Easy Vegan Cashew Alfredo

If there’s one thing I love, it’s PASTA! With some veggies and added protein (if you wanna) you’ve got yourself a whole meal! Back in the day, Fettuccini Alfredo was one of my go-to orders from Italian restaurants.

Often times I’d even order it with chicken! Well clearly I’ve moved past those days and I’m on to my new favorite. This Vegan Cashew Alfredo! It’s creamy, cheesy and delicious!

How to Make Cashew Alfredo

You wouldn’t believe how easy it is to make this Vegan Cashew Alfredo sauce! The key to a creamy cashew pasta sauce finish is soaking your cashews. I prefer to soak mine overnight for a fuss-free meal the next day.

Just measure out one cup of raw cashews the night before you plan to make this, place them in a bowl filled with water and cover them with a lid. The following day, drain the water and you’re ready to get started!

What is cashew sauce made of?

For this recipe you’ll be using the following ingredients:

• Frozen peas (optional)
• Pasta of choice (I used Linguini)Raw cashews 
• Vegan Butter
• Minced Garlic
• Unsweetened Almond Milk
• Lemon Juice
• Onion Powder
• Nutritional Yeast
• Sea salt
• Italian seasoning Blend
• black pepper to taste

More than likely you’re serving this Vegan Cashew Alfredo sauce over a pasta. To begin, you’ll cook the pasta according to the package directions. While the pasta is cooking, you can begin preparing the sauce. Sauté the minced garlic in a medium sauté pan over medium heat along with the vegan butter.

Once it’s golden brown and fragrant, you can remove it from the heat. The melted butter left in the pan will seem excessive, but we’re gonna add it to the blender with the remaining ingredients in order to add to the flavor so it’s all good!

Once the minced garlic has been sautéd, you’re ready to begin blending everything together. Add the minced garlic and vegan butter mixture to your high-speed blender along with the remaining seasonings, unsweetened almond milk, soaked cashews, and lemon juice.

Blend the mixture together until smooth, then transfer it back to the sauté pan you sautéd the minced garlic in to warm. As I mentioned earlier, I like to add veggies to my Alfredo to make it a complete meal.

If you’re the same way, you can add in some frozen peas to the Alfredo sauce as it warms through. No peas? Broccoli florets would work well here too!

Tips for Making Great Cashew Alfredo:

When making this Alfredo sauce, it’s important to remember to soak your cashews! This will ensure the perfect, creamy consistency. If by chance you forgot to soak your cashews the night before, you can also boil them until they’re soft.

To me, soaking them just seems easier and fuss-free. This way, when you blend them, they easily create a smooth texture. I made this Cashew Alfredo in my Vitamix blender, but any high-speed blender should work fine.

I’ve always preferred a thick, creamy Alfredo sauce, but I realize that everyone has their preference. If you notice that the sauce seems too thick for your liking while it’s warming on the stove, simply stir in small amounts of water or vegetable broth to loosen the mixture.

Want to really set this dish off? Add in some vegan chick’n (if that’s your thing)!

How do you thicken Alfredo sauce?

This Vegan Cashew Alfredo Sauce is pretty thick as is thanks to the cashews. It will also continue to thicken as it cools. However, if you would like to thicken it even more, you can mix 2 tsp of cornstarch with 2 tsp of water and slowly stir it into the mixture until it’s thick enough for you.

Meal-Prepping:

If you follow me on the ‘gram, you know I LIVE by meal prepping! It’s my weekly ritual that I’ve been doing for well over a year (fav meal-prep containers from Amazon are linked below). Not everything is great for meal-prep, but this Vegan Cashew Alfredo can be!

It’s all about how you prep it. I find that the best way to meal prep pasta is often by not mixing them together when cooking.

This is why I advise in the directions to plate the pasta first, then top it with the Alfredo sauce. Not mixing the two will keep the pasta from soaking up all of the sauce, leaving you with dry pasta leftovers the next day. Ain’t nobody got time for that!

Naturally, the sauce thickens after being refrigerated. To loosen it up, I simply add a little bit of water to the dish before heating, warm it up, mix it together and enjoy!

Enjoy!

I know you’ll love this Vegan Cashew Alfredo. It’s creamy, easy to make and delish! Give this cashew pasta recipe a try and let me know what you think in the comments below! Be prepared to say “goodbye” to those pricey vegan alfredo sauce brands in the store!

Other Pasta Recipes You’ll Enjoy:

• Easy Vegan Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
• Roasted Vegetable Baked Penne Pasta
• Vegan Rasta Pasta
• 4 Cheese Baked Mac and Cheese
• Air Fried Mac and Cheese Bites
• Thai Red Curry Pasta
• Spinach Lasagna Rolls with Almond Ricotta
• Vegan Tuna Pasta Salad
• Spinach Pesto

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5 from 12 votes

Vegan Cashew Alfredo

Easy Vegan Cashew Alfredo recipe that can be made in a blender!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Keyword Alfredo, Pasta, Sauce

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 18 minutes minutes

Cashew Soaking Time 8 hours hours

Total Time 8 hours hours 23 minutes minutes

Servings 5

Ingredients

• 1 cup frozen peas (optional)
• 16 oz. pasta of choice (I used Linguini)

Cashew Alfredo Sauce

• 1 cup soaked cashews (preferably soaked overnight)
• 2 tbsp vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 1¼ cups unsweetened almond milk
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp onion powder
• 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning blend plus more to taste
• black pepper to taste

Instructions

• Begin preparing pasta according to package directions.
• In a medium sauté pan over low-medium heat, sauté the minced garlic along with the 2 tbsp of vegan butter until fragrant and golden in color. Remove from heat once done.
• Transfer the garlic and vegan butter mixture from the pan to a high-speed blender along with the remaining sauce ingredients and blend on high until completely smooth and creamy.
• Once smooth, transfer the cashew mixture back to the sauté pan used earlier. Over medium-low heat to allow the sauce to warm through (also add in frozen peas if using). Stir frequently.

  Note- if the sauce is too thick for your preference, simply add a few splashes of vegetable broth or water to thin until you've reached desired consistency.
• Be sure to keep an eye on your pasta. Once it's finished cooking, drain and set aside.
• Once the sauce is warmed and the peas are cooked (if using) spoon desired amount over each serving of cooked pasta and top with a pinch of extra salt and Italian seasoning to taste. Enjoy!

Notes

Makes about 2 cups of cashew Alfredo sauce. 

If meal-prepping, do not mix the pasta and sauce together. Instead, simply place the sauce on top of the pasta and mix when ready to eat.