Tiny cucumber tea sandwiches stuffed with avocado, red bell pepper, and herb-infused cashew cream cheese. These miniature sandwiches are an ideal accent for afternoon tea.
Makes 16 sandwiches
Ingredients:
Cucumber tea sandwiches
2 large avocados
1 batch of herbed cashew cream cheese (see recipe), or shop-bought vegan cream cheese
8 slices of whole wheat sandwich bread
1 medium cucumber, sliced into thin rounds
1 medium red bell pepper, sliced into small matchsticks
½ tsp salt, divided
¼ tsp black pepper
Herb Cashew Cream Cheese
280g (9.8oz) raw unsalted cashews
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp chopped rosemary
1 tbsp chopped thyme
1 tbsp chopped sage
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp lemon juice (from 1 large lemon)
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
12g (0.5oz) sliced chives
½ tsp yellow miso
¼ tsp black pepper
Salt, to taste
Red pepper flakes, for coating
How to prepare:
guacamole Tea Sandwiches
Cut each avocado in half and remove the pit and skin. With a fork, mash the avocado until it reaches guacamole consistency. Add a quarter teaspoon of salt. Set aside.
Remove the crust off each slice of bread, if desired. Cut each slice of sandwich bread into four squares of similar size, or use a biscuit cutter to create circles. Half of the bread should be liberally spread with cream cheese. Spread avocado on the other side of the bread.
Using a knife, cut the cucumber into extremely thin slices. Black pepper and the remaining 14 teaspoons of salt should be equally distributed over the cucumber segments. Place two to three thinly sliced cucumbers and two to three matchstick pepper slices between a slice of avocado toast and a slice of cream cheese bread. Serve without delay.
Herb Cashew Cheese Cream
Soak cashews in water overnight or for 15 minutes in almost boiling water. Once the cashews have softened, rinse and drain them.
Add the olive oil to a medium saucepan over a medium heat setting. Add rosemary, thyme, sage, and garlic once the oil is hot. Bloom for 30 to 60 seconds, or until the herbs become fragrant and the garlic becomes golden. Take off the heat and set it aside.
In a blender or food processor, combine the following ingredients: drained cashews, herbs, and garlic with the oil, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, cut chives, miso, and pepper. Combine ingredients until a spreadable consistency is reached. As required, scrape the sides of the food processor with a spatula. As needed, add one tablespoon of water to the cream cheese to thin it.
Taste for lemon juice and salt. Refrigerate for 4-5 days after transfer to an airtight container. After 4 hours in the refrigerator, the cream cheese can be shaped and seasoned with extra chives, red pepper flakes, and black pepper (optional).
