This Vegan Alfredo Sauce is light, creamy, and delicious! Plus this recipe is easy to make, and you only need a few simple ingredients like roasted garlic, cauliflower, and coconut milk. Great for anyone who wants a lightened up, healthier version of the traditional recipe!
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🍴Ingredients & Notes
- Cauliflower Florets - Roughly chop and measure out the cauliflower before steaming it.
- Full Fat Coconut Milk - I use the brand Native Forest, but any full fat coconut milk will work!
- Roasted Garlic - This is one of the main flavors for this dish, I would highly recommend using fresh roasted garlic instead of garlic powder. You'll need about 4-6 cloves of garlic for this recipe. After your garlic is golden brown, let it cool for a few minutes, and the peel should slide right off!
- Paprika - This adds a little kick to the sauce!
- Salt - Salt is essential for making this sauce taste "cheesy." Feel free to add more than what the recipe calls for!
- Gluten-Free Pasta - For this recipe I used Jovial Fettuccine, but you can serve this dish with any pasta you'd like! For a Paleo or Whole30 option, serve with zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash.
🍴Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Steaming the Cauliflower
Start by adding about an inch of water into a large sauce pan. Turn on high and bring the water to a boil. Once it's boiling, add in the cauliflower florets and place the cover on. Turn the temperature to medium/low for about 20-25 minutes. You'll know it's done when the cauliflower is tender enough to poke a fork into.
Step 2: Roasting the Garlic
Next place the garlic cloves onto a small pan and roast at 325 degrees for about 30 minutes. (Or until they're golden brown.)
Step 3: Blending
To make the sauce add the full fat coconut milk, salt, cayenne pepper, steamed cauliflower, and roasted garlic to a high speed blender. (Make sure to remove the skin from the garlic.) Blend on high until it becomes a smooth and creamy consistency.
Step 4: Serving
Pour the sauce over gluten-free pasta or vegetables! Enjoy!
Helpful Tips
- Keep an eye on the garlic as it's roasting. It will burn easily! I usually set my oven to 325 and let it roast for 25-30 minutes. You'll know it's done with the skin turns golden brown.
- When you reheat pasta and sauce, you can add a little coconut milk or water to help thin it out!
- Make sure the cauliflower is fork tender or mushy so it's easy to blend!
- You can steam cauliflower in a sauce pan directly in the water, or in a stackable steamer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This dish pairs well with chicken or steak for extra protein.
If the sauce is too thick for you, just stir in some regular coconut milk or non-dairy milk. (You can also add a little water.)
Yes of course! I have not tried it myself, but if you'd like to stir in some shredded cheese, I'm sure it would taste delicious!
Personally, I love adding vegetables to my pasta dishes! I usually stir in streamed broccoli or sautéed mushrooms.
How to store leftovers
You can store sauce in an air tight glass container for up to five days in the refrigerator. After that I would transfer it into the freezer for longer storage! (Perfect for a rainy day.) Make sure your container is freezer safe! To reheat, just add it to the stovetop in a pan on medium/low heat. Stir until it's warm. I would not recommend storing gluten-free pasta with the sauce. (It tends to get soggy.)
More pasta recipes!
- Vegan Roasted Tomato Sauce
- Creamy Vegan Walnut Pesto
- Creamy Cherry Tomato Pasta Sauce
- Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan Pasta Salad
After you make this Vegan Alfredo Sauce, make sure to leave a comment & rate the recipe! Your feedback is helpful for me, and for anyone planning to try this recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do!
Recipe
Vegan Alfredo Sauce Pasta Dinner
Equipment
- High Speed Blender
- Sauce Pan
- Oven
Ingredients
- 6 Cups Cauliflower Florets
- 13.5 Ounces Full Fat Coconut Milk I use the brand Native Forest.
- 4-6 Cloves of Garlic
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Paprika
Instructions
- Start by adding about an inch of water into a large sauce pan. Turn on high and bring the water to a boil.
- Once it's boiling, add in the cauliflower florets and place the cover on. Turn the temperature to medium/low for about 20-25 minutes. You'll know it's done when the cauliflower is tender enough to poke a fork into.
- Next place the garlic cloves onto a small pan and roast at 325 degrees for about 30 minutes. (Or until they're golden brown.)
- To make the sauce add the full fat coconut milk, salt, paprika, steamed cauliflower, and roasted garlic to a high speed blender. (Make sure to remove the skin from the garlic.)
- Blend on high until it becomes a smooth and creamy consistency.
- Pour the sauce over gluten-free pasta, or vegetables! Enjoy!
Notes
Helpful Tips
- Keep an eye on the garlic as it's roasting. It will burn easily! I usually set my oven to 325 and let it roast for 25-30 minutes. You'll know it's done with the skin turns golden brown.
- When you reheat pasta and sauce, you can add a little coconut milk or water to help thin it out!
- Make sure the cauliflower is fork tender or mushy so it's easy to blend!
- You can steam cauliflower in a sauce pan directly in the water, or in a stackable steamer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to store leftovers
You can store sauce in an air tight glass container for up to five days in the refrigerator. After that I would transfer it into the freezer for longer storage! (Perfect for a rainy day.) Make sure your container is freezer safe! To reheat, just add it to the stovetop in a pan on medium/low heat. Stir until it's warm. I would not recommend storing gluten-free pasta with the sauce. (It tends to get soggy.)Nutrition
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Nicole
This recipe is OUTSTANDING!!! I've been searching for a good vegan Alfredo recipe for months now and Mariah knocked this out of the park. Being 100% Italian, Alfredo sauce is one of my favorites and this is just perfect. I added fresh basil and oregano and I cannot get over how good this is. Keep the vegan recipes coming!
Nicole
Can I freeze this? I made this with chickpea pasta & I have so much leftover!
Mariah Mandile
You can definitely freeze the sauce, but if you mixed it with the pasta it might get soggy if you freeze it altogether.
Mariah Mandile
Ahh you made my day!!! So glad you liked it! (:
Pamela
Does the sauce taste like coconut? I hate the taste of coconut where it "doesn't belong", i.e. alfredo sauce, veggies, etc.
Mariah Mandile
Hmm I wouldn't say it's a strong coconut flavor because of the cauliflower and roasted garlic. It's very subtle.