Silky, Creamy, and Flavorful - This 4-Ingredient Vegan Alfredo Pasta looks and tastes like a true indulgence but is surprisingly simple. Traditional Fettuccini Alfredo uses cream and butter, but this vegan version is made with just a handful of healthy ingredients. No one will believe you when you tell them that this Alfredo pasta is vegan and gluten-free friendly and everyone will love it!
Why This Recipe Works
Traditional Fettuccini Alfredo is made with butter and cream - not vegan and not exactly healthy! This recipe uses a few healthy ingredients like garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and cashews to create a creamy sauce without any animal byproducts. If you need to make gluten-free Fettuccini Alfredo, you can use gluten-free pasta in this recipe.
What You Need For Vegan Alfredo Pasta
- Cashews: Instead of butter and cream, we boil cashews and then blend them to create a creamy vegan Alfredo sauce. I recommend using raw cashews for the cream sauce.
- Water: Water is used to boil the cashews and the regular or gluten-free pasta. Be sure to save the water from each so that it can be used to add additional flavor to the pasta sauce.
- Garlic: We roast garlic in the oven with a little extra virgin olive oil to give this vegan already sauce a nutty, garlicky, and delicious flavor.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Used when roasting the garlic.
- Salt and Pepper: Used to season the vegan Alfredo pasta.
- Pasta: You may use any vegan or gluten-free pasta in this recipe. I used spaghetti noodles but you can also use fettuccini noodles or any other noodle you have on hand.
Vegan Alfredo Pasta Add-Ins
When you're done preparing this delicious and healthy pasta dish, season it with salt and pepper and then feel free to top it with crispy tofu or crispy chickpeas for added plant-based protein. It also tastes great with a little store-bought vegan parmesan cheese on top.
How To Make Vegan Alfredo Pasta Sauce
Step 1: Roast the garlic and olive oil in the oven until the garlic is golden brown and fragrant.
Step 2: Boil the cashews until they are tender. While the cashews boil, boil your pasta until desired doneness. I prefer al dente.
Step 3: Once the cashews are done boiling and are tender and the garlic is done roasting and is golden, add the entire contents of both pots to a blender. Add ½ cup of the pasta water and blend until a creamy sauce forms. If the sauce is too thick to blend, add more pasta water until it reaches a silky smooth texture.
Step 4: Toss the pasta in the sauce and serve warm. Season with salt and pepper. Option to serve this topped with vegan parmesan or on it's own!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! We are so fortunate to live in an age where gluten-free pasta is readily available at almost any grocery store! My favorite brands include: Banza chickpea pasta or Jovial Foods rice pasta.
I used my NutriBullet, but you can use any high power blender.
For this recipe, I used my mini cast iron skillet but you can also use a ceramic or cast iron cocotte. Here is a great option from Le Creuset or a more budget friendly set on Amazon.
Absolutely! I recommend adding these crispy chickpeas or this crispy tofu to this dish to add even more plant-based protein (and a yummy texture!)
Vegan Alfredo Pasta
Equipment
- Small Saucepan
- Medium Saucepan
- Blender
- Cocotte, Mini Cast Iron Skillet, or Mini Dutch Oven
- Strainer
- Large Bowl
Ingredients
Vegan Alfredo Pasta
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1 cup water
- 4-6 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 4 servings of regular or gluten-free pasta best with spaghetti or fettuccini noodles
Instructions
Vegan Alfredo Pasta Instructions
- Begin by preheating your oven to 400
- Add the garlic cloves and olive oil to the cocotte and roast the garlic for 30 minutes or until it's fragrant and golden.
- While the garlic roasts, bring a small saucepan with cashews and 1 cup of water to a low boil. Cook for about 25-30 minutes or until the cashews are tender.
- While the garlic roasts and the cashews boil, bring a medium saucepan with water to medium heat. Add the pasta, a small drizzle of olive oil, and a pinch of salt to a boil. Cook as instructed on the packaging.
- Once the pasta reaches the desired consistency, strain the pasta over a large bowl so that you can save the pasta water. Set both the pasta and the pasta water aside.
- Once the garlic is done roasting, remove them from the oven. Pour the entire contents of the cocotte into a blender along with the entire contents of the pot of cashews (including the water). Add about ½ a cup of the pasta water to the blender and blend until creamy. If the sauce is too thick to blend, add another ¼ cup of pasta water until you reach desired consistency. The Alfredo sauce should be silky and creamy.
- Serve the strained pasta tossed in the creamy vegan Alfredo sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
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