This Healthy Alfredo Sauce Recipe is so easy to make! A Healthier Alfredo Sauce that’s lower in fat and higher in protein!
This Healthy Alfredo Sauce recipe is absolutely delicious! Made with only a few simple ingredients like parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, milk and greek yogurt- this low fat alfredo sauce is a MUST try.
I didn’t think making a low calorie alfredo sauce recipe was possible, but this really does taste just like the real thing. There’s no need to use any heavy cream – this sauce is rich, thick and creamy without it!
This homemade alfredo sauce is perfect over your favorite pasta with a touch of parmesan cheese, with chicken, over broccoli – it goes well with everything!
Why we love this Healthy Alfredo Sauce Recipe
There is no debate that low fat Alfredo Sauce is a delicious, creamy, staple that is unmatched. This is a simple, lightened up, healthy alternative you need to try! Here are just a few reasons why we love it so much:
- So easy to make: All you need is one saucepan to make this healthy alfredo sauce.
- Simple Ingredients: This recipe only uses simple, whole ingredients and has great flavor.
- Versatile: Not only is this sauce perfect for fettuccine alfredo, but tastes great with your favorite meats and vegetables. You can easily turn it into chicken alfredo or add some shrimp!
Ingredients:
To make healthy alfredo sauce you’ll need:
- Extra virgin olive oil – our favorites are Bono and Garcia De La Cruz
- Diced Onion
- Minced garlic
- All purpose flour – you can use white or whole wheat flour
- Greek yogurt
- Skim or Whole Milk or Almond milk
- Shredded cheddar cheese – we shred our own from blocks of cheddar but you can use pre-shredded
- Grated parmesan cheese
- Salt & Black Pepper
- Chicken broth – also works well with vegetable broth or beef broth
SUBSTITUTIONS
Olive Oil: You can substitute olive oil with avocado oil, melted butter, or ghee.
Onion/Garlic: Are essential for flavor! If you don’t have fresh onion or garlic, used 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder and onion powder.
Greek Yogurt: You can use low fat cream cheese in place of greek yogurt. I haven’t tried this recipe with other yogurt or non dairy yogurt. I’d be afraid that the non dairy yogurt would separate.
Milk: To make this recipe with less lactose and dairy, you can use unsweetened almond milk or oat milk. Skim milk, whole milk, or half and half will work.
Broth: Any broth or stock (broth and stock are the same) can be used for this recipe. Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, or vegetable broth all work interchangeably. I always use low or no salt broth.
Flour: Gluten Free flour may be used in place of all purpose flour to make this sauce gluten free.
Cheddar Cheese: You can substitute additional parmesan cheese in place of cheddar cheese but it will not be as creamy. This will lower the lactose levels which might make it easier on your stomach! We don’t recommend making this with dairy free cheese. It doesn’t melt as well. We also don’t recommend doing this with low fat cheese.
Lower Salt: Cheese is inherently salty. Unfortunately, this is a higher salt recipe but we believe everything is ok in moderation. This is still lower in salt than most jarred or regular alfredo sauces.
Cooking instructions
Making healthy fettuccine alfredo is so easy!
- In a sauté pan, add extra virgin olive oil, onions and garlic. Sauté over low heat until soft and golden brown.
- Once cooked, gradually add in flour, salt and pepper and whisk until a thick paste starts to form.
- Stir in greek yogurt and gradually add milk, about a ½ cup at a time, stirring until the sauce becomes thick and creamy as it simmers together.
- When you’ve added all the milk, gradually add both cheeses and chicken broth, stirring constantly until a thick sauce forms.
- Serve over pasta (this is perfect for fettuccine alfredo) or store this in a jar in the fridge!
Pro Tip for the Best Healthy Alfredo Sauce
If you want to make the best healthy alfredo sauce – ALWAYS buy blocks of cheese instead of pre-shredded cheese. Pre-shredded cheese is often coated in a powder to prevent it from going bad/sticking together. Shredding your cheese by hand will always give you smoother, creamier sauce that melts much better!
Serving options:
Healthy fettuccine alfredo is a very filling on it’s own, but you can totally serve it with some protein and extra veggies.
- With Pasta: this alfredo recipe is best served over whole wheat or regular pasta. Most people like fettuccine alfredo, but I prefer fusilli or a pasta with lots of ridges to soak up the delicious alfredo sauce!
- Add Veggies: stir in broccoli or cooked asparagus
- Add protein: add grilled chicken, a chicken cutlet, shrimp, or other cooked protein
Storing Healthy Alfredo Sauce:
Storing: This will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezing: I haven’t tried freezing this recipe. Milk can often separate when frozen, and cheese can get an odd texture. This sauce is best enjoyed fresh, or after a few days in the refrigerator.
Reheating: You can reheat this recipe in the microwave, or on the stovetop in a medium saucepan.
Is marinara or Alfredo healthier?
Marinara is traditionally a healthier sauce compared to alfredo sauce. Marinara sauce is tomato based and usually low in calories and fat. Alfredo sauce is made with a base of butter, cream and cheese so it is much higher in calories and fat.
What can you substitute for cream in Alfredo sauce?
You don’t need cream to make alfredo sauce! This easy healthy alfredo sauce uses a combination of: greek yogurt, milk and cheese to make a lower calorie, delicious dish.
Recipe FAQ’s
You don’t need cream to make alfredo sauce! You can substitute milk, skim milk or even almond milk in place of cream when making alfredo sauce. It will not be quite as thick or rich, but it’s still delicious.
Pasta alfredo isn’t a particularly healthy dish. Traditional alfredo sauce is made with a lot of heavy cream and cheese. It’s often high in calories or fat, but you can make it healthier!
