Description
A creamy and flavorful vegan dish featuring sun dried tomato blended cashew sauce with tender butter beans and fresh spinach, perfect for a quick and satisfying meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Sauce Base
- 3/4 cup raw cashews
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes plus more if desired
- 7-8 fresh basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups water plus more as needed
Main Ingredients
- 2 15-ounce cans butter beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups baby spinach, sliced
- Crusty bread for serving, optional
Instructions
- Soak the cashews: Bring 2-3 cups of water to a boil. Pour the hot water over the cashews and let them soak for 5 minutes up to an hour to soften.
- Blend the sauce: Drain the soaked cashews and add them to a high-powered blender with garlic, sun dried tomatoes, basil leaves, lemon juice, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, and 1 1/2 cups water. Blend until creamy and smooth.
- Cook sauce and beans: Pour the creamy sauce into a large skillet over medium heat. Add the drained and rinsed butter beans and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often. Add more water if you want a thinner sauce.
- Stir in spinach and finish: Add the sliced baby spinach and more sun dried tomatoes if desired. Cook until the spinach wilts and turns bright green. Remove from heat and adjust seasoning with salt and black pepper. Serve warm with crusty bread if desired.
Notes
- You can substitute sunflower seeds or raw slivered almonds for cashews, or use full fat coconut milk instead of water for a richer sauce.
- If butter beans are unavailable, great northern beans, navy beans, or chickpeas work well.
- This dish is excellent with crusty bread, rice, quinoa, or other grains.
- Leftovers can be stored in covered containers for up to 4 days and reheated before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 550 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 35 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Protein: 12 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
