Mushroom-Artichoke Cream Sauce

I love sauce. Any kind of sauce. 

Dipping, smothering, slathering... you name it. When it comes to sauce, if it can be done, I will do it. Or at least attempt. 

We ate this sauce over grilled chicken (local organic= happy chicken) with a side of sauteed spinach, but its just as good over grilled veggies or pasta! It feels like fancy-pants kind of food, but its super simple to make and loaded with sneaky nutrients thanks to the cashews and nutritional yeast.

If you've been following along for a while, you might remember that I'm a big fan of these little nuts (and most other little nuts, literally and figuratively :).

Cashews (and other nuts.. the literal ones, not so much the figurative ones) have high amounts of antioxidants, and with the ever increasing number of free-radicals in our environment, I'm happy to get all the cell-loving antioxidants I can. For some great information on cashews, check out this article.

But you really didn't think I was going to stop there, did you? Hellloooooo, nutritional yeast... oh, you haven't met? You simply MUST get acquainted! 
Nutritional yeast is beaming with B-12 vitamins. For vegans, or for anyone who limits animal products in their diet, B-12 is a hot commodity. Its difficult to find outside the animal kingdom, but it is an essential nutrient (read= MUST have. Not should have, or would be a good idea to have. Essential nutrients= absolute necessity for health).  

This recipe is super versatile. Feel free to add your own spices or veggies (I'm thinking rosemary or sage next time). You'd have to work really hard to screw it up!

Mushroom-Artichoke Cream Sauce
 1/2 cup cashews (preferably soaked)
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast 
1 garlic clove
2 tablespoons red wine
6 baby portabella mushrooms
6 artichoke hearts, quartered
1/2 onion, chopped 
salt and pepper

Saute onion, garlic and mushrooms in red wine until vegetables are tender but still firm. Combine cashews, water, and nutritional yeast in blender until smooth. Pour blended cashew sauce into sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add mushroom/onion mixture to the cashews sauce. Cook until heated to a boil, stirring continuously. Add artichokes and salt/pepper. Stir to combine. You may want to add more wine (or water) to thin out the sauce, as needed. 

This recipe was included in Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Seasonal Sunday. 

Before I leave you to your Monday night, I came across a quote recently that I wanted to share. 

“We are all functioning at a small fraction of our capacity to live fully in its total meaning of loving, caring, creating and adventuring. Consequently, the actual­izing of our potential can become the most exciting adventure of our lifetime.” – Herbert Otto

What do you do, everyday, to remind yourself to live fully?