This vegan Alfredo sauce is the perfect comfort food! It’s so incredibly creamy and rich without being packed with butter and cream like traditional Alfredo sauce. And it’s super easy to make. 25 minutes is all you need!
Why This Recipe Works
I’ve made this sauce so many times and it’s always a winner! It’s sooo good! Vegan comfort food at its best. The vegan Alfredo sauce is incredibly velvety, luscious, and rich.
The secret ingredient to make this sauce is cauliflower. When cooked and blended, it makes the vegan Alfredo sauce so incredibly creamy. And it’s high in fiber and a great source of antioxidants. It’s such a healthy and genius base for creamy vegan sauces.
Besides, cashews also help to give this sauce a creamy texture and make it super rich without using any kind of butter or cream. You can enjoy a plate full of creamy pasta without feeling guilty or gross after eating! And like cauliflower, cashews are incredibly healthy. They’re packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
And there is another secret ingredient that brings a savory, cheesy goodness without a hint of dairy. Nutritional yeast! It has a delicious nutty and cheesy taste that is perfect for vegan cream sauces. Fresh lemon juice adds a zesty tang and perfectly balances out the flavors.
This recipe is a real game-changer and it’s the perfect proof that vegan alternatives can be just as indulgent and satisfying as their non-vegan counterparts.
I love to serve my vegan Alfredo sauce with fettuccine or spaghetti and sprinkle it with freshly chopped parsley. But it’s also amazing with tortellini or gnocchi.
The recipe is pretty versatile. If you want you could also add some veggies like spinach, peas, or mushrooms.
So grab your ingredients and give this recipe a try! I promise you, you will love it.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Cauliflower – I used fresh cauliflower.
- Cashews – you need raw cashews, not roasted or salted.
- Lemon Juice – fresh lemon juice. Balances out the flavors.
- Nutmeg – use a pinch of nutmeg for the perfect flavor.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – adds a zesty tang and like lemon juice it is used to balance out the rich flavor.
- Nutritional Yeast – adds a cheesy and nutty taste.
- Plant-Based Milk – it’s super important to use unsweetened almond or soy milk. Don’t use sweetened milk for this recipe even if it’s only lightly sweetened. You will taste it!
- Garlic – fresh garlic.
- Salt and Pepper
How To Make This Recipe
1. Step: Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package. Cut the cauliflower into florets. Place them in a sauce pan together with the cashews, the garlic, and the almond milk.
2. Step: Add the nutritional yeast. Stir everything with a wooden spoon until well combined.
3. Step: Cover with a lid and cook for 20 minutes. There won’t be much liquid left.
4. Step: Transfer everything into a high speed blender. Add the lemon juice, a pinch of nutmeg, the apple cider vinegar, and 1/2 cup more unsweetened almond or soy milk as well as salt and pepper.
5. Step: Process until smooth. This should take about 30 seconds.
6. Step: Cook the fettuccine according to the instructions on the package. Set aside.
7. Step: Pour the blended sauce into a pan and cook for a minute.
8. Step: Then add the cooked fettuccine and stir until well combined. Season with salt and pepper again if you want.
9. Step: Serve immediately and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley. Enjoy!
Tips & Tricks
- It’s important to have a good high speed blender for this recipe. A conventional blender most likely can’t properly process the cashews and your sauce won’t be as creamy.
- If you want your Alfredo sauce to be really garlicky, add another clove of garlic. I used two cloves of garlic for this recipe.
- Make sure to use all of the ingredients for the sauce. I experimented a long time with this vegan Alfredo until I was 100 % satisfied.
- I’ve also got a vegan chicken Alfredo with broccoli on the blog. Feel free to combine both recipes if you want to add a bit more protein to your meal.
Possible Add-Ins
Jazz up your vegan Alfredo sauce with some fresh vegetables or other add-ins.
Here are my favorites:
- mushrooms
- peas
- green asparagus
- broccoli
- cubed smoked tofu or marinated tempeh
- sun-dried tomatoes
- caramelized onions
- baby spinach
Storing
Stored in an airtight container in the fridge, the Alfredo sauce will last up to 5 days.
Freezing
Freezing this sauce is no problem. I do this all the time. The blended cashews freeze pretty well. Just freeze it in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Run it trough the blender again if there are any lumps after defrosting.
No Blender?
Unfortunately you need a blender for most vegan Alfredo sauce recipes. Or at least some sort of food processor. Otherwise your sauce just won’t get creamy. And as we all know, Alfredo sauce has to be rich and creamy.
Nut-Free Version
If you’re suffering from a nut allergy, you can still enjoy dairy-free Alfredo sauce. It’s no problem to make this sauce without the cashews. It won’t be as rich and creamy as when you’re using cashews, but it will still be good. You’d also have to use less milk.
You could also add a bit of sunflower seed butter to make it richer. Or you could add a cup of white beans instead. Beans also work great as a base for creamy vegan sauces.
Related Recipes
I Love To Hear From You!
I hope you like this vegan Alfredo sauce recipe as much as we do around here.
If you give it a try, I’d love to know what you think about them. Just leave me a comment and a star rating below. Your comments really make my day!
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Sina
Vegan Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 heaped cups cauliflower
- 1/2 cup cashews (unsalted and not roasted)
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 1/2 cups unsweetened soy or almond milk
- 1/2 cup unsweetened soy or almond milk (add after cooking)
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- salt
- pepper
- freshly chopped parsley
- cooked fettuccine
Instructions
- Cut the cauliflower into florets. Place them in a sauce pan together with the cashews, the garlic, and the almond milk. Add the nutritional yeast. Stir everything with a wooden spoon until well combined.
