The highlight of this recipe is the Creamy Alfredo Sauce that is completely vegan and healthy! This creamy pasta sauce is made with cashew and cauliflower. Shhhh!!! Don’t tell your kids. It’s our little secret. I call it as hidden vegetable pasta sauce.Make it and you will be surprised how can something be so creamy without dairy or flour. Today I will also show you how to make this amazing combo of Vegan Fettucine Alfredo plus the Alfredo sauce in one shot directly in an Instant Pot .You may choose to make it the traditional way on the stove top too because duh!! this is how we did it before Instant Pot. You can use your choice of pasta like penne, spaghetti , rigatoni , elbow etc. This time it was Vegan Fettucine Alfredo for us . The main purpose of sharing this recipe is to share this awesome Vegan Alfredo sauce that I am making since a year. Once I started making Alfredo sauce dairy free I never went back to the classic way. You guys this vegan Alfredo sauce is to die for. No tofu or coconut milk in this vegan Alfredo sauce. It’s completely soy free. As much I enjoy pasta with store bought jar sauce for convenience, this Alfredo sauce pasta recipe is a keeper. Making this sauce isn’t tedious at all . Homemade always tastes fresh and amazing!! I have tried many non dairy versions of creamy white sauce in the past. Used everything from coconut milk to silken tofu. I even used almond flour and almond milk to make gluten free vegan bechamel . All these versions tasted great in their own way. The only problem with these ingredients was that their taste was pretty prominent in the sauce. For example I could totally taste the coconut in coconut based sauce or taste the almond in almond based sauce. I felt like I was just settling for a plant based alternative. The moment I tried this combination of cauliflower and cashews I was so satisfied. This is the closest you can get to the dairy based alfredo sauce. You cannot taste cauliflower or cashews in it at all. The texture is light , rich and creamy . This cauliflower based cream sauce mimics heavy cream sauce so well. Even your non vegan friends will go WOW!!!!
How to make Vegan Alfredo sauce with cauliflower ? This creamy vegan white sauce is made with handful of cashews and loads of cauliflower. Yes you read it right a CAULIFLOWER sauce!! And no it doesn’t taste like cauliflower puree or soup. Cashews add richness to this cauliflower sauce which otherwise is possible with butter or oil. Adding lots of garlic , combination of fresh and dried herbs plus good seasoning is the key to get cauliflower taste this amazing!!! For some cheesy flavor like I have used combination of nutritional yeast aka nooch and lemon. How does Vegan Alfredo sauce made with cauliflower and cashew taste? This vegan alfredo sauce tastes rich and creamy just like the Alfredo sauce made with loads of butter , cream cheese or heavy cream. But this cauliflower alfredo is healthy and completely plant based good for you sauce. Can I make vegan alfredo sauce without cashews ( nut free ) ? Yes you may skip nuts , but you will have to add 2 tablespoon oil instead to get the rich and creamy texture of vegan sauce . Can I skip nutritional yeast ? Nutritional yeast is good . Not only for flavor but it comes with lot of health benefits. You will find it in all departmental stores and online. If you cannot find it then skip it. I have added it for giving cheesy flavor to the sauce. You may substitute it with store bought vegan Parmesan cheese too.
Why make Pasta in an Instant Pot? Pick and choose my excuse- Hectic life , running behind my 1 year old who is learning to walk, piled up daily chores or may be sheer laziness . I prefer cooking One Pot Meals in my Instant Pot everyday because of it’s shut and forget convenience. I love dump and cook recipes in a pressure cooker and making pasta in an Instant Pot means no monitoring or draining. Just throw all ingredients in , set the timer and walk off. When done, open , stir and dig in!! Pasta cooks great in the Instant Pot . Pasta is one dish that is a no brainer when it comes to making dinner because it is loved by my 7 year old as well as 1 year old . So dinner is sorted without frowning or nagging. One more reason to make Vegan Alfredo sauce pasta in my Instant Pot is that it uses no drain method . The starch in the boiled pasta water makes the Alfredo sauce more creamier and gets well coated with every pasta used. If you are planning to make pasta on the stove top make sure to reserve some pasta water before draining.
What is the pasta water ratio in an Instant Pot? I like my pasta Al dente and not soft or mushy. Check the cooking time mentioned on the Pasta label. Cut it into half while making pasta in an Instant Pot . High Pressure & quick release. Can I make gluten free pasta in Instant Pot? I have tried rice noodles while testing Pad Thai recipe in Instant Pot and it was all gummy and sticky. I have not tried other gluten free varieties yet. But if I experiment , I will surly share it with you.
How to make pasta in an Instant Pot ?
You will need a long leg trivet to cook pot in pot method . If you do not have one you may choose to make the sauce separately the same day or beforehand. I have used the combination of lemon and nutritional yeast to make this vegan sauce taste more cheesy without cheese. You may skip it . I have used herb de provence which is an Italian herb blend made up of fennel, lavender, thyme, basil, marjoram, parsley, oregano, tarragon, and rosemary . It takes the pasta to a different level. Tastes like fine dining restaurant dish. Use herb blend of your choice. Given below is a pictorial collage followed by the Vegan Alfredo sauce pasta recipe-
This Vegan Alfredo sauce pasta recipe is light enough for everyday meal and rich enough for Birthday’s , Valentine’s and Anniversary dinner. Pin this recipe for later reference- Hope you like this easy recipe on how to make Vegan Alfredo sauce pasta in cashew cauliflower cream sauce and give it a try. Let me know if you have any questions below in the comment section. Never miss a recipe . If you like being here do subscribe to my blog.Make sure you have us in your contact list so that the recipe does not land in spam folder. Carveyourcraving(at)gmail(dot)com . Are we friends yet . Let’s connect on-Facebook| Instagram | Pintrest | Twitter Happy cooking!!!Do share it with the world!!!Thanks for stopping by!! IF SHARING ,PLEASE LINK BACK TO THE POST AS REPRODUCING, DISTRIBUTING OR COPYING PICTURES OR TEXT/ RECIPES THAT BELONG TO CARVE YOUR CRAVING IS A COPYRIGHT VIOLATION. YOU CAN ALWAYS LINK BACK TO THE WEBSITE.
