Delicious homemade alfredo sauce recipe without heavy cream! This sauce is everything Alfredo sauce should be: rich, creamy, super cheesy, full of flavor and a cinch to make!
Making alfredo sauce at home is so easy. Once you try this, you’ll never buy the jarred stuff again! And the best part, you don’t need to use heavy cream to make a luscious, creamy alfredo. Why add the extra calories when it’s just as good without, right? Right. So let’s make it!
Disclaimer: this post may contain affiliate links, which means if you decide to purchase any of the items linked in this post, I should earn a small commission. This creates no additional cost to you and helps support the work that goes into running The Fig Jar. Thank you! -Becky
Ingredients for homemade alfredo sauce without heavy cream
- Butter
- Flour
- Garlic
- Milk (affiliate link)
- Parmesan cheese
- Romano cheese (affiliate link)
- Dried Basil
- Dried Oregano (affiliate link)
- Salt and Pepper
As you can see, the ingredients for making alfredo are pretty basic. Instead of the typical heavy cream laden alfredo sauce recipes you are likely to find, I just use regular milk in mine and I do not miss the cream one bit. It’s still very creamy and rich tasting, but I like knowing I saved a few grams of fat. These are all ingredients you can get in any large chain grocery store which I also love about this recipe. And not only are the ingredients very simple, the process is also very very simple.
How to make alfredo sauce
Make the roux
As with most cream sauces, we start this alfredo by making a roux with flour and butter. What is a roux? Its equal parts flour and melted fat that is used as a base to thicken sauces and soups. This, along with parmesan and romano cheese will help thicken the sauce yielding a drool-worthy alfredo sauce.
The butter gets melted first, then add the garlic and let that cook for just a minute. Then add the flour and cook again for another minute but whisk frequently. We let the flour cook like this for a minute to get rid of the raw flour taste. It’s a thing, I promise.
Add the milk
Pour in the milk slowly, whisking continuously to get rid of any lumps. Now the sauce needs to simmer over medium-low heat until it’s gently bubbling.
Add the parmesan, romano, basil, oregano, salt and pepper
Once the milk mixture is bubbling, it should start to thicken. Turn off the heat and whisk in the dried herbs, cheese, salt and pepper. You’re homemade alfredo is ready! Can you believe how easy that was?
Do I really need to use parmesan and romano cheese you ask? While you certainly don’t have to. If all you have is parmesan cheese and you can’t get to the store, you can just use double the amount of parmesan in place of the romano. However, I highly recommend using both cheeses. Romano adds a pungent cheesiness that really makes this sauce mouthwatering.
Where to use alfredo sauce
There is of course the classic– alfredo over some fettuccini pasta or linguini. I topped mine with some fresh basil, extra parmesan and a little crushed red pepper flake. Man was that good. But there’s lots of other places to use alfredo!
One of my favorites is on this pizza. Creamy alfredo, provolone, roasted eggplant and green olives make an amazing flavor combination you will not forget.
I also use this alfredo recipe in my butternut squash lasagna that I make everything Thanksgiving.
Tried this recipe?
If you’re looking for a recipe for alfredo sauce made without heavy cream, I hope you give this recipe a try! It’s so delicious and easy to make. I’d love to hear from you if you try it, leave a comment below or find me on instagram @thefigjar 🙂 Enjoy!
More pasta recipes
Homemade Alfredo Sauce without Heavy Cream
The only Alfredo sauce recipe you will ever need. Rich, creamy, so easy to make and it’s made with just milk instead of heavy cream.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups sauce 1x
- Category: Condiment, Sauce
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 cups 2 % milk
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)
- 1/3 cup Romano cheese (grated)
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Instructions
- In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Once melted, add the garlic and cook about 1 minute. Then add the flour and whisk constantly and cook about 1 more minute.
- Slowly pour in the milk, whisking constantly. Once all the liquid is added, increase heat just a touch and whisk occasionally while allowing to cook until gently simmering and bubbling around the edges of the pan.
- Once bubbling and thickened, turn off the heat, add the herbs, salt, pepper and both cheese. Whisk to combine.
- Enjoy!
simonandrew
This sounds delicious.
Nancy
This was delicious and super easy.
Becky
Yay! I’m glad to hear it.
sswee
How long can this keep refrigerated?
Can this Alfredo sauce be frozen , if yes, for how long?
Becky
Hi there! 5-7 days in the fridge would be the max. I haven’t tried freezing it but think it’s worth a try- either in a ziploc or other freeze safe container. I think 6 months in the freezer would be safe.
Branson
My family loves this Alfredo sauce!! Thanks for sharing this recipe.