A Vegan Cream Cheese Alfredo that is tangy, creamy, dairy-free, oil-free and incredibly delicious! Just 8 ingredients and ready in 20 minutes!
Oh yes, I did. Classic Alfredo just got a delicious twist. 4. This is number 4 alfredo for my blog. Why? Well, because I’d say that I love eating alfredo as much as I love creating them. This one is different than my other 2 popular ones. Best Vegan Garlic Alfredo and 20 Minute Vegan Alfredo.
How?
Well, this one does not have ANY nutritional yeast. All 3 of my alfredos have it and pretty much any recipe online has it. But, since so many detest it and I personally don’t use it anymore and often get asked how to sub it, I switched gears for this alfredo and created Vegan Cream Cheese Alfredo. OMG. That’s what I kept saying over and over after I tasted it. Since yogurt worked so well in this Strawberry Cream Cheese, I wanted to use it again. Cream cheese alfredo had to happen.
OMG. It’s divine y’all. Divine.
All you need to make this is 8 easy ingredients (+salt & water):
- 1/2 cup raw cashews or white beans if you don’t mind bean-based sauces
- 1/2 cup plain unsweeted coconut yogurt (I use the So Delicious brand)
- 1/2 cup yukon gold potato
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar…the white vinegar is infinitely better than apple for the cream cheese flavor
- 1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs
- pasta of choice
Once again, yukon gold potato shows up in a sauce. I know you aren’t surprised by that considering I’ve done it in my Vegan Mac ‘N’ Cheese and my third alfredo, the Nut-Free Vegan Alfredo!
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN CREAM CHEESE ALFREDO
First, if you don’t have a high-powered blender then soak your cashews overnight in water.
Cook your potato. I just wrap a potato (with skin on) in plastic wrap and microwave until soft and then peel the skin and measure out 1/2 cup mashed (120g). The plastic wrap does not touch the actual part being used. Let cool a bit while you add the ingredients to a blender.
Add the cashews, water, yogurt, potato, garlic powder, onion powder, vinegar, Italian herbs, salt/pepper and blend until smooth.
Add to cooked pasta and you are ready to eat! No oil, no butter and yet, so creamy and divine.
If you are feeling it then add some dried or fresh Italian herbs and red pepper flakes!
Vegan Cream Cheese Alfredo
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup 75g raw cashews or white beans if you don't mind bean-based sauces-See Note
- 1 cup 240g water
- 1/2 cup 120g "plain" soy or coconut yogurt (I use the SoDelicious coconut from Sprouts or Silk Soy from Krogers)
- 1/2 cup 120g cooked/mashed yukon gold potato
- 1/2 teaspoon 2g garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon 4g onion powder
- 2 1/2 teaspoons 13g white vinegar (white vinegar is infinitely better than apple for the cream cheese flavor)
- 2-3 teaspoons dried Italian herbs 3 will yield a darker colored sauce
- 1 teaspoon 6g fine sea salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- optional: 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pasta of choice
- Note: If you are allergic to cashews and are a fan of white bean sauces then you can sub with them at your own risk. I am personally NOT a fan of white bean sauces. They are a weird mouth feel and not nearly as creamy, but that is personal. If you do the beans, the sauce will not be as thick, so you may need to heat it up for a few minutes over the stove to thicken it some before adding to the pasta.
Instructions
- If you do not have a high-powered blender then you will need to soak your cashews in a bowl of water overnight, drain and rinse and proceed with the recipe. Otherwise, your sauce will be gritty. I never soak mine because I have a Vitamix.
- Begin boiling a large pot of water for your pasta and cook according to the box directions for whatever pasta you use. Make sure to salt your water well so your pasta is not bland.
- Cook your potato your preferred method. I just wrap a potato (with skin on) in plastic wrap and microwave until soft and then peel the skin and measure out 1/2 cup mashed (120g). The plastic does not touch the actual part of the potato being used. Let cool a minute while you add the ingredients to a blender.
- Add the cashews, water, yogurt, potato, garlic powder, onion powder, vinegar, Italian herbs, salt/pepper and optional nutmeg and blend until completely smooth. Taste and if a tangier taste is desired, add more yogurt or vinegar. I found it to be perfect. Add more salt if desired. Serve over cooked pasta and enjoy! Feel free to add any veggies you want but classic alfredo is served plain and it's actually my favorite way to eat it. Just a bit of herbs or red pepper flakes I like to add sometimes.
This sauce is absolutely delicious and is so easy to make. Will recommend to all my friends and family members. And the best part is that my non-vegan husband loved it as well. Thank you Brandi for your recipes.
Thank you so much Roza!!
