If you’re new to the Craft Beer scene, it might surprise you how many vegetarian and vegans there are here.
While I am a meat eater (clearly, I put bacon in desserts), I did spend three years as a vegetarian. Mostly, this was a response to growing up on a farm and getting up close and personal to the butchering process as well as the jarring realization of knowing the first name of my dinner. It did, however, give me a profound respect for the food I eat and the farms that share that respect.
I still eat vegan quite often, and there are some dishes, like lasagna, that I just think are just better in vegetarian form.
My true and honest feeling about vegan cooking is that regardless of what your typical diet is if you can’t cook a vegan meal that you love, you just aren’t that good of a cook. Produce is amazing, you get to use all the grains, seeds and nuts that you want and by the way, for the most part beer is vegan.
I first heard about Cashew Cream from this guy, and the idea was intriguing, given that I would have a much easier time giving up meat than sour cream and goat cheese. I like the idea of having a creamy element when I want to go non-dairy. This cashew cream was a really beautiful creamy addition to a vegan chili, when sour cream isn’t an option. I wanted to balance the sweetness so I added some acid and some spices, but feel free to experiment. This would also be a great place to add a little chipotle.
Ingredients
- 2 cups raw cashwes,
- 1 to 1 ½ cups almond milk
- Additional 1/3 cup almond milk
- 2 tbs IPA beer
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 2 tsp white wine vinegar
- 3 tbs olive oil
- 1 white onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 cup crimini mushrooms, finley diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 12 wt ounces Soyrizo
- 2 cup stout
- 2 cups veggie broth
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 (15 oz) can of black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 oz) can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 oz) can stewed diced tomatoes, with juice
- 1 or 2 large chipotle peppers in adoboe, minced
- ½ cup quinoa
- 1/3 cup bulgur wheat
- 1 tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ cup Cilantro, chopped
- 1 Avocado, sliced
- Tortilla Chips
Directions
- Add the cashews to a bowl, pour almond milk over cashews until covered. Let stand for 4 hours.
- Drain cashews and add to a food processor with 1/3 cup almond milk, IPA, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and vinegar. Process until smooth, about 5 minutes, possibly longer. Add additional almond milk or beer for a thinner consistency.
- In a pot over medium high heat, add the olive oil, onions, red peppers and mushrooms. Cook until onions and peppers have softened and the mushrooms have darkened.
- Add the garlic and the soyrizo, stir, breaking up the soyrizo.
- Add the stout, broth, tomato paste, black beans, kidney beans, tomatoes and chipotle, allow to simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Add the quinoa, bulgur, cumin, smoked paprika, salt and garlic powder, simmer until the quinoa has cooked, about 15 minutes. The longer chili simmers, the thicker it will be.
- Plate on top of tortilla chips, if desired, top with cilantro, avocado, and cashew cream.