015/01/vegan-queso-dip/

Vegan queso will satisfy everyone on game day

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Filed Under: Recipes, Snacks & Small Plates Tagged With: 40 Minutes or Less, Cheap Eats, Entertaining, Gluten Free, Low Fat, Make Ahead, Vegan, Vegetarian

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Comments

  1. Sherri@The Well Floured Kitchen says

    January 31, 2015 at 9:02 pm

    It’s incredible how many packaged goods are touted as vegan, which is a shame because you don’t need to eat chemicals to avoid animal products! I love that you recreated one of your favorite dishes only using real foods. Looks amazing, pinned!

    Reply
  2. Amy says

    May 27, 2017 at 3:28 pm

    What can you replace the cashews with I have a nut allergy.

    Reply
    • Maggie Jones says

      May 27, 2017 at 8:09 pm

      Hmmm… you can try leaving them out but I can’t vouch for how it will turn out. It might be worth looking for a nut-free recipe. Good luck!

      Reply
  3. Diego says

    September 9, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    Im not going to lie.. that ingredients list is intimidating but I’m gonna give it a shot.

    When you say mustard, are we talking mustard seeds or like American mustard sauce?

    Reply
    • Maggie Jones says

      September 9, 2017 at 9:13 pm

      Ugh! Terrible recipe writing. It’s 1/4 tsp mustard powder. Don’t buy it special for this, though. If you don’t have it on hand using regular American yellow mustard will totally work to give it that little tang.

      I’m so happy you’re giving it a try! Let me know what you think!

      Reply
  4. Leila says

    August 5, 2018 at 4:46 pm

    I made this tonight and it was delicious! I’ve made queso before with nutritional yeast, but sometimes the smell of the yeast ruins the taste – I think all of the ingredients in your recipe helped with that. Thank you for sharing. I’ll make it again soon.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 15 Vegan Dip Recipes - Eluxe Magazine says:
    September 2, 2015 at 7:07 am

    […] but you won’t find that in this vegan dish! Surprisingly light in calories, this queso dip by homesweetjones is made with pureed cauliflower and carrot for an extra little boost of healthy […]

    Reply
  2. Eat Healthy! 17 Vegan Dip Recipes - Eluxe Magazine says:
    September 2, 2015 at 7:13 am

    […] but you won’t find that in this vegan dish! Surprisingly light in calories, this queso dip by homesweetjones is made with pureed cauliflower and carrot for an extra little boost of healthy […]

    Reply
  3. DIY Super Bowl 50 Menu | Vegan Bikini Doc says:
    February 7, 2016 at 11:17 am

    […] Recipe from Home Sweet Jones. […]

    Reply

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