I have had a bunch of recipes for a cauliflower alfredo sauced pinned on Pinterest just waiting for a chance to test out. After reading a few different ones I knew I wanted to make one that had lots of garlic and nutmeg to give the sauce some flavor and depth.
Going completely no-carb is not an option for me, I love pasta too much. After two weeks of not having pasta AT ALL I was excited to make some. With penne or smaller shaped pasta I usually can taste a definite difference in the whole wheat or whole grain kinds but not with fettuccine or linguine. Since I have been trying to eat cleaner I am happy to find a whole grain option that I enjoy and doesn’t lack in quality of flavor.
While this dish wasn’t the prettiest to photograph I was really happy with how it turned out! It was full of flavor and not as heavy as a traditional alfredo sauce. I also liked that the sauce stayed in tact and did not turn oily when heating up leftovers.
This will definitely be added into my dinner rotation and I want to try out a cauliflower sauce risotto as well. It is such a good base sauce that can used for so many dishes – There is even a whole eCookbook written about it by the blog Pinch of Yum!
Recipe adapted from Julia’s Album
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 1 tablespoon of butter
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup of heavy cream
- 1/2 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (you could use Parmesan cheese as well).
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- Pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 2 cups of frozen peas
- 1 box of whole wheat fettuccine
- Parsley (optional)
- Clean and remove the cauliflower from the green leaves. Chop into fairly large pieces. Place in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and let cook for 30 minutes. Drain reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.
- Boil and cook the fettuccine according to package directions. During the last 2 minutes of cooking you can add in the frozen peas.
- Meanwhile, place the pot you cooked the cauliflower in back on the stove over a medium-low heat. Melt the butter and add the diced onion. Let saute for 4-5 minutes or until translucent. Add the mined garlic and cook for another minute. Add the heavy cream and parmigiano-reggiano cheese. Cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously, until the cheese melts.
- Remove from the heat.
- Add the drained cauliflower back into the pot with with onions and garlic. Using an immersion blender, blend until creamy adding in the reserved pasta was back in as needed to loosen the sauce. Season with pepper and nutmeg. You can keep the sauce warm over a low heat on the stove if your pasta is not ready yet,
- Drain the fettuccine and peas and put back in the cooking pot. Pour the cauliflower sauce over the pasta and mix to combine. You can add more of the cooking water here if the sauce is still too thick.
- Serve with more parmigiano-reggiano cheese and parsley.
Emily J. Goodman 