This recipe is absolutely delicious and I was never a fan of dairy alfredo sauce in the past. My husband also loved it and he does not even follow a vegan lifestyle. I put some of sautéed greens into portion of sauce and loved it as much. Thank you Brandi for all your recipes!
Thank you so very much Roza for leaving your wonderful review! I’m so happy to hear it!
Would russet be an ok sub!? Soooo looking forward to this! And your Mexican casserole with that amazing cheese sauce has become my non-vegan husbands favorite meal!!
Yes, I think so! May be less creamy but I think it should work! Russets are much more starchy versus yukon gold potatoes, so they don’t get as smooth/stretchy as the yukon, but I think you should be ok! Come back and let me know how it turns out and star rate the recipe please! Oh yay, so very happy to hear that about the Mexican casserole!!
Just had this for dinner tonight. Brandi, you are amazing! I don’t know how you put recipes together, but they sure are good!!! This was very creamy and tasty – a definite keeper. And, no oil, too! Thank you for your talent!
Thank you so much Sue for making this and your wonderful review and words! I really appreciate you making my recipes all the time! I love hearing your feedback. So glad you loved this!
Holy epic creaminess!!!! This looks soooooooo good! I actually still use nutritional yeast a bunch, but that’s because my protein options are so limited, BUT I’m always looking for new cheese sauces to get me out of my flavor rut! And this looks like the sauce to do it! Cream cheese alfredo – oh, man. I’m obsessed with CoYo’s plain yogurt and use it in dips and soups, but I haven’t tried it in a sauce like this!!! Must try asap! I can only imagine the flavor and richness yogurt brings to this recipe. Also, these photos are absolutely stunning and so dreamy!! Can’t wait to watch the video. XO
Thank you so much my friend! I’ve had to remove the yeast over here ( I can still eat it, but rarely do now because of my family) but honestly, my recipes taste even better without it since I’m using other bold fill-ins. I only use it for 1 recipe in my upcoming cookbook and it’s a small amount that is optional anyways. I really need to try CoYo’s yogurt! I’ve heard amazing things about it! I hope you get to try this and let me know what you think!
And thank you friend, so glad you love these photos! Yay! P.S. I know I owe you an email….I’m soooo behind on everything trying to finish this book, so be patient with me! xoxo
Oh, man. This sauce is INCREDIBLE!! I made it last night over at my parents house and everyone loved it!!! Even my selective (aka picky) eater…she won’t typically eat anything that has white potatoes in it – hahaha!! Anyways, I begged her to try a little taste and she asked for more. We paired it with purple sweet potatoes and steamed cauliflower and tonight I’m going to roast up some potato wedges to dip in the leftovers. I’m in love with the flavor and the creaminess factor is through the roof! Your sauces are seriously my go-to. They never disappoint!! We’ll definitely be making this again very soon.
P.S. – looks like it’s my turn to owe you! I just saw your email. Love you, friend! XO
Yay!!! Thank you so much my friend for making this and the AMAZING FEEDBACK!! I’m so happy Willow loved it too, which is cause for a happy dance! Haha! That sounds so good with the potatoes too…everything is better with potatoes, lol! Thank you so much Mandy for making it! You are the best! xo
Do I use distilled white vinegar or white wine vinegar? Making it tonight!!!
It’s just plain distilled white vinegar, not wine.
This Alfredo looks so delicious and creamy Brandi 😀 I usually add nutritional yeast to mine, but I know not everyone can get hold of it easily so it’s great to have a creamy pasta recipe without it 😀
Thank you so much Nadia! I usually do too, as I mentioned in the post, all 3 of my other alfredos use it but since I personally don’t use it anymore, I have found ways that it tastes even more amazing! This one is SO flavorful with the yogurt and vinegar! Don’t miss the yeast ONE BIT!
We’re sort of new to the plant-based eating, but have tried several of your recipes (which have all turned out to be winners) and I enjoy the simplicity! I have a question about raw cashews – where does one go to find them? All I am aware of are the ones in the cans, and I think those are roasted or something. Thanks for your help, and keep on cooking!!!
Hi Ellen! So glad to hear that! Oh, you can find raw cashews at any store. There is usually a large nut section where bins are near a healthy food section where you can get the bags and scoop out the nuts yourself. Or, they are also carried in bags usually in the baking isle! 🙂
Wow, Brandi!!! I am speechless!!! This cream cheese sauce looks absolutely AAAHHHMMMAAAZZZIIIINNNGG!!! I love that you added so many healthy ingredients and no oil at all! Wonderful recipe which I definitely will try in the near future 🙂
You are way too sweet, thank you so much Ela for such kind words!! Thank you!!
