Can you imagine that at one point in my life (aka, up to last year) I thought that Alfredo Sauce was only for pasta?! Imagine my surprise (and satisfaction) when I realised all the different ways I could enjoy this rich and creamy decadent sauce. I wanted to do a post on just Alfredo Sauce – not attached specifically to a recipe – to show just how much of a staple this sauce is in your life. The best part – it’s vegan, it’s freezer-friendly (unlike regular alfredo sauce) and it’s made EASILY in your blender. No tempering or boiling or anything. Just blend, heat, and enjoy.
What is Vegan Alfredo Sauce?
Long story short, vegan alfredo sauce is a dairy-free version of regular alfredo sauce. Traditionally, alfredo sauce is a creamy white sauce that’s traditionally an Italian sauce and was one of my favourite things to order before going vegan. Vegan Alfredo Sauce surprisingly tastes like regular alfredo sauce, but with a whole host of different ingredients.
Ingredients to make Vegan Alfredo Sauce
Speaking of which, let’s get right into the ingredients to make Vegan Alfredo Sauce Cashews. Hmm – cashews are kind of the ultimate nut, aren’t they? Cashews in this sauce are essentially the substitute for the creamy element thanks to their high-fat content. When cashews are soaked, they are very easy to blend, resulting in a rich and creamy sauce. Thanks to some other crucial ingredients, the sauce doesn’t taste like cashews at all or even nutty. Just creamy, smooth and cheesy white sauce. Roasted Garlic. I highly recommend roasting your garlic for this recipe! Roasted garlic (I know, I need to do a post on it), truly deepens all the flavours and gives this sauce. It gives the sauce an even more buttery flavour. It’s a very hands-off process and you’re going to have to wait on the cashews to soak anyway. It’s SO worth it! Nutritional Yeast. Nutritional yeast is probably in the top 10 vegan life staples. If you don’t know what it is, I wrote about it here. I know sometimes people worry it’ll give things a yeasty flavour but not at all. It’s not an active yeast, and instead adds a delicious cheesiness as well as some protein and B12. All great things! Vegan Parmesan Cheese. The vegan parmesan cheese really ups the cheesiness of this sauce to the traditional version. If you don’t have any storebought, just make some! You already have raw cashews for the sauce and it tastes like 2 minutes to make with other ingredients you probably have in your pantry (Garlic powder and onion powder!).
How to Make this Sauce
Here’s the best thing about this sauce – it’s made in your blender! First, cook down the onions to remove any sharp onion flavour (and to deepen the flavours), then you add it all into a blender. That. Is. It. It’s that simple. Blend for 1 minute up to 4 minutes depending on your blender and ensure it’s nice and creamy. Once your cashews are soaked, the sauce will come out beautifully smooth. This makes it perfect for whipping up for a weeknight meal, but of course, for special occasions too.
Ways to Use Alfredo Sauce
Now, like I mentioned I previously thought this was only for pasta! But here are 5 incredible ways to use this sauce:
Tips for Making the Best Vegan Alfredo Sauce
My tips for this are pretty straight forward.
Be sure to use the best and freshest ingredients you can your hands on, always. This includes getting the best quality cashews you can. Be sure to use unsweetened almond milk. If it’s sweetened it’ll definitely throw it off. If you can use pasta water (like you’re already making pasta), use it! Otherwise, filtered water is fine, but you may need to taste test and more salt. Ensure you soak your cashews properly! If they’re not properly soaked the sauce won’t be rich and creamy. Don’t skip the lime! It helps to neutralise the cashew taste and really brings all the ingredients together. Be sure to properly blend the sauce.
How to Store Alfredo Sauce
You can store this sauce in an airtight jar in your fridge for 4 days. If you want it to last up to a week, cook it on the stove for about 5 minutes over medium heat so that it’s not “raw”, but instead cooked. One of my favourite things about this sauce is that unlike traditional alfredo sauce, it’s freezer friendly! Freeze it in a freezer-safe jar in your freezer. When you’re ready to use it, just thaw it overnight in your fridge, then stir the sauce together. Enjoy friends! If you make this post about how to Vegan Alfredo Sauce, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love if you would leave a comment below, and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!
