Traditional Alfredo sauce is insanely delicious and sometimes considered a splurge with its indulgent amounts of butter, cream, and cheese. This version still gives you a creamy luxurious experience but lowers fat and calories significantly. This isn’t a recipe who’s purpose is copycat the original with different ingredients. This recipe still uses real cheese, and real butter, just way less of it and some clever additions to make up the difference. This healthy, low-fat alfredo sauce is one of the most popular recipes on our site. It’s been here for almost 10 years now (originally shared in August of 2008) and and continues to be a family staple in households all over!
The great thing about this recipe is that it’s made from simple ingredients that you probably already have at home.
It’s also made in under 10 minutes so if you keep this stuff around it’s great for last-minute meals. And if you really don’t care TOO much about calories, go ahead and make it with whole milk. It’s still going to be waaay lighter than using cream, and it tastes extra delicious.
This recipe starts in the blender. You’ll combine some light cream cheese (which adds creaminess and also adds body to the sauce), milk (anything from nonfat to whole milk works, I really like 1-2%), and a little bit of flour (which helps thicken the sauce). Blend it up until it’s smooth.
Meanwhile you’ll melt just a couple pats of butter in a pan with some minced garlic. Your blender mixture gets poured right into that pan.
After it simmers for just a few minutes to thicken, you’ll add the cheese.
Now let’s talk about Parmesan. You can make this recipe with fresh grated parmesan or even the crumbled kind in the bottle. They turn out just a bit different in texture, but honestly either one works. I almost always have both on hand so I tend to do half and half. Just experiment and see what you like.
You’ll take your pan off the heat and then mix that in until it’s melted.
Your sauce will continue to thicken a bit once it’s removed from the heat so I like to set it aside for at least a few minutes before serving it.
I use this on so many different things. Pasta, obviously. But it’s also really great as a sauce on pizza, or a dip for breadsticks, or even drizzled over vegetables.
Guiltless Alfredo Sauce
- Total Time: 20
- Yield: 2.5-3 cups sauce
Description
This lightened up alfredo-style sauce is easy to make and delicious on pasta, veggies, or even used as pizza sauce!
Ingredients
2 cups low-fat milk
1/3 cup (3 oz) low fat cream cheese
2-3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
3 garlic cloves
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Place milk, cream cheese, flour, and salt in a blender and blend until smooth. In a non-stick sauce pan, melt butter on med-high heat and add garlic. Let the garlic saute for about 30 seconds, you don’t want to burn it.
Then add milk mixture to the pan. Stir constantly for about 3 or 4 minutes or until it just comes to a simmer. Keep stirring and let it cook for a few minutes more. It should be much thicker now.
When it’s nice and thickened remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese, stir it up and then cover immediately. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before using. It will continue to thicken upon standing. Season with additional salt if needed. Also, if you have leftovers in the fridge, the sauce will thicken almost into a solid. Just re-heat and add a little milk and it will be back to normal again.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Italian
Questions & Reviews
Just made this tonight for the first time. My husband and kids LOVED it! And I did, too, knowing it was guiltless!
I am making this for dinner tonight & am so excited because every recipe I get on your site is phenomenal! And a little FYI for those on Weight Watchers…it comes out to be approx. 7pts per serving w/a 4oz grilled chicken breast. Gonna serve it with some broccoli too. Woo-hoo…hubby is gonna love it!
Crystal,
When you calculated the 7 points, is that just for the sauce and the chicken? Or does that include some pasta?
Katie- ya I'd probably triple it just to make sure you have enough!
I want to use this sauce in your Chicken Penne Bake. I'm sure the original sauce is amazing, but when I calculated the calories it came out higher than where I like to be for our meals. So I'd like to sub this in instead – would it be enough to just double it for that recipe? Or more like triple (judging by 2 cups of milk in this one and 6 cups in the other). Thanks!!
Jenny, yes you can buy fresh Parmesan, it's usually in a wedge. In some stores it's only available in the fancy cheese section in the deli. But in many cases you can find it in the regular cheese section and it's pretty inexpensive. I buy it at Walmart, Frigo brand and it's in a wedge with a green label, near the specialty cheeses, like blue cheese. It only costs about $2. You can use the crumbly canned stuff in this sauce, but avoid the pre-shredded stuff. It doesn't melt well and you'll end up with chunky sauce!
Question…I've never bought anything other than the canned parmesan cheese and the pre-shredded in a bag. Is parmesan even available in a block form? And did you use the pre-shredded?
Brenda Sue- ya, that should work just fine. You just don't want any big chunks of cream cheese in there, so blend thoroughly and you'll be fine!
I have a really dumb question….. In place of blending it in a blender, would an emersion blender do the same thing?? I ask because I do not have a blender, but I do have an emersion blender, which I LOVE!! Would it work?
I didn’t mix mine all the way before I put in in the saucepan … just keep whisking at low heat until the cream cheese melts, then turn it up to cook the sauce. It worked well.
I just made this for dinner, and i absolutely love it! I think it tastes better than the stuff in the restaurants, AND there is no comparison between this and the crap in jars. I love it! My husband was also a big fan, but wished I'd remember to mix in some shrimp. Thank you for the recipe!!!
Whoa….this sounds FABULOUS!!! Bookmarked, stumbled….and everything else I can think of! 😉
This is SOOOO delicious. I topped penne pasta with this sauce and the brushetta recipe from this website. I didn't have parmesan cheese so I used the low fat feta in my fridge and it worked so well and had a mediterranean feel. I just learned about this blog from a friend and I totally owe her!
