There are some dishes that immediately make you feel better. They are just so wonderfully warming, satisfying and soothing, they captivate our senses and take us – if only for a brief moment – into another world. The typical “Pasta Alfredo” is one of these types of dishes: incomparably creamy, cheesy and aromatic. And that’s no coincidence – the original version, which is popularly served in the USA, consists of a white sauce made from melted cheese and cream.
As delicious as it is, it is certainly not vegan. All the better that you can prepare a version without animal products in no time at all – and it can definitely compete with the traditional version in terms of taste.
The history of “Pasta Alfredo” finds its origins in Italy, more specifically in Rome. Alfredo di Lelio prepared the dish in his restaurant here in the early to mid-20th century. According to family history, Alfredo worked in his mother Angelina’s restaurant in Piazza Rosa since 1892. In 1908, he invented the cheesy delicacy to encourage his weakened wife to eat again after the birth of their son Armando. According to the principle of “mangiare in bianco” (“eat in white”), he prepared – as he thought – a light, light dish made of pasta, butter and plenty of parmesan. Back then, it was assumed that anything light was easy to digest. In 1914 he opened his own restaurant on Via della Scrofa in Rome and from then on called the dish “Fettuccine Alfredo”. Hollywood stars such as Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks visited Ristorante Alfredo alla Scrofa during a film shoot and were thrilled by the creation. The dish came to the USA and from then on was also prepared with cream. During one of their later visits to Rome, the Hollywood couple gave the now famous Alfredo a golden spoon and a golden fork with the inscription: “To Alfredo, the King of the Noodles.”
But how do you veganize a pasta that consists mainly of butter, cheese and cream? With cauliflower. No, this is not a joke, but completely serious. The cabbage vegetables not only visually fit into the color scheme of the light dish, but when pureed they also ensure the incomparably creamy consistency of the sauce. It is also ideal as a base due to its mild aroma. White almond butter makes the dish particularly full-bodied, but the star of the creation is definitely the yeast flakes. Its mild, nutty and, above all, cheesy taste imitates the original version in an amazing way. In addition, yeast flakes are real nutrient bombs and score with plenty of vitamins B1, B2, B6 as well as pantothenic and folic acid. They also contain numerous trace elements, minerals and protein in the form of easily usable amino acids. The dish is rounded off with the unique flavor of garlic. When roasted, whole garlic cloves develop a sweet, nutty and surprisingly mild aroma and complement the other ingredients wonderfully.
Voilà, the vegan “Pasta Alfredo” is ready. Not only is it a lot lighter than the original, it also scores with plenty of vitamins and minerals. A comfort food of superlatives.
