I was recently hankering for the smooth, creamy taste of alfredo sauce. But, as we all know, that particular sauce is generally loaded with butter, heavy cream, and parmesan cheese. This is not the fare of vegans, like me.
So, I set out to create a sauce, full of flavor, but with none of the saturated fat, calories, sodium, and cholesterol of the traditional version. As an added bonus, this sauce is super inexpensive to make!
Beans are among the most nutritious things on planet Earth! They pack a fiber and protein punch. Fiber cleans your colon, helps prevent several cancers, and provides a lot of surprising micronutrients. Coincidentally, they are incredibly cheap! You pay between $.75 and $2.00 a pound, depending on the bean and the quantity that you buy. The price drops dramatically when you buy them in bulk.
At any given time, I generally have at least 150 pounds of beans in my pantry. Nope! I’m not kidding! I regularly buy about a dozen different variety of beans. I buy them in bulk and store them in smaller jars in my kitchen – on shelves where I can see them and remember to use them!
This sauce:
- freezes well.
- is full of flavor.
- has a spark of lemony flavor in every bite.
- is incredibly versatile.
- is smooth and creamy
- will satisfy your tastebuds without adding to your waistline
- has NO added oil, salt, or sugar
- has NO cholesterol
- is vegan
Why white beans?
Because, the humble white bean is a nutritional powerhouse!
One cup of cooked beans contains:
- 18 grams of fiber
- 5 grams of iron
- 18 amino acids
- is a major source of folic acid
Many vegan alfredo sauces use cashews as the base. Cashews contain more fat than I want to add to my diet. White beans are the perfect substitute. They are creamy, nutritious, and give you that “mouth-round-fullness” that fat supplies – without all the harmful effects of any extra oil, calories, or fat.
Ingredients
- 6 cups cooked white beans
- 1/2 chopped white onion
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 1 Tbsp salt free seasoning (I used a garlic-herb blend)
- 2 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- zest of 1 lemon
- juice of 2 lemons
- 2-4 cups of plant-based milk (I used unsweetened almond)
Directions
Place beans, onion and garlic in a food processor, adding just enough plant-based milk to allow it to blend into a thick sauce consistency. You may need to process it in two batches. Blend until totally smooth.
Place mixture in a large skillet. Add spices, and lemon zest. Add 2 cups of plant-based milk and cook on medium heat, adding more milk as needed until you reach the desired consistency.
Finish by adding the juice of 2 lemons. Taste and correct for seasoning.
This sauce is like a creamy lemon explosion of flavor in your mouth!
How do you use it?
- Add it to potatoes to make flavorful vegan scalloped potatoes
- Add it to riced broccoli stems to create scalloped broccoli casserole
- Add it to the top of steamed broccoli – much like a hollandaise sauce
- Freeze it for later
FREE downloadable PDF of Lemony White Bean Alfredo Sauce
