I firmly believe that sour cream is a necessity in life - especially when fall rolls around and my kitchen morphs into what really amounts to a chili factory. I’ve always loved it. It’s creamy, tangy, a little salty, and the perfect complement to any soup with a little heat to it.

When I switched from vegetarian to a fully plant-based diet, it was the dead of summer, and my wild teaching schedule and 100 mile training program put cooking on the back burner, so to speak; so it wasn’t until the temperature started dropping that I realized just how bad store-bought vegan sour cream is. I’m not even sure how I learned that making it at home was a possibility, but I’m here to say that once I did, my days of vegan soupy imbalance were behind me.

Over the years, I’ve tried recipes from Oh She Glows, Minimalist Baker, Cookie and Kate, and probably eleventy-seven more - all delicious, I should say - and each time, I’ve tinkered with the ratios until finally landing on the one below. This one is exceptionally tangy, though, so if that’s not for you, you might try starting with half of the specified lemon juice and apple cider vinegar, and then adding more, little by little, until it suits you.

cashew sour cream
makes approximately 1 1/3 cups

1 cup raw, unsalted cashews* + water for soaking
1/4 cup water
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp sea salt, generously measured + more to taste

1) Place cashews in a bowl and cover with water. Cover and soak at least 8 hours or overnight in the fridge.

2) Drain cashews and place in a high speed blender. I use a refurbished Vitamix purchased on amazon.
3) Add 1/2 cup water, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt, and blend on high until very smooth, scraping down the sides and adding more water 1 tsp at a time, as necessary.
4) Taste and add more lemon juice, vinegar, or salt as you see fit.
5) Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week, if it lasts that long!

notes: Cashews have an inherent sweetness to them. If you find that it’s too much, macadamia nuts are a great alternative.

cashew sour cream
makes approximately 1 1/3 cups

1 cup raw, unsalted cashews* + water for soaking
1/4 cup water
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp sea salt, generously measured + more to taste

1) Place cashews in a bowl and cover with water. Cover and soak at least 8 hours or overnight in the fridge.
2) Drain cashews and place in a high speed blender. I use a refurbished Vitamix purchased on Amazon.
3) Add 1/2 cup water, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt, and blend on high until very smooth, scraping down the sides and adding more water 1 tsp at a time, as necessary.
4) Taste and add more lemon juice, vinegar, or salt as you see fit.
5) Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week, if it lasts that long!

notes: Cashews have an inherent sweetness to them. If you find that it’s too much, macadamia nuts are a great alternative.