Creamy Vegan Cashew-Based Alfredo Sauce with Gluten-Free Pasta

|Updated May 26, 2020

Hey pasta people, you will love this creamy alfredo sauce! Ever since I had homemade spaghetti delivered to my house, I've been planning to have a night dedicated to my favorite go-to dish: classic red sauce with meatless meatballs.

However, I came across this alfredo cream recipe and decided to switch it up. One of my favorite ways to carbo-load before I went vegan was a traditional mac and cheese noodle with a thick alfredo sauce and I thought I would have a tough time giving it up. But, this sauce is rich and creamy and made with cashews, dairy-free milk, nutritional yeast, and finished with paprika, parsley, and pepper. It has a similar consistency to non-dairy cheese and a touch of more acidity from the lemon, onion, and garlic. I like to serve this dish with crushed red pepper, a piece of garlic bread and a glass of red wine.

Recipe Developer: Hannah Sunderani, @twospoons.ca

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Total Time: 20 Minutes

Servings: 5 People

Why we love it: Normally it's harder to get a cheesy and creamy Alfredo sauce texture without dairy cheese, but this recipe uses 'cashew cheese and nutritional yeast' and it tastes better in my opinion! The texture is much lighter and doesn't make you feel weighed down afterward, just nourished and satisfied!

Make it for: A dedicated pasta night-- like I'm having! Save the leftovers for lunch or for dinner and add vegetable toppings to the mix, I add mushrooms!

Vegan Alfredo Sauce

Ingredients

3 shallots (or 1 yellow onion), chopped
4 cloves garlic diced
1 tbsp coconut oil
1.5 cups raw cashews preferably soaked for 1 hr, strained
2 cups almond milk
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
3/4 cup parsley curly, finely chopped (optional)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper flakes to sprinkle (optional)

For the pasta

1 package gluten-free spaghetti noodles (500g/17.6 oz)

Instructions

Bring a skillet to medium heat, add chopped shallots (or onion), garlic and coconut oil. Cook until softened (5-10 mins).
Transfer garlic and onion to a blender with raw cashews (strained), almond milk, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, sea salt, pepper and paprika. Blend until smooth.
To make pasta: bring a pot of water to a boil and add noodles. Cook as directed on package, until al-dente (typically 7-9 minutes). Strain and transfer noodles back to pot.
Pour Alfredo sauce over noodles and mix to combine.
Taste, season with more sea salt and pepper as desired.
Optional to add chopped parsley, stir to combine, and cayenne pepper flakes to taste.