A skinny take on Alfredo Sauce that tastes just as rich and creamy as the original. Super easy to make, and gluten free!
To me, there are few dishes that are as comforting as Fettuccine Alfredo. As a kid, I would order it just about any time my family went to a restaurant. If I’m being real, I would order it for most of my adult life, too. But once I started back on WW and thought more about my health, I realized that I couldn’t justify eating it as much anymore. One serving clocks in at around 35-50 SmartPoints, depending on the restaurant, and has over 2,000 calories. That’s just INSANE.
I even tried bottled sauces. Although some are okay, most of them don’t really have much flavor to me. I would need to doctor them up with other things, like I do with my Shrimp and Penne in Pink Sauce. Plus, the ingredient list on those bottles can be pretty scary.
Then, I tried making my own sauce. I’m pretty sure I’ve tried every “Light” or “Skinny” version of Alfredo sauce that the internet has to offer. None of them did it for me.
Well, my friends, I’m so pleased to share with you my own version that is pretty much years in the making. I finally got it right! This sauce is EVERYTHING.
How to make the best skinny alfredo
My Skinny Alfredo Sauce only takes about 10 minutes total and is super easy once you get the hang of it. The technique is really important to get the right consistency, so you may need to try it out once or twice before you really get it perfected. I’ll try my best to give you detailed instructions, though.
Why Almond Milk?
Almond milk is one of my favorite ingredients to use when making creamy dishes. It’s very low in points/cals and has a mild flavor. If you have a nut allergy, you could try to use coconut milk instead. Not the kind on the can–the kind that you find refrigerated near the almond milk. Skim milk could work, too, but it might increase the points/cals.
Some important tips
I’m sure I’m making this more complicated than it needs to be; the recipe really is incredibly easy. But, just in case:
First of all, buy grated cheese, not shredded. I find that it melts better. And make sure it’s the kind that you buy in a container in the refrigerated cheese section. The shelf-stable, green-container stuff won’t have nearly as much flavor.
Make sure you add the cheese in slowly, whisking until melted. Don’t be tempted to dump everything in all at once, otherwise it might clump up.
The first time I made it, I was tempted to keep thickening it because it seemed a bit too thin. When I added pasta, it looked like this:
I mean, that still looks amazing, but I like an alfredo that really coats the pasta. Just be a little patient. Let the pasta cook in the sauce a bit on low heat, and it will all come together. Like this:
Or, if you want to use the sauce for something else, like as a pizza sauce or to top some cooked veggies, let it cool for about 5 minutes. The sauce will thicken quite a bit when it sits off heat for a little while.
My favorite ways to Use the sauce for a low-ish point Meal
- Chicken and Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo. Combine 1 cup cooked whole wheat or high protein fettuccine (5 SP) with 1/3 cup of sauce (3 SP), 1/2 cup cooked chicken breast (0 SP), and 1/2 cup cooked broccoli (0 SP).
- White Pizza. Use it as a sauce to top my Lightened-Up Pizza Crust.
- Casseroles. Use this as as a substitute for canned condensed soup in your favorite creamy casserole recipe.
- Steak or Salmon sauce. Top your protein with some of the Alfredo for a decadent meal.
- Dip. Sounds weird, I know! But even cold Alfredo is delicious. Use it as a dip for veggies or pretzels.
I’d love to hear from you if you make this recipe! It makes my day when you share your pics on Instagram and tag me (@litecravings). Don’t forget to use #litecravingsrecipes to make sure I see it. If I don’t get a chance to scroll through my tags quickly enough, I won’t see your post. I always make a point to look through the hashtags, though, so I’ll see it there!
Skinny Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsweetened, plain almond milk
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 4 tbsp 1/3 less fat (light) cream cheese
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese use the kind in the refrigerated section rather than the green-bottle stuff.
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium sauce pan, whisk together almond milk , cornstarch, garlic powder, and kosher salt. Turn heat to high and bring to a slow boil, whisking frequently so cornstarch doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Turn heat to low and continue to cook until slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Whisk in cream cheese, one tablespoon at a time, until melted.
