Vegan Cream Cheese Alfredo
A Vegan Cream Cheese Alfredo that is tangy, creamy, dairy-free, oil-free and incredibly delicious! Just 8 ingredients and ready in 20 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (75g) raw cashews or white beans if you don't mind bean-based sauces-See Note
- 3/4 to 1 cup 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 garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 1/2 teaspoons 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 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 (starting with 3/4 cup), yogurt, potato, garlic powder, onion powder, vinegar, Italian herbs, salt/pepper and optional nutmeg and blend until completely smooth. If you want it thinner, add a little bit more water. 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.