Serves 6

Makes 1 quart crab queso 

  • 1 large russet potato, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes
  • 3 tablespoons arborio rice
  • 2 ½ cups water, divided 
  • ¼ cup raw cashews, soaked overnight or boiled in water for 10 minutes (separately from potatoes and rice)
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast 
  • 1 teaspoon old bay seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt 
  • 1 (14 ounce) can hearts of palm, roughly chopped into small bits
  • ½ cup (from a jar, not marinated in oil) roasted red peppers, roughly chopped into small bits
  • Sweet thai chili sauce
  • Scallions, thinly sliced
  • Black sesame seeds 

Add the potato, rice, and 1 cup water to a small sauce pot, cover with a lid. Bring to a boil and quickly reduce to a simmer, leave covered and simmer for 10 minutes until rice has puffed up and potatoes are fork tender.

While potato and rice are simmering add the cashews, remaining 1 ½ cups water, lemon juice, vinegar, nutritional yeast, old bay, and salt to a blender and blend until smooth. When the mixture is done cooking on the stove top, transfer the potatoes, rice, and any remaining liquid to the blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Do not overblend or the starch from the rice and potatoes will become gummy. 

Add the hearts of palm, peppers, and cheese sauce to a bowl and mix until everything is well combined and pieces are evenly dispersed. 

Layer a plate with a pile of tortilla chips. Top the chips with the crab queso, use as much as desired. Drizzle with sweet thai chili sauce and sprinkle with scallions and black sesame seeds. 

Note: If you have a food processor you can skip chopping the hearts of palm and pepper by hand. Add the hearts palm and pepper to the food processor and pulse a few times until chopped into small bits, use as directed in the recipe.