[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

Cashew Cream Garlicky Alfredo Sauce

Category: Main Dishes - Pasta

Suitable for a: vegan diet

Ingredients:

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1/2 cup raw cashews (NOT roasted, salted cashews - they won't work here)

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice (I don't measure, just a good squeeze)

1 1/2 cups boiling water

1 clove garlic (or more to taste)

1 1/2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

2 Tb. nutritional yeast (optional)

Instructions:

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Pulverize raw cashews in the food processor until very fine.

Add 1 1/2 cups boiling water. (*The BEST way to do this it to make the sauce while your pasta is cooking, scoop out 1 1/2 cups of lightly salted pasta-cooking water right from the cooking pot while pasta is cooking, and use it - the starch from the pasta-cooking water thickens the sauce PERFECTLY!) Add water to cashews and process until smooth... this will take several minutes.

Add nutritional yeast (optional - my kids prefer it without), garlic clove, olive oil and squeeze of lemon juice. Process again until smooth, another couple minutes, it'll start to thicken a bit too!

Salt and pepper to taste - if you think it needs it.

Makes a decadently creamy sauce. Serve over cooked pasta of your choice.

Additional comments:

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[IamJen]

Thanks for posting this. My dad is an Alfredo nut, and I've not been able to find a good sub. Do you think it tastes like dairy Alfredo?

 

[froggythefrog]

I've not tasted this exact recipe, but the cashew cream sauces I've tasted can be pretty close. I've gotta try this one!

 

[queenfluff]

sounds yummy! I have made cashew 'alfredo' sauce before similar to TNS's recipe (no garlic) and if you add the right ingredients (I added a parmescan made out of pine nuts instead of nutritional yeast) it can be a good sub for the dairy. I wouldn't say it tastes exactly like the dairy one (it is missing some tang) but good sub.

 

[wildtigercubs]

Awesome! Thanks for this! I've been hanging out for some pasta so I'll be giving this one a try soon! (lol there's only so much tomato sauce a person can eat!!)

 

[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

Quote:

Originally Posted by queenfluff

I wouldn't say it tastes exactly like the dairy one (it is missing some tang)...

Which is why I added a little lemon juice and the fresh garlic...

I honestly think it's pretty close?

My oldest Sprout is EXTREMELY finicky with regards to dairy "substitutes" and she loves this stuff. No, it won't totally fool anyone I don't think, but it is rich with a nice creamy mouth feel - (if you have a good food processor and process it long enough to be REALLLLLY smooth).

Hey, give it a try, there's not a lot of fancy ingredients to buy and it doesn't take long to whip up...

 

[nookle]

I can't even believe how good that sounds.....

 

[Melanie]

I'm trying this soon. Oh yeah!

 

[froggythefrog]

Here's my go at this recipe:

Garlicy Alfredo Fettucine with blackened tofu and spinach.

 

[synergy]

Froggy that looks SOOO good.

I think I am going to try this tommorow. I actually have all the ingredients on hand! That never happens.

I'm thinking kamut linguine, the sauce, and brocolli!

 

[Savannah]

i tried the recipe, it was yummy, BUT, is the amount of water and/or amount of cashews correct? I found the sauce much much too thin and had to add a lot more cashews to thicken it up?

 

[froggythefrog]

The more you mix it, the thicker it gets....

 

[~Wonder]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Savannah

i tried the recipe, it was yummy, BUT, is the amount of water and/or amount of cashews correct? I found the sauce much much too thin and had to add a lot more cashews to thicken it up?

I made this and it was pretty thin. I ended up making a roux out of some cornstarch and evoo to thicken it. I think next time I make this I'll saute the garlic and maybe some onion or shallot before I add it to the sauce. The raw garlic taste was a little too much. It was nice and creamy though. It's definately something I'll try again.

 

[synergy]

I just tried this, but I used mince garlic in a jar, and it was just about a tsp. I think next time, I will use more, but otherwise, it's fantastic!

 

[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

I use a 1/2 cup of smallish broken cashew pieces, so it's a pretty densely filled 1/2 cup.

If you're using whole cashews you'll have a whole lot less nuts in a 1/2 cup and may need to adjust the amount.

What froggy said is correct though, it does thicken as it's mixed more, and using the boiling water straight out of the cooking pasta helps, because there's a bit of starch in the water that thickens the sauce too...

Besides, I don't ever think you should follow a recipe exactly as it's written - use your imagination, creativity, and personal tastes to adjust it however you want...

 

[scarlet]

how nessesary is using hot water? if i could use room temp it would be a raw recipe. any suggestions?

 

[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

Hmmm... try it I guess?

The hot water breaks down the cashews and makes them blend better and thus makes the sauce more creamy...

I've heard that soaking cashews in warm water for a while before blending, softens them enough to produce a fairly creamy sauce (not sure how warm things can be and still be "raw") but I've never had the time or motivation to try.

Let me know, I'd be interested in how it turns out...

 

[froggythefrog]

Scarlet, give it a try. I think the main issue you may have is getting the sauce to thicken as much as would be desirable and it may come out grainy rather than creamy. These are just guesses on my part. Why not give it a go and share your experience?

(Oops... this is really TNS's thread, but I am still anxious to know.)

 

[scarlet]

maybe i'll soak the cashews really well overnight... I have a pretty good food processor. I'll let you know.

 

[Savannah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tofu-N-Sprouts

I use a 1/2 cup of smallish broken cashew pieces, so it's a pretty densely filled 1/2 cup.

If you're using whole cashews you'll have a whole lot less nuts in a 1/2 cup and may need to adjust the amount.

What froggy said is correct though, it does thicken as it's mixed more, and using the boiling water straight out of the cooking pasta helps, because there's a bit of starch in the water that thickens the sauce too...

Besides, I don't ever think you should follow a recipe exactly as it's written - use your imagination, creativity, and personal tastes to adjust it however you want...

thanks Tofu, it was very yummy for sure!!

my food processor ain't the best so that might be the glitch. but, i pulverized more cashews and ended up with a much thicker sauce so it worked for me.

i also added a dash of cayenne to it and a little bit of white pepper too.

thanks again!