Electric Roots – Cheddar style Cashew Cheezy Sauce with Roasted Broccoli

Electric Roots: Cooking with Medicinal Herbs So there’s this dream combo and it’s called broccoli cheddar. Broccoli and cheese just go so well together. This cheeze doesn’t make you feel seriously bloated or just want to fall asleep after you eat it. It’s creamy, sumptuous and totally plant based. The broccoli is nice and tender, but still has a bite to it, and is trimmed with crispy roasted edges. It’s mental health month here at the Shoppe and I know I definitely reach for the fried goodies and the cheese things when I’m feeling down or anxious. This combo is pretty tasty even though it’s not deep-fried :) While the brain is an incredibly complicated mechanism in itself, there really is no divide between “physical health” and “mental health." Sometimes when I hear “mental health,” I can't help but wonder... Are we talking about all the feelings? All our states of mind? We feel pretty good when we pay attention to what we put in our body + incorporate a movement of choice (don’t even call it exercise, just try to move your body joyfully somehow). All this, combined with our other personal self-care rituals, can sometimes just make life feel smoother. Self care is an amazing way to resist all the crap we can’t control and just helps us process all the things coming at us on a daily basis. One side of the shimmering, faceted diamond of life is that it is TOUGH and being a human takes a lot of work. Food can play a large role for many of us. Taking care of ourselves in whatever way we can, may help us better see the other shiny side of the diamond, the love that flows through all things including us complicated, (majorly complicated) little humans. So back to the cheeze. It’s been going on lots of things around here, and I’m pretty ok with it. (PS: I may make this sauce in real life in my class I am having at the Shoppe if you want to see it in action on March 9^th. ) Cheezy Sauce with Herbed Broccoli Steaks Cheezy Sauce Ingredients: 1 cup soaked raw cashews (*To soak cashews: place raw cashews covered in warm water for 30 minutes, or covered in water overnight in fridge. drain and discard soaking water before adding cashews to blender) 2 tablespoons tahini 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon Bragg’s Liquid Amines (or 1 teaspoon Tamari or soy sauce ) ½ cup warm water ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast ½ teaspoon garlic powder ½ teaspoon turmeric powder Method: Place all ingredients in blender except cashews and pulse or let it blend for a few seconds. Gradually add the drained cashews into the mix (if using a food processer you can add them all, stopping to scrape down the sides and starting again. If using a Vitamix, add cashews gradually, and use the tamper tool as you blend.) Blend until smooth and drizzle onto roasted broccoli just before serving! Roasted Broccoli Ingredients: 2 broccoli crowns 1 tablespoon olive oil couples pinches of cracked pepper ½ teaspoon sea salt Set oven to 425 degrees. Get a sheet pan (cover with foil) or grab a baking dish. Set aside. Rinse broccoli. Cut off bottom stem and discard. Cut up broccoli: (Slice into “steaks” or cut up in pieces, separating florets and slicing the stalk up into 1 inch pieces. Grab a large bowl and drizzle it with the oil. Add your broccoli and mix it around so the broccoli gets coated with the oil. Throw some salt and pepper on there (less than a half teaspoon each should do the trick. Dump broccoli onto the sheet pan, spread into a single layer as best as you can. Pop it into the preheated oven and set the timer for 8 minutes. At this point, it should be nice and cooked through, but if you want it a little more roasty, but your broiler on high for two minutes (set your timer for this too, or you’ll have burnt broc babies in no time). Turn off your oven, grab your tray, set on good cooling space and once cooled slightly to handle, place on a plate or in a bowl and drizzle it up with your cheezy sauce!! That’s it. Reserve extra cheddar-ey cheez sauce in the fridge for about 5-7 days max. Spread on sandwiches, dip things into it, put it on beans and chili, it goes with lots of the things. Take it easy on yourself and take a few moment out of your day to take a deep breath and I GOT THIS. Much Love, Nige