A plant based yogurt alternative, made with cashews and almonds, with optional flavourings like lemon juice, vanilla or lemon zest. Soaking required.
Yup, I really did say that: a plant based “yogurt” made from nuts. This isn’t a fermented product, just something you can easily make at home with two ingredients, in case you are cutting back on dairy, and/or looking to try some alternatives.
You could try a yogurt from the store, it’s true. I like this one, a thick and delicious fermented coconut yogurt, and one of the few without any funky ingredients or gums. But if you are a consummate DIY-er, or you enjoy making your basics from scratch (or you just do not love the flavour of coconut), then this recipe is for you.
Kitchen notes
I’ll start with the obvious: this won’t taste like dairy yogurt. It can’t, because:
it is made of nuts, and that is what it will taste like
it’s not fermented
However, it has the same function: a creamy food to eat as a breakfast or snack, with some interesting toppings if your choice. I offered some suggestions below as well.
Almonds and cashews are fairly mild-tasting nuts, so there is the possibility of playing with flavour. I add citrus zest, vanilla, honey, or maple to mine. Lemon zest is perfect if you serve this plant based nut yogurt with honeyed berries. Lime zest works with papaya chunks (SO GOOD), vanilla with a pear compote and so on.
You will need a high powered blender for this job. I have used the same blender for 12 years, it’s from this brand - an absolute workhorse in my kitchen. A regular blender has no hope of smashing through the nuts, even if they are soaked. You can use all cashews, in which case the yogurt will be perfectly silky, a joy to eat. I like to use half almonds and half cashews, which is less smooth, but it has a more nutty essence, which I personally love.
The recipe rundown: you soak the nuts the night before, or about 4-6 hours before, if using only cashews. You drain, rinse, then blend the nuts with some water. Season to your liking then store the plant based nut yogurt in the fridge for up to 3 days for enjoying with fruit and/or granola, as a snack or breakfast. It could not be simpler.
Plant based nut yogurt
Yields: 2-4 servings
Ingredients:
½ cup (75 g) cashews (the unsalted, unroasted kind)
½ cup (80 g) natural, raw almonds (or sub with equal quantity cashews, if preferred)
½ cup (125 ml) filtered water for blending
1 tsp (5 ml) lemon juice freshly squeezed (optional)
¼ tsp vanilla paste or vanilla essence (optional)
½ tsp lemon zest zested with a microplane (optional, add to nuts and water before blending if a smooth consistency is desired)
Equipment:
high powered blender
Method:
If using all cashews, place the cashews in a bowl and cover with cold water. Leave them at room temperature for 4-6 hours, or up to overnight. If using both cashews and almonds, soak the nuts separately, leaving the water-covered almonds on the counter for at least 8 hours, or overnight, as almonds need a longer soaking time.
Drain the nuts and rinse under cold water. Slip the skins off of the almonds. Place both nuts in a small blender jar (I use the Twister jar from Blendtec, which has a 16 fl oz. (2 cups, 500 ml) capacity. Add the ½ cup (125 ml) water and blend. Add any optional flavourings (lemon juice for tang, vanilla or citrus zest) and blend again until smooth and perfectly creamy.
Remove from the blender to a jar and store in the fridge until ready to enjoy.
Notes
This yogurt is great with fruit puree (mango with passion fruit is fantastic) or berry chia jam, fresh fruit (I like to macerate about 1 cup strawberries or blackberries with 1 tsp honey, then let rest for 20 min and serve with this yogurt), or a fruit compote, and if you desire some crunch, then granola or even some chocolate chips are a great option.
I don’t recommend freezing this nut yogurt. It can, however, be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.