- Sprinkle parmesan cheese in slowly, whisking as you go. If you try to add all the cheese in at one time, it might clump together. Once all cheese is added, finish with cracked pepper.
- If serving with pasta, add sauce to pasta and cook together for about a minute, to thicken the sauce. Otherwise, take sauce off heat and let cool for about 5-10 minutes to thicken up.
Made this last night with a few substitutions. I used carbmaster milk because it’s the same points as almond milk and my family doesn’t like almond. I also used fat free cream cheese and it melted fine. I didn’t have any fresh grated parmesan so had to use the stuff in green bottle. I already have some fresh added to my grocery pick-up order. I also sauteed some chicken breast to add in. I served with whole wheat pasta for myself and Linguine for my family. We all loved it and my daughters each had seconds. This will definitely be added to our menu rotation.
Made this Alfredo last night and it was delicious! I am always disappointed by Cannes grocery store sauce, and terrified of the calories in restaurant Alfredo, this sauce was excellent and so low in calories. I used arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch and it worked perfectly. Thank you for this great recipe!
Thank you, Zoe! Your feelings towards traditional Alfredo recipes are exactly why I created this recipe. I really appreciate you taking the time to review it. 🙂
This Alfredo is amazing! It’s so rich and creamy and all my family love it — it’s become a regular weekly meal we all enjoy. Thank you!!
That makes me happy, Tracey. Glad to hear that your family loves it so much!
I’ve made this so much since finding it. I absolutely love it. Only thing I changed was Kirkland’s almond milk (shelf stable) has some Vanilla. I will be using this recipe for life. Thank you so much.
There is a local restaurant here in Columbus, OH and one of their apps is kettle chips with Alfredo and Bleu cheese. It’s delicious, but deadly! I’m going to try using your Alfredo with baked kettle chips at home!!!
Best recipe ever! I make up and freeze in individual portions after a couple days of using fresh off I have leftover. Works. Today I’m going to add to spaghetti squash with chicken and broccoli and parmesan.
Thanks so much, Deborah! I love the spaghetti squash idea. 🙂
Could you use whipped cream cheese instead?
Hi Gina, I haven’t tried it with whipped cream cheese so I can’t guarantee it’ll turn out the same. Whipped cream cheese uses stabilizers which may react differently with the other ingredients. If you do try it, please let me know how it turns out.
This is absolutely delicious and soooo easy to make!!! I didn’t have lite cream cheese so I used Laughing Cow. I made it this week and my family devoured it the day of and the following day. We went to Italy this summer and ate fettuccine alfredo at Alfredo’s (where alfredo originated) and my family agreed yours was so much better. Right now, I’m not doing WW, but I turn to your recipes because they’re all so delicious.
Made this sauce today to use on a White Chicken Alfredo Garlic Pizza. We about died how good it was!
I used Joseph’s Lavash Bread as the crust. Added cooked chicken breast, onions, and mushrooms. Half of this pizza only had 5 points, as we added some part skim mozzarella cheese to it. Only used a little of the sauce, so saved the rest for a future recipe. Highly recommend!!
Omg that sounds amazing, Maureen!! Definitely have to try that combo! Thank you for the lovely review m.
Hi! I’m going to make this for lunch today! Would this make enough pasta to coat a full pound of pasta? Thanks!
Hi Francesca. One batch of sauce should be enough to coat the pasta, but if you like your pasta extra saucy I’d double or make a 1.5 batch 🙂
Hi! Made this tonight for my husband and myself. It was delicious! I used whipped cream cheese because thats what I had on hand, and I also halved the recipe. It was thick and tasty! I served mine over zucchini nooddles with grilled chicken and peas(itvwould have been broccoli, but I waited to long and broccoli was yukky) Will definitely make again!
I haven’t made it with whipped cream cheese but I’m so happy to hear that it still worked with the recipe! Thank you for taking the time to comment – I know other readers will appreciate the tip. I’m sure it was delicious over the “zoodles”, chicken, and peas 🙂
How much is 1 serving?
Hi Meghan,
If you look at the “Notes” section of the Recipe Card, it’ll show you the serving size = 1/4 cup 🙂
Hands down best healthy at home Alfredo sauce. Easy to make and tastes amazing!