You don’t have to be vegan to go nuts for this cream

If the phrase “cashew cream” doesn’t mean anything to you, then you’re definitely not vegan. Soaked cashews blended with water to create a substitute for cream is a foundation of vegan cooking.

Here’s the thing: I’m not vegan. I eat dairy. But I’m also trying to eat more healthfully, and in trying recipes here and there that use the ingredient — and loving them — I’m starting to realize that cashew cream should be on the must-try list for anybody, vegan or not, who wants to cut back on calories and saturated fat.

Or, frankly, for anyone who just wants something that tastes good. Turns out that using cashew cream is anything but a sacrifice.

My first aha! moment with the stuff came when I tried a recipe for tempeh in mushroom cream sauce this year. The sauce had a touch of richness, a silky texture, and yet it wasn’t as heavy as it would have been with actual cream.

The same qualities demonstrated themselves when I made a red chard linguine from the revised, 10th-anniversary edition of Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s “Vegan With a Vengeance” (Da Capo, 2015). The sauce, which turns a lavender color from the chard stems and red wine, thickens up wonderfully with the addition of the cashew cream, which you make by soaking the raw nuts for a couple of hours before blending for a few minutes (or less if you have a high-speed blender like a VitaMix).

Even better, when I did a nutritional analysis comparison — the original recipe vs. a version where I swapped in cream for the cashew concoction – the difference was stark: 2.5 grams of saturated fat compared with 18, 460 calories compared with 640.

I don’t make every eating choice based on nutrition alone (as my waistline can attest), but when the better-for-you option also happens to be delicious, there’s really no reason not to take it.

Creamy Red Chard Linguine

4 servings

MAKE AHEAD: The cashew cream can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. Adapted from “Vegan With a Vengeance,” by Isa Chandra Moskowitz (Da Capo, 2015).

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more as needed

8 ounces dried whole-wheat linguine

1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours or overnight (see NOTE)

1 3/4 cups store-bought or homemade vegetable broth (see related recipe at washingtonpost.com/recipes)

1/4 cup slivered almonds or pine nuts

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium red onion, thinly sliced

8 cloves garlic, half thinly sliced and half minced or pressed

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed

1 pound red Swiss chard, leaves torn into bite-size pieces, stems thinly sliced

1/2 cup dry red wine

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add a generous pinch of salt and the linguine; cook according to the package directions, then drain.

Drain the soaked cashews and transfer them to a blender or food processor. Add 1 1/4 cups of the broth; puree until completely smooth, scraping down the sides frequently with a spatula. Depending on the power of your blender or food processor, this could take up to 5 minutes.

Heat a large pan over medium heat. Add the almonds or pine nuts; toast. shaking the pan occasionally, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Immediately transfer to a small bowl.

In the same pan, heat the oil, then add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and lightly browned, 5 minutes. Add the sliced garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, until the garlic starts to soften. Add the minced or pressed garlic, thyme, crushed red pepper flakes, the 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the black pepper; cook, stirring, for another minute. Add the chard stems (reserving the leaves) and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, until they start to soften.

Pour in the wine and remaining 1/2 cup of broth; increase the heat to medium-high to bring the liquid to a boil. Let it reduce until it is just a few tablespoons, 4 to 5 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium and add the chard leaves. Cook until they completely wilt, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the cashew cream and lemon juice, stirring until heated through. Taste, and add salt and black pepper as needed.

Add the cooked pasta to the pan, turn of the heat, and toss to coat. Serve immediately, sprinkled with the toasted almonds or pine nuts.

NOTE: If you don’t have time to soak the cashews, drop them into boiling water for 15 minutes, then drain and cool.

Per serving: 460 calories, 14 g protein, 59 g carbohydrates, 18 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 530 mg sodium, 9 g dietary fiber, 8 g sugar