DF Veggie "Cream Cheese" Spread [RECIPE]

I've been craving a bagel with cream cheese, but there are some obvious hurdles: dairy allergy, and lack of goof fluffy bagels. My favorite bagel & cream cheese combo is from a little place in Marquette, Michigan called Third Street Bagel. They have the best veggie cream cheese ever, and their bagels are so light & fluffy, so they don't sit like stone weights in your stomach ;)

Locally, I've found 2 very good options for equally good bagels, Jake's Bagels & Deli in Aurora, IL and County Farm Bagels in Winfield, IL & Wheaton, IL. I had even figured out how to duplicate Third Street's veggie spread, but now I had to translate it to a dairy-free version. So I found a few recipes online, combined different pieces that I liked, adn the result is pretty good! I'm not sure I would like this spread without the veggies added, but as a whole it is delicious! It also works well for crackers!

Dairy-Free Veggie Cream Cheese Spread
1 cup raw cashews
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1½ Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast (or to taste)

1 tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper½ medium carrot, shredded
1 medium scallion (or small yellow onion), diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ medium red bell pepper, diced
1 fresh dill sprig (or ½ Tbsp dried)


Soak cashews for at least 4 hours, or overnight. You could start with boiling water to speed up the soak time to 1-2 hours if you are in a rush. Rinse and gently dry cashews with paper towel  to remove excess water.

Using a high speed blender or food processor, blend the nuts, oils, lemon juice, and spices. This takes a while, and you will probably have to stop ans scrape down the sides of your blender or food processor a few times. Continue blending until you get a smooth consistency. Your mix may be a bit warm at this point, and personally I was not super impressed with the flavor, but don't be discouraged!

Add in your veggies. You can do this by hand or add to your blender/food processor (personally, I chopped everything up fine, but still added to my food processor). Allow to chill in refrigerator before eating, as the cold helps the texture set up and improves the flavor. The longer you can wait, the better it will taste as all those flavors meld together!

I've heard this type of mix lasts for about 1 week in the refrigerator. To be honest I'm moving into week 2 right now and have not notice any spoilage, but trust your instincts. This makes a hefty amount of spread, so you may want to cut the recipe down or freeze half of it for later (I haven't tested freezing it yet, but I've read some success stories & have frozen other cashew based creamy items such as mini cheesecakes).