homemade yumm sauce

i was completely addicted to cafe yumm during grad school. the food is simple—a bowl of brown rice, black beans, avocado, tomato, cilantro—but the vegan sauce is what makes it so special. i'd been flirting with the idea of making my own batch of sauce for years (the ingredients are listed right on the jar), but the fear of it not tasting as good as cafe yumm's held me back. 

if you've had cafe yumm before, you'll quickly realize (to my dismay) that my hesitation was warranted—this isn't an exact match, in terms of taste (though color and texture are spot-on). i'm now even more convinced that there's a secret ingredient in yumm sauce that makes it so unbelievably delicious. regardless, this is still a versatile vegan sauce that can be poured over rice, quinoa, salads or used as a spread on sandwiches.

homemade yumm sauce adapted from here

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup cooked chickpeas
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup cooked soybeans (edamame)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp dried cilantro
1 tsp dried oregano

in a food processor, blend water, olive oil, almonds and chickpeas until the consistency is sauce-like. then add lemon juice, nutritional yeast, soybeans, garlic, salt, curry powder, cilantro and oregano. blend until all ingredients are incorporated and smooth.