This cucumber sandwich recipe is a vegan take on a refreshing and light snack, bursting with seasonal freshness and so fully satisfying.
Vegan cream cheese acts as a thick and creamy binding element between the sandwich bread, cucumber slices, and fresh mint. The result is a light meal or snack you can feel good about.
If you take a look at the ingredients list on the back of any mainstream cream cheese, you won’t be impressed. Besides its base in pasteurized nonfat milk and milkfat (something about that doesn’t scream real milk to me), regular cream cheese is infused with hard-to-digest whey protein, stabilizers (like xanthan, carob bean, or guar gums), and preservatives (like vitamin A palmitate). Bottom line: you can do better.
The beauty of cashews–the base of this vegan creamy cream cheese–is that when raw, soaked, and blended, they turn into a creamy spread that can take on the flavor profile of just about anything. You are only ever a few add-ins away from an array of diverse dishes, such as a savory cheese, a dense raw cheesecake, or an herb dipping sauce. The possibilities are endless. In this cucumber sandwich recipe, the cashew cream cheese sticks to the theme: vegan and light. It gets a light cheesy flavor from nutritional yeast and a burst of tasty energy from chives. Spread on as thick of a layer of this vegan cream cheese as you’d like – no one’s judging.
The cashew cream cheese recipe makes more than you’ll need for your sandwich, but it is intentionally listed that way so you can keep the extra stored in your fridge for later use throughout the week. Whenever you crave cheese or anything dense, reach for the cashew cream cheese and use it as a dip, spread, or sauce. Enjoy!
Cucumber Sandwiches With Vegan Cream Cheese and Fresh Mint
Serves 1
Ingredients
For the sandwich
- 2 slices of whole grain bread, toasted
- 2 tablespoons of cashew cream cheese (recipe below)
- 8 cucumber slices
- Dash of salt
- Dash of pepper
- 1 scallion, finely chopped
- A few fresh mint leaves
For the cashew cream cheese
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked, drained, and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon chopped chives (optional)
Directions
For the cashew cream cheese, soak the raw cashews in water overnight. Drain and rinse before using. Add the soaked cashews to a food processor or high-speed blender along with the remaining cream cheese ingredients. Blend until smooth. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until needed.
For the sandwich, spread one side of each toasted bread slice with one tablespoon of the cashew cream cheese. Sprinkle atop each cream cheese layer with scallions. Arrange a single layer of the cucumber slices over one of the bread slices. Sprinkle the cucumber slices with salt and pepper and then finish it off with a layer of fresh mint. Place the other bread slice over the cucumber bread. Slice in half and eat!
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