Just made this (for tomorrow–breakfast yes breakfast) and I think the appropriate comment is OH MY!!!! That is some creamy fine deliciousness you came up with. Looking forward to tomorrow with some brown rice pasta and bunch of chunky veg, cauliflower, broccoli florets, bok choy, carrots…
Thank you 10,000 times 🙂
Yay Geoffrey! I’m so very happy to hear how much you loved this! Thank you very much for the wonderful review!
Wow this looks absolutely freaking epic :0 I am amazed here. The pictures on this post are out of this world seriously makes it look so insanely mouth watering. I seriously can’t wait to make this. I can’t thank you enough for making this without nutritional yeast. It sort of dawned on me that since I have to avoid yeast I probably can’t ever go to a vegan restaurant cause it is probably in everything but who needs to go out to eat when I can make epic meals like this at home. Thank you so much for making my life easier. I am so unbelievably grateful. I have been raw five and a half months and I think I am ready to start adding some cooked meals back in my diet. I definitely think I need to start with this. Yes girl just yes you absolutely hit it out of the park.
Aww, thanks so much Christina!! You are too kind! I’m so happy you loved the pics! I always find pasta a little difficult to photograph since it dries out quickly so some in-your-face shots I feel are best with pasta, lol! Thank you for your sweet comment!
I love that you can use cashews or white beans! What a clever idea. And the photography in this post is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. Seriously, it’s so gorgeous and mouthwatering!
Such a sweetheart Nisha, thank you so very much for the compliments! So glad you enjoy the photos!
Very creamy and yummy!!! Super easy and fast to make in the Blendtec!
Yay! So glad you loved it!
I finally made the sauce….I know a couple of days late 😱. I really love the tang that this one has…it really does resemble cream cheese. I see so many options that you can now transform SAD cream cheese dishes to vegan. All of your Alfredo sauces have something just a little different that keeps you coming back. I love love that you’ve ditched the Nooch because I think it was giving me slight headaches too, but I was using a lot at one point.
I’m so happy it was such a hit! Thank you so much for making it!!
What a great helper you are to busy working moms who have no time to labor all day in the kitchen. I tried this recipe last night and already had three servings of pasta (not all at once haha). Plus used the sauce for dipping some bean/potato patties. I must admit I managed to make a mistake right of the bat. Forgot the yogurt… So I thought the sauce was a bit too vinegary to me so I doubled the potato. It was good too. Then I remembered what I forgot and added Kite Hill plain almond yorgut to the leftover sauce. It was awesome. Simple yet so tasty. I do like nutritional yeast and didn’t realize that it may not be healthy. Generally I would be surprised though to see when the recipe calls for a quarter of a cup of this stuff. Seems quite too much. I would image a tablespoon or two should suffice and usually lower the amount in my trials. Anyways happy to add new sauces to the repertoire especially those that include veggies (that the little one refuses to eat – I know… don’t event know if he’s mine after he refused to eat potatoes haha – the best food on the planet; hopefully he will come around and see the light :))
Thank you so much Milda for taking the time to make this and review it and share on IG!! Haha, yes, glad you remember to add the yogurt as it completes the sauce! So glad you loved it and it was “awesome”!
This looks so yummy! I would also like to know how to make it without the yogurt. Thanks!!
Thank you Linda! This recipe is based off using the yogurt, so if you can’t use yogurt then I would make my other alfredo instead. It’s pretty much the most popular recipe on my site, haha and just as good as this one!
Here is the link:
https://thevegan8.com/2015/11/09/20-minute-vegan-alfredo/
BRANDI!!!!! You make me so mad!!! I just made this, and it’s so incredibly delicious, I CAN’T STOP EATING IT!!!! I had two servings with fettuccine, then a third I served the sauce over a gold potato. Oh my gosh, I’m so full, BUT I WANT MORE!!!! You’re THE BEST RECIPE CREATOR IN THE WORLD!!!! I’m still mad, lol.
Carol, I seriously laughed out loud at you! Hahahaa! I love it when people get mad at me because a recipe is so good they can’t stop eating it….lol! Success!! Thank you so much for making it Carol, you are the best. I am cracking up and thank you for leaving such an awesome and funny review! And since you loved it so much, could you add the star rating too? Those really help me rank higher on google, so more people will find this awesome recipe, thank you sweet Carol!
I made it! I wish I could post a picture! It tastes soooo good! How would I do it without the yogurt?
Yay! So happy you loved it Chase! Thank you! Oh, just make my original alfredo if you want a non-yogurt version 🙂
Here you go!
https://thevegan8.com/2015/11/09/20-minute-vegan-alfredo/
This recipe was amazing. It was everything it promised. I have directed quite a few people to this site. I love the few steps and its delicious
I’m so glad you loved this Samantha, thank you so much for the review!
