This deliciously thick and creamy vegetarian red pepper Alfredo recipe is surprisingly simple to make!
Red pepper Alfredo sauce recipe
We cook a variation of this creamy pasta dish at least once a month.
The homemade red pepper sauce is a wonderful addition to pretty much everything, including penne, fettuccine, spaghetti, linguine, roasted vegetables, garlic bread, or served in a bowl as a thick and comforting soup.
It is also great over spaghetti squash if you want to save calories.
The quick and easy dinner recipe calls for just eight ingredients, and it can be oil free, egg free, gluten free, keto, paleo, Whole30, sugar free, low carb, and vegan.
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Healthy dairy free pasta sauce
This magically thick Alfredo sauce requires no heavy cream.
Instead, the richness comes from heart healthy cashews, one of my favorite versatile plant based ingredients.
Cashews or macadamia nuts can be used in both sweet and savory recipes to produce incredible creaminess even without any heavy cream or dairy.
The nondairy and vegan sauce comes together really easily.
Just throw your ingredients into a blender and process until smooth.
You can heat the sauce while boiling the pasta or veggie noodles, so everything is ready to eat at the same time.
Prefer a nut free pasta recipe? Try Lemon Pasta or Vegan Alfredo Sauce
Vegetarian red pepper Alfredo recipe video
Above – watch the step by step recipe video
Roasted red pepper Alfredo ingredients
To make the recipe, you need one pepper, onion powder, ground turmeric, nutritional yeast or Parmesan cheese, salt, water, cashews, and an optional pinch of nutmeg.
The Alfredo is equally tasty with a roasted or raw bell pepper. And feel free to swap red for a yellow or orange pepper instead.
We like to use unsalted raw cashews. For a low carb option, macadamia nuts are a great choice. If you can only find roasted salted nuts, decrease the salt in the recipe.
The onion powder adds depth of flavor and should not be omitted. However you may replace it with one or two sautéed shallots or half a cup of diced roasted onion.
For a vegan red pepper sauce, use nutritional yeast or vegan Parmesan.
The sauce needs no eggs, butter, coconut milk, goat cheese, or heavy cream. It therefore is naturally cholesterol free and low in saturated fat.
Use leftover peppers in this Vegan Ramen Recipe
How to make red pepper pasta
If you have extra time, start by soaking the nuts in a bowl of water for at least an hour. drain and pat fully dry. While this step is not required, it will yield the creamiest texture.
Slice the bell pepper, and discard the stem and seeds.
Add all ingredients to a high speed blender. Process until thick and completely smooth.
*If you do not own a high speed blender like a Vitamix, omit the nuts and use half a cup of raw or roasted cashew butter instead. Process the red pepper and water first, then blend with all remaining ingredients in any blender or food processor.
Taste the sauce, then add more salt, black pepper, or other seasonings if you wish.
The red pepper sauce will look somewhat thin, but it thickens considerably when refrigerated or heated on the stove top.
The recipe was adapted from my Cashew Alfredo Sauce
Serving suggestions
This recipe makes enough sauce to cover ten ounces of pasta or vegetables.
Just before plating, try stirring in steamed broccoli, spinach, roasted mushrooms, zucchini, or sundried tomatoes.
Or add a protein source such as cooked chickpeas, baked tofu, green peas, or vegetarian Italian sausage or chicken.
Serve the Alfredo for dinner with a side of garlic toast or Kale Chips.
Store leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Reheat in a pot on the stove or in the microwave.
We do not recommend freezing this sauce because the texture after thawing will be more watery than creamy.
Red Pepper Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 red bell pepper (raw or roasted)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup raw cashews or macadamia nuts
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast or Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg (optional)
- 10 oz pasta or spaghetti squash or vegetables
- optional grilled or roasted veggies, beans, etc.