I just found this recipe today, and made it for lunch for my son, who is home from school sick today. He loved it, and he's not even the alfredo-lover of the family!
I tweaked it a little–used seasoned salt instead of regular, added freshly ground black pepper, and tossed in a little of Tastefully Simple's Dried Tomato Pesto mix, just because I love the flavor it adds.
Also sauteed some mushrooms and red peppers while the sauce was simmering, and served it all over linguine, with sliced left-over grilled chicken. Mmmmm, good!
I have a question… Would marscapone cheese work in lieu of cream cheese?
I'm probably one of about 4 people on the planet who LOATHES cream cheese. I once used some cream cheese that was in the fridge (for a dip) in a white sauce and it was all I could smell and taste. I had to stop eating (and before anyone asks- yes, the cream cheese was fresh!).
Soo yeah. Marscapone or other soft cheese– What do you think?
Kendra–Don't chance it :). Just use 1% and low-fat cream cheese. You'll thank us, we promise. 🙂
I only had the fat free options in my fridge, so I used them. I thought it tasted delicious and it got rave reviews from my son and husband.
Wondering if you could use fat free cream cheese and fat free milk. Should I not chance it?
PS, just found your blog. I'm a recipe blogger too. So, i'll have to make it and blog about it. (:
http://www.blendra.com
Another fan! The last few tries I have had at making Alfredo have been bleh, blah, and belch. This is the first time I have had success and its light! How awesome is that. Thanks!
I just made this sauce and used Onion and Chive cream cheese – yum!
I was thoroughly impressed with this recipe. You're absolutely right–it does NOT taste "lite"! I ended up adding a bit more salt and a bit more cheese upon serving but still, the best homemade alfredo I have made… and I have tried dozens of recipes!
I just made this, and the sauce is beyond amazing. But I used it to make an "alfredo pot pie," which was heaven on a plate, and pretty simple. In a separate pan from the sauce, I cooked some boneless, skinless chicken thighs, seasoned with garlic powder and garlic salt, in olive oil. When done, I removed them to a plate, added a teeny bit of butter and then a package of sliced, fresh mushrooms and sauteed those. While they cooked, I diced up the chicken. Finally, I made the sauce. Once it was all ready, I put the chicken and mushrooms in a glass 9×13, poured the sauce over, and then put a layer of refrigerator crescent rolls over the top. Baked at 375 for 11 minutes, and VOILA. One of the best dinners I've ever made. And that sauce really brought the whole thing together – it was DIVINE.
BTW, I used skim milk, b/c it's all we ever buy, and it was still amazing and thickened up nicely.
Michelle
We had this for dinner tonight and it was SUPER DUPER YUMMY!! I couldn't tell the difference between this and the alfredo I get at one of my favorite restaurants…plus the kids GOBBLED it up!!!
I am trying the Turkey Burgers tomorrow!!
I've made this recipe so many times I know it by heart! We make a marinara sauce too, and do half & half with those sauces on the pasta. So delicious! I'm always telling people about this website. You do an awesome job!
So, being "food label" curious too, like Diamond, I checked the recipe on Calorie Count & here's what I found for 8 servings:
Serving Size 59 g
Calories 128
Calories from Fat 84
Total Fat 9.4g
Saturated Fat 5.8g
Cholesterol 29mg
Sodium 536mg
Total Carbs 4.1g
Sugars 1.7g
Protein 6.9g
Hope that helps! You can use Calorie Count for any recipe you have, which I frequently do when deciding whether to make it or not.
http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php?process=resubmit&count=5
Stephanie
Allie–Did you by any chance use the pre-shredded Parmesan cheese (like the kind that comes in a bag and it's with the other cheeses)? That happens to me when I use that cheese, so I've started grating it from a wedge, just for texture issues, but if I'm in a pinch, I just use the pre-shredded stuff because, like you said, it tastes the same! 🙂
Hope that helps!
I made this last night for the Baked Chicken Bacon Alfredo and it was AMAZING! Everyone loved it! But I do have a question-when I was making it it was nice and smooth.Then I added the parmesan, covered it, and let it sit for 10 mins like it said. And it turned kind of lumpy, like the parmesan didn't blend in completely or something. Did I do something wrong? It still tasted fantastic though!
just finished eating and it was deeeeeee-lish! great recipe!
I've become converted to the way of Alfredo … I never thought this would happen.
PS: Skim milk works fine 🙂
I made this the other day and it was a hit! I did use skim milk because that is all I had and it still was yummy. I had too many of your tasty breadsticks dipped in this sauce. . .yikes!
I just made this sauce for dinner and my whole family loved it. Even my picky ones asked for seconds. Awesome that it is lower in fat. Side note I used 1 1/4 cups of skim milk and 1/4 cup of half and half. Delicious thank you for the yummy recipe.
Will definately try this one. My newest savior in efforts to cut fat and calories is that "new" Over the Moon milk. It is so thick and rich, you'll never believe it's 1% or skim. It results in MUCH richer and tastier low fat/low cal dishes. I'll be using it with this recipe! Thanks!!
Have to say that I was really skeptical of this… cream cheese in alfredo? But it is soooo very good! Kudos! My husband, mom, and dad all loved it! And I loved serving them a healthy alternative. The best part is, they didn't even notice anything was missing!