Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce
Serves 6
This cauliflower Alfredo sauce recipe is creamy, rich, and flavorful—all without any cream! Blended cauliflower, Parmesan cheese, and a little butter perfect its velvety texture. Toss it with fettuccine pasta for a delicious, healthy weeknight dinner!
Ingredients
- 12 ounces cauliflower florets, from about 1 small cauliflower
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 16 ounces fettuccine pasta
- 1 to 1½ cups reserved pasta cooking water
- Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the cauliflower and boil until the cauliflower is fork tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and place the cauliflower in a blender. Add the Parmesan cheese, olive oil, garlic, mustard, butter, lemon juice, salt, and several grinds of pepper.
- Bring another large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the pasta according to the package instructions, cooking until al dente. Reserve 1½ cups of the starchy pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
- Add 1 cup of the pasta water to the blender and blend the sauce until creamy.
- Return the pasta to the pot. Add the sauce and toss to coat. If the sauce is too thick, add the remaining ½ cup pasta water and toss again to loosen the sauce and make it a bit creamier.
- Season to taste and serve topped with parsley and more cheese, if desired.