Vegan Cashew Queso

Toasted cashews give this dairy-free queso its creamy body, while charred tomatillos and chipotle bring the flavor. Look for tomatillos at the market in late summer and serve the dip warm with tortilla chips.

Makes 2 cups · 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the tomatillo salsa

• 6 ounces tomatillos, husked and rinsed
• 1 serrano chile
• 1 shallot
• 3 garlic cloves
• Fine sea salt
• ½ bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped

For the queso

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 chipotle pepper in adobo
• ¾ to 1¼ cups unsweetened almond milk
• ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

For serving

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
• Tortilla chips

Instructions

1. Spread the tomatillos, chile, shallot and garlic on a foil-lined baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. Broil for about 10 minutes, turning once, until charred and soft.
2. Let the vegetables cool a little, then purée them in a blender with the cilantro until smooth. Spoon out a few tablespoons for garnish and leave the rest in the blender.
3. Toast the cashews in a large dry skillet over medium heat for about 10 minutes, shaking the pan now and then, until light golden and fragrant. Let them cool slightly.
4. Add the cashews, chipotle, ¾ cup almond milk, turmeric and salt to the salsa in the blender. Purée until completely smooth, adding more almond milk only as needed so the dip doesn't turn thin. Taste for salt.
5. Scrape the queso into a bowl, drizzle with the reserved salsa and top with the red onion and cilantro. Serve warm with chips.

Tips

• The flavor depends on getting real color on the cashews and a good char on the vegetables, and the texture depends on blending until there's no grit left.

Adapted from Josef Centeno and Betty Hallock's cookbook "Amá: A Modern Tex-Mex Kitchen," via NYT Cooking.