It’s wintery cold here in Boston and the entire city is going crazy over the Pats (what else is new)…but thankfully I’m currently in sunny Mexico #bless

I did make this Paleo cheeseburger dip last week as everyone prepares for the SuperBowl — a little part of me does miss the ol’ college SuperBowl days of watching the ads (erm, I mean the game), crowded in a little apartment and surrounded by good friends and good food.

So if you’re looking to bring something to the party that makes you feel fab and tastes fab, no matter what team you’re rooting for, OR just looking for an easy eat-all-week meal, go ahead and make this. You won’t regret it — I promise.

All you need is one skillet and 15-20 minutes of actual cook time, and can easily be made fully vegan if you’re not into meat. Enjoy!

Paleo Cheeseburger Dip with Vegan Cashew Cheese

Serves: 4-6 | Prep time: 1 hour | Cook time: 20 minutes | Paleo, dairy free, Whole30 friendly, vegan option

Ingredients:

Burger Filling:

1 onion, diced
16 oz 100% grass-fed ground beef* (I like ButcherBox 80/20) OR 6 Grateful Burgers blended Angus burgers (these are quicker cooking & easier to crumble IMO, plus have added veggies packed in there!)
Himalayan pink sea salt, black pepper, cayenne, chili powder, to taste

*You can use burgers in place of these or vegan meat!

Vegan Cashew Cheese:*

1 1/2 cup of raw cashews, soaked for >1 hour (I used this whole package)
1/2 orange bell pepper
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp flaxseed meal
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (add more for more liquid-y cheese and less for thicker cheese)
2 tbsp avocado oil
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp garlic powder
Plenty of black pepper and Himalayan sea salt
Cayenne, to taste

*You can also just use vegan cheese if you don’t feel like making your own (like Siete Foods Queso), but I think this definitely makes the dip more delicious & is super easy! This vegan cheese recipe was adapted from Delish Knowledge.

Toppings:

4 slices sugar and nitrate-free bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 cup salsa verde with avocado (optional — you can use homemade guac instead — but I just bought this from Whole Foods)
A handful of cilantro, chopped
Hot sauce (I used Siete Foods Chipotle Hot Sauce), to drizzle

Directions:

In a medium sized skillet, cook the bacon on medium heat until fully done. Set aside on a plate with a paper towel to cool.
In the same skillet, cook the onion and the ground beef. When fully cooked, pour out any excess fat/liquid if there is any.
Use a spatula to break up any large chunks, then press the ground beef and onions flat so it forms a layer.
While the ground beef is cooking, make the vegan cashew cheese. Drain and rinse the cashews. Add all the ingredients to a high powered blender (I used my Ninja Kitchen blender, but a Vitamix or Blendtec would also work nicely) and blend until completely smooth. Keep adding liquid if you prefer a more queso-like cheese.
Spread the salsa verde with avocado on top of the ground beef and onion mixture in the pan.
Spread the vegan cheese on top.
Crumble the bacon into small pieces.
Top with a drizzle of hot sauce, chopped cilantro, and the crumbled bacon.
Serve with sweet potato chips (I like the Bare baked chips), tortilla chips (I like the Siete Foods grain free chips) plantain chips (I love the Barnana chips), cassava chips (I like the Plant Snacks chips), bacon chips (Paleo Hacks has a great bacon chip recipe here), gluten free crackers (Simple Mills has some great almond flour ones), or just by itself (I ate the leftovers for lunch on top of arugula )... the possibilities are endless!
Enjoy!

This post is not sponsored, although some of the links are affiliate links, which means I’ll get a small commission if you click and purchase; however, that doesn’t change the actual price of the product. Thanks for supporting the blog!

paleo cheeseburger dip with vegan cashew cheese