Heart healthy recipe: Potato-based nacho “cheese” sauce

Chips with cheese sauce

Typical cheese sauce recipes tend to be high in sodium and saturated fat. Eating too much saturated fat can raise your LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol, and having too much sodium can increase your blood pressure. This alternative recipe has much less saturated fat and sodium, and is just as delicious. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup peeled, cubed white potato (About one small potato) 
  • 1/2 cup peeled, diced carrot (About one carrot) 
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1/4 cup nondairy milk or water 
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast 
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons arrowroot flour 
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder 
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder 
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 
  • 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice 
  • 6 pickled jalapeño slices
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste

Instructions:

  1. Bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook the potato and carrot until fork tender, six to eight minutes.
  2. Drain the vegetables and immediately place in a high-powdered blender. If you cook the potatoes too long, they will become starchy and your sauce will not be smooth.
  3. Add the remaining ingredients to the blender and combine on high until smooth. 
  4. Your sauce may be hot enough to serve immediately from the blender. If it has cooled, heat it in a saucepan for a few minutes until just bubbling. 
  5. Divide into four servings and eat up.

For leftovers: When you reheat the sauce, a small amount of nondairy milk or water may be required to get a smooth consistency again.