White Bean Alfredo Recipe - | Healthy Pasta Sauce (2024)

FAQs

What can I add to Alfredo sauce from a jar? ›

You could just add garlic powder, sure, but quickly sautéeing fresh garlic while your pasta cooks is a great way to layer flavor. Resnick likes to add spinach as a way to cut the richness of the sauce. Add a tablespoon or so of olive oil and a few cloves of minced garlic in a sautée pan over medium heat.

Add Cheese

The key ingredient in Alfredo sauce is cheese—generally Parmigiano Reggiano—and lots of it. To thicken Alfredo sauce, simply add more cheese than the amount called for in a recipe until you achieve the consistency you want.

Mix the cornstarch with some cold water to create a smooth slurry, then whisk it into the sauce while cooking over medium-high heat for a few minutes. Add all-purpose flour. Another very common thickening agent that will give your Alfredo sauce a creamy texture.

Tossing in strips of basil, a sprig of thyme or some oregano can take your sauce to the next level. Although fresh herbs might pop a bit more, dried herbs and spices can work just as well. Sprinkling in some red pepper flakes, a pinch of parsley and a dash of salt and pepper can liven up your jarred pasta sauce.

A generous sprig or two of fresh herbs like basil, parsley, rosemary, or sage can all amp up the flavor of a jarred pasta sauce. Alternatively, some of those herbs, like parsley, sage, and rosemary, can be great minced up and gently fried into fresh olive oil before adding the sauce to the pot.

Alfredo should never have anything but pasta water, butter, and cheese in it. Make sure the cooking water has salt in it but remember part is salty.

Bring the butter-cream mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently, uncovered about 3 to 5 minutes. Cook the sauce gently until it begins to thicken, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon. You'll know the Alfredo sauce recipe is thick enough when it coats the back of your spoon.

Work over consistent heat––sometimes a big jump in temperature can cause the emulsion to break and separate. While cooking, keeping the heat low and slow can keep your sauce happy and together!

My alfredo is based with olive oil instead of butter and requires simple ingredients you likely have on hand right now. Pesto, parmesan cheese, milk, flour, garlic, veggie or chicken stock. That's it! And it's so creamy and delicious you wouldn't believe it's actually healthy.

Why did my cheese clump in my Alfredo sauce? ›

Sauce temperature: If the cream sauce is too hot, it can cause the Parmesan cheese to melt and clump together, especially if it's added all at once.

There might be several reasons. Using the wrong kind of cheese. Not applying a correct amount of heat. Using the right kind of cheese, but not grading it small enough.

Reduce the heavy cream before adding cheese

Most basic Alfredo sauce recipes today will call for heavy cream or whipping cream to recreate the thick consistency of the original dish. One trick to help create a thick Alfredo sauce is to reduce the cream before adding freshly grated cheese (via Better Homes & Gardens).

Cause: Ratios are wrong (too much liquid or not enough flour) or roux is cooked too long or too short. Solution: First try and cook it for a bit longer and see if it thickens up. If not, make a little more roux in a separate saucepan (using equal parts butter and flour).

add flour to make a paste stirring Greek yogurt and your milk half a cup at a time. starting the sauce constantly. the sauce should thicken up pretty quickly. or once the sauce is thicken add your cheese and chicken broth. stir until it's melted.

Stir in big handfuls of spinach, Kale mushrooms, zucchini, onions, broccoli, spinach, squash, or grape tomatoes after the pasta is cooked. You can also substitute zucchini (zoodles) for the pasta.

After 12 ounces of fettuccine pasta noodles are finished cooking, reserve 2 cups of the pasta water to include in your sauce. The starchy water is essential to creating a thick, creamy sauce consistency.

Just boil your pasta, toss with the sauce, and top with extra parmesan cheese! We sometimes will even make a double batch of this doctored up spaghetti sauce and store it in the freezer for an easy weeknight meal. Just thaw in the fridge then simmer in a saucepan to re-heat.