Guaca, Sour Cream, & Salsa Time

If you are making vegan apps for a large number of people, I recommend these 3 recipes, for a few reasons. First they are simple to make, and secondly, everybody loves them. They are really good with crackers, such as flax crackers, or raw nachos, or if all you have is actual chip nachos, they work with those too. The only thing you may find difficult is one of the ingredients for the sour cream, but there is a substitute option, so you can still make something VERY similar in taste and texture. Starting with the easiest, you will need...

Guacamole:
1 avocado
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup crushed raw cashews

Salsa:
1 orange pepper
1 yellow pepper
1/2 sliced olives
1/4 of a sweet onion
1/4 cup basil leaves
1 cup cherry tomatoes
2 springs of green onion
1/4 cup white vinegar
Black pepper
4 tbsp lemon juice

Sour cream:
Meat of 1 thai coconut ( or 1/4 cup soaked cashews)
1 cup cashews
1/4 cup white vinegar
Black pepper
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp lime juice

First, soak all the cashews needed (except for the ones in the guacamole) for at least 2 - 4hours, preferably overnight if you have them soaked already. Starting with the guacamole, take your avocado and scoop out the insides in a bowl. Pour in the lime juice and use it to help break down the avocado to a smooth paste with a fork. Add in the crushed chunks of cashews and set aside.

 

Next, chop your peppers into cubes, and slice your cherry tomatoes into halves, or if you can, into thirds. Do the same with your sweet onion, and finely chop the basil as well. Mix them together, and add in the chopped green olives. The olives can be cut into thirds as well, like the tomatoes. Pour in the lemon, lime, and white vinegar, and sprinkle some black pepper on top. Using scissors, cut the green onion into little circles and mix that in as well.

 

Last, open up your young thai coconut; I suggest you youtube it for expert advice :). When you do get the meat out, blend it up with the rest of your ingredients. You may need to add some water to get it moving, and feel free to use the coconut water to add extra flavour. The more water you add, the more like sour cream it will become, but if you want to keep it nice and thick, minimize the amount you add.

Serve all three with crackers and indulge :)

Julia