Hummus Alfredo

A vegan alfredo sauce that will make you question everything

INGREDIENTS

• 16 oz. of rigatoni pasta (you can use any noodle really, I just love the texture it adds here)
• 1 cup of reserved cooking water from pasta
• 2 tablespoons of vegan butter
• 10 oz. of plain hummus (I tend to opt for Sabra’s Classic Hummus found here)
• 1/4 cup of vegan parmesan
• 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast
• 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Boil water for pasta according to box directions. Once cooked to al dente, reserve 1 cup of pasta water and set aside. Remove from heat and drain pasta.
2. Return pasta to the still hot large pot. Add vegan butter and stir to coat pasta with butter as it melts.
3. Once pasta is coated with butter, add hummus as well as about 1/2 cup of pasta water. Mix with pasta until it creates a sauce and then add vegan parmesan, nutritional yeast, and spices. Mix again until pasta is well coated.
4. Check pasta to see if any more pasta water is needed. Depending on the thickness of your hummus, you may want to use more pasta water to thin the sauce. For most hummus’s though, the initial 1/2 cup of water will do the trick.
5. Serve with broccoli and garlic bread for the ultimate pasta experience. Enjoy!

*I like to use both nutritional yeast and vegan parmesan to give it a mixture of parmesan and asiago type of taste, but honestly I’ve made the alfredo sauce with just one at a time in a pinch. If you only have one on hand or only want to use one, just do 1/2 cup of vegan parmesan or 1/2 cup of nutritional yeast.

*I’ve also made this recipe with gluten-free pasta before. I’d recommend chickpea or lentil pasta for this recipe.

*Here’s a cool trick: If you’re ever re-heating this recipe for pasta alfredo or the Mason Jar Mac + Cheese, add about 1 tablespoon of non-dairy milk to the pasta as your re-heating it and then give it a stir before eating. Instead of the sauce drying out (like with any cheese sauce when you’re re-heating it), it will create the saucy quality we know and love again! Thanks to my friend Jared for that awesome tip!

*The inspiration for this recipe came from Half Baked Harvest’s No-Guilt Broccoli Fettucine Alfredo. You can find her original recipe here.