Instructions
- Place the nuts in a cereal bowl, cover with water, and let sit 6-8 hours. Drain fully, and pat dry. Blend all ingredients (including the half cup water) except pasta and optional veggies in a food processor or high speed blender until completely smooth. Heat sauce in a pot until desired temperature is reached while cooking pasta in salted water according to package directions in a separate pot. Drain pasta fully, but do not rinse. Pour the sauce over the pasta, season with salt and pepper as desired, and stir in cooked vegetables, beans, or other add-ins if desired. View Nutrition Facts
Video
Notes
Easy Vegetarian Dinner Ideas
I know this is off-topic but I’m not sure the best way to reach you. My mom is making me the Pink Princess Cake from your cookbook for my birthday party this weekend 🙂 but we want to make mini cupcakes instead. Or possibly regular cupcakes. Have you ever made cupcakes with this recipe? Do you have any tips on cooking time for either mini or regular cupcakes? Thank you so much!
You will have to experiment, but thekitchn says Most cupcake recipes take around 20 minutes to bake. Not sure about mini cupcakes, but they would take an even shorter time, so keep an eye on them! And be sure to report back if you experiment 🙂
I just made those last week as mini cupcakes!!! I think I cooked for 10 or 13 minutes. I would do 10, then check with a toothpick, if it comes out clean, they are done. PS they are soooo yummy and moist!
Would pecans work just as fine?
Not sure it would be as creamy. But be sure to report back if you experiment!
Pecans don’t break down or taste the same as cashews.
Oh my gosh, I can’t wait to try this. My daughter is allergic to tomatoes, but loves pasta. So I am always looking for things she can have other than pesto 🙂
I have found that adding riced or blended beets will give pasta dishes that red color we’re used to with tomato sauces. With spices, you can’t tell the difference.
I love the combination of red pepper and cashews… I use a similar recipe to make queso! It’s so good!! 😀
Yum! This looks delish
How many calories is it on its own without the pasta? Thanks!
Just subtract the calories in 10oz pasta divided by 5 🙂
YUM! This sounds so simple and delicious. Cashew cream-based sauces are THE BEST.
What could you use as an alternative to peppers? I’m really not fond of them XD
You could probably just leave them out for a basic alfredo sauce. Or maybe try tomatoes or even steamed carrots? If you experiment, be sure to report back!
Hmm, look so delicious, aside from that this recipe looks so perfect for my family I know they will like it too. I will add some experimental healthy ingredients in this recipe. Thank’s for sharing this. 🙂
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to give it a try!
I just made this recipe for dinner and ate way too much because it was so delicious! So easy to make and really incredible flavor…loved it! I added some mushrooms, garlic salt and pepper. Thanks so much for the great recipe, it will be one of my favorite go tos for the future! ?
This may seem silly, but is the 1/2 cup cashews 4 oz/112g or 2oz/56g? Packaging lists 1/4 cup as one ounce, but I wasn’t sure if you meant 1/2 cup by volume or weight. Thank you!
Also curious to the answer to your inquiry! I’m assuming she’s done it by volume. Hoping Katie replies!
Consider using Silk unsweetened cashew milk, instead. It’s pre-prepared and would cut the prep time considerably.
have you tried it with the Silk cashew milk ? is it good
What an interesting recipe…I had no idea that cashews would be in there! I make a similar pasta dish but I actually add roasted red pepper dip. I can seehow cashews would make it extra creamy! I think I’ll add them the next time I make it.
http://www.bitesforfoodies.com/recipes/roasted-red-pepper-dip/
Have you ever tried storing the sauce for a few days? Just wondering if it’d keep well?
Cashews are soaking right now. Can’t wait to try this!
My 1.5 year old is the pickiest of all picky eaters, so your recipes have been a God sent, because I get to sneak all kinds of good stuff into him.
Greetings from Germany 🙂
I wanted to report back on the outcome. It was absolutely delicious and will surely become one of my go-to recipes. Instead of regular red peppers, I roasted mine (400F for 40min, flip half way through). So creamy, and oh so good!
Should you roast the pepper first? Our use it raw?
I used raw, but a commenter tried roasted and said it was great 🙂