Re: that tong shot–I am holding a big bowl outstretched and ready, come to MEEEEE! Again with the dreamy and decadent but not even sweet or chocolate goodness–you are swaying me to the savory side and I am not sure how I feel about it haha. I didn’t even know cream cheese alfredo was a thing and now it’s a vegan nooch-free thing thanks to your cream sauce cleverness. And potatoes, always gotta thank the potatoes. I am to dates what you are to potatoes lol. Some foods just belong in basically every. single. recipe. 🙂 With such a rich and creamy sauce I imagine the subtle tang of yogurt (and vinegar too) is a really lovely balance. Okay off to watch the video and intensify the pasta cravings even more…
Thank you so much Natalie and so sorry I’m so behind on responding to the comments here! I actually have never seen a cream cheese alfredo personally so I don’t believe it is even “a thing” lol! But the idea popped into my head when I wanted to create something different than the classic and now I can most certainly confirm it is now a THING, haha!
YES. You have come over to my side. BUAHAHAHAHA! Totally kidding but you know I’m not a huge yeast fan and don’t use it in any of my creamy sauces. On that note, repeat after me: There. Are. Never. Enough. Cream. Sauces. Ever. I have a nice amount on my blog too. I feel like I am always making them at home, and always changing it up. And each time it’s a slightly different flavor but still so good! I’m totally in on trying this one! Like I said, never enough!! It looks absolutely delicious. On the whole headache note with O, you know I just did that at home food sensitivity test for that brand and one of the things on the test is yeast, both bakers and brewers. I know brewers is a tad different but it has some of the same stuff (unlike bakers) so I’d be so curious if she came out as high or moderately sensitive to it if she did the testing. I came out mild to bakers yeast but low to brewers. But one of the things they say is that if you have a food sensitivity to something, headache can be an indicator. We’re all different though!
Lmao! Seriously, after my Mexican Cheesy Bake exploded with flavor with NO yeast, I knew it was possible. Crazy part is that it tastes even better and cheesy-ER than with the yeast! Lol. Also, I now find it to be kind of gross, except in small amounts. I can’t believe I use to use SO much of it. But it was when I was fairly new at discovering it and was just dumping it in everything, haha. So, the gout trigger and headaches were a blessing in disguise to get rid of that stuff.
As far as food sensitivity, Olivia doesn’t have any issues with headaches from any other food, thankfully. We eat bread with no issues, but that’s good to know, thank you for sharing! I definitely agree that onset headache right after eating something is a huge sign that it shouldn’t be eaten, regardless of whether it is a “health” food or not. Cauliflower is healthy but it’s a death sentence for Jay.
I needed a quick lunch for unexpected company today. They wanted to go out for Italian food. I convinced them to try this recipe.
I used fresh lemon juice instead of the vinegar and Kite Hill plain almond milk yogurt. I sprinkled roasted pumpkin seeds on top with red chili flakes. I prepared this with my company in the kitchen and they were amazed at how simple and quick this meal came together (under 25 minutes) You may have convinced my non vegan friends to try more plant based dishes and embrace my lifetime vegan eating style. Thank You!
Woohoo! What an awesome testimony if this recipe convinced them to be open to more plant-based meals, yay! Thank you so much for sharing and letting me know!
Thank you, thank you!!! for making an alfredo sauce without nutritional yeast. Looking forward to other recipes remade without it. You are remarkable!!
You are so welcome Sue! Be sure to check out the others linked to in the post that have no nutritional yeast and really, the cheesy tortilla bake is the best vegan cheese sauce I’ve tried yet and the fact it has no yeast is such a bonus!
that does look yummy and sounds so much better than that traditional version.
I hope you don’t mind my asking but I’m curious about your comment about not using nutritional yeast anymore. If you don’t mind my asking why is that? I have recently read somethings that indicated that there were some downsides to consume it and i just want to be better informed. And of course i totally understand if you choose not to reply.
Thank you so much Jacquie! It is a nice twist from the original if you are into tangy 🙂
Oh, I don’t mind at all! I do not use it anymore because it has been a huge gout trigger (arthritis) in my husband and anytime I would fix something with it, it would also give my daughter bad headaches. At first I thought it was cashews but realized it was the yeast so when I stopped using it, she stopped complaining of a headache at meal time. It would be really fast too, which was kind of scary…like within minutes of eating anything with it. I do not believe it is healthy because of the inflammation and effects it’s had on both of them, so I no longer use it. In my book there is just 2 recipes that use it, but are listed as optional and it’s a very small amount (2 tbsp).
Yum! Kite Hill yogurt has been on sale at my local co-op, and this would be a perfect way to use it. Sounds like a good sauce to use on a lot of things, not just pasta. Thanks for sharing another great recipe. 🙂
Yes, I bet that yogurt would be delicious! Haven’t tried that brand yet, but know they are good! Yes, this sauce would be delicious on potatoes 🙂