Inspired by the beloved Tex-Mex dip, this is one creamy vegan queso recipe with cashews, nutritional yeast, and Rotel! It is so good smothered on nachos, tacos, or with soft pretzels. You could even use it to make a plant based mac and cheese. Just mix in some elbow macaroni, and bake it or don’t bake it! Snack time, party time, meal time.
This vegan queso recipe makes ~3 cups. And it freezes well. Fully defrost it in the fridge, and then, warm it on the stove over low heat. And it’s ready to go!
If you do not have a high speed blender, you can still make this recipe. Just make sure to soak the raw cashews in water for 4-6 hours before adding to a regular blender. The longer you can soak the cashews, the better. Keep in mind, a high speed blender works best.
I made this recipe with Rotel Hot Diced Tomatoes with Habarenos, but you can pick any of the Rotel diced tomatoes with chiles. Do what suits your comfort with heat.
Check out more UVK recipes, like Vegan Black Bean Dip, Butternut Squash Spinach Soup, Lemon Tahini Dressing, Arugula and Butternut Squash Salad or Black Bean Avocado Salsa.
Vegan Queso Dip
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
10 ounce package (OR ~2 ⅓ cups) frozen butternut squash
1 cup fake chicken broth (I dissolved ½ cube of Edward & Sons Not-Chick’n Bouillon in 1 cup water)
¾ cup raw whole cashews
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp white miso
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp lemon juice
½ tsp garlic powder
½-1 tsp salt
10 ounce can of Rotel diced tomatoes with chiles (see note above)
1. First, you’ll sauté the aromatics for the vegan queso dip. In a large pot or dutch oven, add the olive oil, onions and a dash of salt. Saute over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes or until the onions are soft and golden.
2. Add the garlic and butternut squash, and stir around for a minute. Then, pour in the broth, bring to a boil, lower to a simmer, and cover for 10 minutes.
3. While the butternut squash is simmering, add the raw cashews, nutritional yeast, white miso, dijon mustard, lemon juice, and garlic powder to a high speed blender (like a Vitamix or Ninja).
4. Spoon the butternut squash mixture from the pot into the high speed blender. Blend until smooth and creamy.
5. Taste, and add ½ tsp salt. Then, taste again. Add another ½ tsp salt, if needed.
6. Pour the vegan cheese sauce back into the pot.
7. Add the can of Rotel to the pot, and mix together the vegan queso dip. Taste, and adjust seasonings, if needed (salt? lemon juice?).
8. Serve. Prefer your vegan queso a little warmer? Stir over low heat for a few minutes.
