White Bean Alfredo Sauce with Lentil Pasta Recipe
This creamy White Bean Alfredo Sauce is a delicious and healthier alternative to traditional Alfredo, made with white beans, nutritional yeast, and fresh lemon juice. Perfectly paired with red lentil spaghetti, it offers a nutritious, plant-based twist that’s both satisfying and easy to prepare.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian-inspired
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
Scale
Sauce Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup chopped shallot (about 3–4 shallots)
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 garlic cloves)
- ¼–½ cup vegetable broth
- 15 ounce can white beans, drained (such as great northern, navy, or cannellini)
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- Salt & pepper, to taste (about ½ teaspoon each)
Pasta
- 8 ounces red lentil spaghetti (or pasta of choice)
Instructions
- Sauté shallots: Heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add the chopped shallots and cook for a few minutes until they become soft and translucent.
- Add garlic and remove from heat: Stir in the minced garlic, then immediately remove the pot from heat. Allow the garlic to gently cook and infuse while stirring intermittently as the pot cools.
- Prepare the sauce in blender: Transfer the drained white beans, cooked shallot and garlic mixture, ¼ cup of vegetable broth, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast into a blender. Blend until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
- Adjust sauce consistency and seasoning: If the sauce is too thick, gradually add the remaining vegetable broth until it reaches a thick but pourable texture. Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Cook pasta: In the same pot, bring water to a boil and cook the red lentil spaghetti according to the package instructions.
- Mix pasta and sauce: Drain the cooked pasta quickly, leaving a small amount of pasta water in the pot. Return pasta to the pot with the reserved water, then add the white bean Alfredo sauce and stir well to coat all the noodles evenly.
- Serve: Serve the pasta warm and enjoy your creamy, protein-rich white bean Alfredo dish.
Notes
- Using red lentil spaghetti adds extra protein and fiber to the dish.
- Vegetable broth can be adjusted or substituted with water for a lighter sauce.
- Nutritional yeast provides a cheesy flavor but can be omitted or replaced with vegan Parmesan if preferred.
- This sauce works well with other types of pasta, including gluten-free varieties.
- To make it spicier, add crushed red pepper flakes when sautéing shallots.
- Leftover sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Keywords: white bean alfredo sauce, vegan alfredo, healthy pasta sauce, white bean sauce, plant-based alfredo, red lentil pasta recipe, dairy-free alfredo, easy vegan sauce