- Cover with a lid and cook for 20 minutes. There won’t be much liquid left. Transfer everything into a high speed blender. Add the lemon juice, a pinch of nutmeg, apple cider vinegar, and 1/2 cup more unsweetened almond or soy milk as well as salt and pepper.
- Process until smooth. This should take about 30-60 seconds.
- Cook the fettuccine according to the instructions on the package. Set aside.
- Pour the blended sauce into a pan and cook for a minute. Then add the cooked fettuccine and stir until well combined. Season with salt and pepper again if you want.
- Serve immediately and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley. Enjoy!
Notes
- It’s important to have a good high speed blender for this recipe. A conventional blender most likely can’t properly process the cashews and your sauce won’t be as creamy.
- If you want your Alfredo sauce to be really garlicky, add another clove of garlic. I used two cloves of garlic for this recipe.
- Make sure to use all of the ingredients for the sauce. I experimented a long time with this vegan Alfredo until I was 100 % satisfied.
- I’ve also got a vegan chicken Alfredo with broccoli on the blog. Feel free to combine both recipes if you want to add a bit more protein to your meal.
Ashley Alter
I do NOT have a high speed expensive vitamix blender and I made this recipe and it was velvet! So good! The trick is to get a $20 or $30 immersion blender, I have the cuisinart smart stik. I put what I want to blend in a large pickle jar, and use the immersion blender. Works great every time!
This recipe was fabulous, we used it for butternut squash stuffed pasta shells. 10/10 will make again.
Vikki D
Thanks so much for this recipe, @_veganheaven_ !! I’ve rarely enjoyed Alfredo sauces, especially prior to the past four years of veganism—My momma and I recently discussed that we’ve always found Alfredo too rich for a typical serving of pasta.
This is delightfully ‘creamy’ without being heavy. It’s what I’ve wanted an Alfredo to be; due to significant (adult-onset allergies), I have various and varying dietary restrictions.
I appreciate that I was also able to try this entirely allergen-free: seeds, oat milk + vegan butter.
Deliciously Easy!!
✨Ashley—My immersion blender also worked, right in the saucepan (cooled); it was ready to heat w/rotini, sautéed spinach+portobellos.
The rest went in a jar😉
Spencer
This is delicious! I love that no vegan butter substitute is used. I prefer it without the extra 1/2 cup of milk after cooking. ( I’ve tried it both ways). We usually add broccoli to it. Thank you for sharing!
Jessica
SUPER easy and quick to make! I have really been missing alfredo sauce since going vegan but this hit the spot! My non-vegan grandma (who’s favorite dish is any kind of pasta with alfredo sauce) also loved it and couldn’t taste a difference. Thank you so much for this!
Sam
Hi. I don’t have a comment so much as a question. Has anyone ever made this and canned it for later use? I would like to make this and can some in pint jars for use later in the year.
Cassie M.
Let me just say that I am very sensitive to a lot of foods so I tried this recipe a few nights ago. AHHMAZING. My entire family loved it, I am so excited about this recipe haha if you are wondering if you should give this a try you will not be disappointed!!!!!
Stephy
Would you have any suggestions for garlic substitutes? I am allergic and struggle to find an alternative.
Rose Feder
I just made your Vegan Alfredo sauce and it very good. Only thing I changed was I used Silk Almond/ Cashew milk a d it worked great. Also adding peas to individual serving. Have one question can I freeze the sauce
Thank for great sauce.
Sandra
Definitely 5 stars!!! So easy and creamy! Even my kids loved it! My youngest has a gluten sensitivity, so I served it with brown rice spaghetti instead. So yummy!
Karen
Wow! I was a bit skeptical if a cauliflower sauce could taste like Alfredo sauce, but it was AMAZING!! Thanks so much, Sina!
Melissa
This was soooo good. I used some vegan Parmesan cheese along w the nutritional yeast and a bit more to sprinkle On top! Amazing recipe. Thank you
Helen Wang
Hi Sina,
Thank you so much for sharing this great Vegan Alfredo recipe. It is SOOO good!
When I added 1.5 cups of almond mile to cook the cauliflower for 20 minutes, there was plenty of liquid left so I didn’t need the additional half cup of almond milk. Am I doing something wrong?
Also I added more Nutritional Yeast because I guess depending on the brand, need to add more too get the cheesy taste.
Thank you very much for the recipe!
Chardannae
Oh my goodness. Pasta Alfredo was my favorite dish when I was eating dairy. I’ve made many different kinds of sauces trying to recreate a creamy pasta somewhat like what I used to have. This is by far the best recipe I have tried. Bar none. You have a gift. Thank you for sharing it! 10 stars.
Mardy
I can’t believe this didn’t blow up w/ comments, you are DA BOMB! This is recipe is a keeper and will replace all other vegan Alfredo recipes I have collected. Made as written = perfection! Thanks Sina!
Cyrielle
It tried it, followed the recipe to a T and wow! The result was a creamy, onctuous deliciousness.
I added some sauteed onioin, spinach and mushroom, and that was one of the most comforting dish of pasta I have had in a while. Just as a note, it makes for a ot of sauce (but I wouldn’t complain much), and next time I might add a little more nutritional yeast to enhance that cheesy/nutty flavour.
Thanks for the recipe :)
Lisa is Planted365
Oh yum. I love that you used cauliflower in this! Will try it, for sure. Any suggestions for a substitution for the nuts?