A creamy dreamy mushroom vegan alfredo sauce without the cream, making it dairy free too. Yes, it is possible. Let me show you how!
I’ve been absent from this space for far longer than I had originally anticipated. I’ve had a lot going on behind the scenes, including moving house, but I’m back and I’m back for a good cause.
Australian Mushroom Growers Mushrooms Go Pink in October campaign started in 2010 to support the fight against breast cancer. It is a horrible disease, where 7 people die every day of the year in Australia from breast cancer. However there are survivors, just like my Grandmother, who was one of the lucky ones, which makes this cause especially close to my heart.
While we all know mushrooms are healthy, research suggests the potential for mushrooms to assist in reducing the risk of breast cancer. Which is good news if you are a mushroom lover like me!
So to support the Mushrooms Go Pink in October campaign I’m sharing this creamy, dreamy mushroom vegan alfredo recipe with you.
Looking at this creamy mushroom vegan alfredo sauce you’d never know that it doesn’t have cream in it. Not an ounce, dollop or lick of cream. Nada. Zip! In fact it is absolutely dairy free and vegan too!
The secret ingredient? Cashews. Yes, cashews.
I know you are probably wondering if I am off my rocker, but no, I’m not because this is the best creamy non dairy pasta sauce ever. In fact it tastes SO much like a creamy pasta sauce that my husband has declared it his new favourite meal.
I was actually skeptical that my very traditional, “different” hating husband would hate this sauce so I refused to tell him what was in it at first. But as he devoured a bowl of it and went back for seconds I knew I was on a winner.
The trick to this sauce is to blend it well. Really well. While a powerful blender such as a [amazon_link id=”B008H4SLV6″ target=”_blank” ]Vitamix[/amazon_link] or[amazon_link id=”B000GIGZXM” target=”_blank” ]Blendtec[/amazon_link] blender is perfect for this, my [amazon_link id=”B00CGSES9I” target=”_blank” ]KitchenAid[/amazon_link] blender also does this really well. I just let the blender run while I chop the onions and mushrooms to ensure everything is mixed to a delicious smooth and creamy emulsion.
Once the mushrooms and onions are cooked the sauce simply needs warming through before tossing through the pasta. If you are gluten free use gluten free pasta, and to make it vegan use a vegan pasta.
As part of the Mushrooms Go Pink campaign Australian Mushroom Growers are offering you the chance to win a girls day out with 3 friends. Click here to enter.
Creamy mushroom alfredo {vegan + dairy free}
Ingredients
- 2/3 Cup raw cashews unsalted
- 1 3/4 cups water
- 3 tbs nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp Dijon Mustard
- 2 cloves of garlic
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 an onion diced
- 3 cups button mushrooms finely sliced
- 3 tbs thyme leaves picked from the stalk
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 350 g of your favourite pasta
Instructions
- Place the cashews, water, nutritional yeast, mustard and garlic in the blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Place a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add half the oil and fry the onion until golden. Remove the onions from the pan and return the pan to the heat. Increase the heat to medium high and add the mushrooms (you may need to cook them in batches) and the remaining half of the oil. Cook until lightly golden. Return the onions to the pan and add the thyme and the alfredo sauce.
- While the mushrooms are cooking cook the pasta according to packet directions. When you add the sauce to the pan take a spoonful of the pasta water and stir through the sauce. Heat until warmed and then remove from the heat. Drain the pasta.
- Toss the pasta through the sauce and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
Nutritional yeast sounds (and even looks) a little scary but it adds a wonderful cheesy flavour to the pasta. Nutritional yeast is often called Savoury Yeast Flakes. Note that brewers yeast is NOT the same thing so don't use it in its place.
Could you use almonds milk in place of cashews? Yes, but I find that the almonds have a quite strong almond flavour whereas cashews tend to all but disappear amongst the other flavours in this sauce so I'd suggest sticking to cashews.
Disclosure
This post was sponsored by Australian Mushroom Growers Association. As always, all opinions are my own.
Thank you, but is there any replacement for nutritional yeast? I could not find that in the supermarket
To be honest, it is best not to try to substitute nutritional yeast as it is an essential component to this dish which provides the cheesey flavour. If you have a health food shop near you, they will most likely have nutritional yeast. It also is also called savoury yeast flakes. 🙂
Wondering what could substituted instead of the nutritional yeast? As it causes really bad gas in my little 2 yr old…
I’m sorry to hear that Amanda. As for a substitute, you could perhaps try 2 tsp of miso with a little soy and a pinch of vegetable stock powder, but I don’t think the effect would be quite the same as the nutritional yeast really adds that cheesey flavour. If you decide to give it a go I’d love to hear how it turns out.
Could you substitute this with chickpea flour? I am allergic to tree nuts.
I’m sorry to hear you are allergic to nuts Rachel. Unfortunately I don’t think chickpea flour would work. It would turn into more of a crepe batter. You could perhaps try using your favourite non dairy milk (such as soy or oat) and then instead of turning the heat off when you add the milk mixture cook it for a few minutes to let it reduce and thicken. Alternatively, you could try using sunflower seeds although I haven’t tried it personally it might be a good substitute. I hope that helps. Let me know how you go 😀
looks delicious 🙂 love showing my friends that vegan can also mean cremyyy
I’ve heard about this sauce! Well, not this sauce but a sauce made with cashews and my friend raved about it in the same way. So eager to try it now.
Looks amazing. Will definately give this a go when I get home.
Thanks Joey 😀 I hope you like it.
Oh my goodness, luscious! What a comeback 🙂
Glad to see you back in cyberspace Jen, and with such a delicious recipe!
Thanks Amanda 🙂
This looks awesome! I love the idea of creamy vegan sauces. You should check out Chloe Coscarelli’s new vegan Italian cookbook. It has a ton of recipes like this 🙂
Do you think that you could substitute other nuts for the cashews? Like almonds – or would they be too dry?
You could use almond milk however almonds to have a bit more of a distinct nutty flavour so they might not work as well. I’d definitely suggest sticking to cashews if possible.
Welcome back, so glad to see you back on my screen! I’m a BIG fan of mushrooms and I love cashew cream so you’ve got me sold! Sounds delicious.