Alfredo sauce usually isn’t healthier than marinara sauce. Marinara sauce is tomato based and relatively low in calories and fat. Alfredo sauce is higher calorie and higher in fat.
Yes, alfredo sauce is usually very high in fat because it’s made with heavy cream and lots of cheese/butter, but you can make a low fat alfredo sauce!
Other healthy dinner recipes:
Looking for other easy meals? Check out these 40+ Healthy Dinner Recipes. Click here to grab our free healthy 30 minute dinners cookbook.
Healthy Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3/4 cup onion diced
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic about 3 cloves
- 2 tablespoon all purpose flour
- ¼ cup greek yogurt
- 1 cup milk skim or whole
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup chicken broth
Instructions
- In a sauté pan, add extra virgin olive oil, onions and garlic. Sauté over low heat until soft and translucent.
- Once cooked, gradually add in flour, salt and pepper until a thick paste starts to form.
- Stir in greek yogurt and gradually add milk, about a ½ cup at a time, whisk until the sauce becomes thick and creamy.
- Once you’ve added all the milk, gradually add both cheeses and chicken broth, stirring constantly until a thick sauce forms.
- Serve over pasta or save in a jar! This is enough sauce for 1 pound of pasta.
Video
Katie says
Delicious, healthy Alfredo! I couldn’t believe how good it tasted without cream or butter highly recommend!
Daniel Ventura says
This recipe is amazing. I added about a tablespoon of Chardonnay and a pinch of dried chimichurri. This is my 3rd time making. It’s so good. I’ve done it with chicken and shrimp. Thank you!
Amaylah Israel says
I was pleasantly surprised to find how GOOD this sauce was ! I was nervous me using zero fat greek yogurt may cause separation, but it was perfectly creamy and flavorful! I added a splash of white wine for some extra flavor. Definitely a recipe that I will be saving. Thank you!
Perren says
I made this tonight and my husband said “you could sell this in a restaurant.” I let the sauce sit in the fridge for a couple of days and when I reheated it I added a little extra chicken broth to thin it out. I sautéed rosemary chicken and mixed it in with fettuccini. It was so delicious. Highly recommend this dish!
Carolyn says
Dinner tonight. Easy and very good. I added some green peas at the end ad served with grilled chicken breast. I recommend this for a quick meal.
Kim says
This was SO delicious!!! It tasted so yummy over spinach and ricotta ravioli. This was better than full-fat alfredo sauce and SUPER quick and easy!
Jon McG says
This came out splendid!! I made a couple of small tweaks based on what was in my fridge (only had soy milk, added a touch of pesto, butter, and no chicken stock so used a touch of better than bullion chicken) but I was craving Alfredo sauce with my steak and shrimp pasta and this did THE trick! Saving
JM says
Happy about this recipe. I used bone broth & some cayenne pepper😎
Wendy says
This was a gelatinous blob for me, not a sauce! What did I do wrong? It was not good.
The Clean Eating Couple says
I’ve never had this issue but if I had to guess you over cooked it. You can simply add more chicken broth or water to the sauce to thin it out
Liz kane says
So easy and I loved it. I dud ad more chicken broth as I like a tad bit thinner. I served over gluten free fettuccine and chicken. Yummy 😋
Emilia says
This was amazing totally surpassed my expectations and was way creamier than I anticipated. I used 2 cups parm (one shredded one thinly grated) because I didn’t have cheddar and it was still great! Saving this for a future go to! My husband was also a big fan—-didn’t feel like we sacrificed any flavor goin w some healthier alternatives (like the Greek yogurt etc). It still is “higher” in calories but the fact that it’s packed w protein and more nutrient dense has me running to this recipe. Enjoy!!
Sarah says
This was SO good and easy to make! The yogurt adds so much creaminess. My husband couldn’t believe there isn’t butter or heavy cream in it. I added some shrimp and crabmeat for protein and it was delicious. Thank you for another great recipe!!!
Emma says
this alfredo sauce is so delicious. super easy to make. my picky husband ate it up and had seconds! i did substitute cream cheese for yogurt because i am not a yogurt fan at all. thank you for making all these recipes so that we can enjoy good whole food.
Ashley says
Just made this for dinner and it was so good! It came together quickly and was super easy. I served it with baked salmon on top and my kids said “yummy yummy pasta!”
Angela says
This was amazing!! I ended up having to make a few substitutes as I didn’t have everything – used half/half in place of the milk and white wine in place of the broth. Perfection! I love Alfredo and it always upsets my stomach. But the only complaint from my stomach was that I didn’t eat more of it. I’ve printed and saved for future use.
Berni says
For once I didn’t regret eating Chicken Alfredo!!! If you are trying to eat better and make better choices and crave Alfredo Sauce then this is it. It was really really tasty and my husband who doesn’t even like Alfredo Sauce went back for seconds. It warms up really good too. We didn’t make it 100% per the recipe: it doesn’t say white cheddar *we used regular mild cheddar, so it was yellow ha* and my husband hates buying block cheese *It was preshredded* So Good! Thanks for this recipe
Daria Sabo says
My pasta fagiol is made the same way. My Italian mother’s recipe. She added sausage to hers.
Paula says
Ok – I had a dinner planned and changed it when Liz posted this recipe! Alfredo without a butter ? Impossible you say ? NOT with this delicious recipe. So easy , had all the ingredients on hand . Quick simple directions,
Like all her recipes . Now mine may be a little more yellow than hers 🙂 I am a rebel and used all the cheese I grated (no waste ) but a little more milk or broth fixed that right up . No one would guess there is yogurt in this sauce . I will post pics on Instagram and tag her . Try this recipe , you will never make Alfredo another way .
Mandy says
Could you possibly substitute the all purpose flour and whole milk with almond flour and almond milk?
The Clean Eating Couple says
You definitely can’t substitute the all purpose flour with almond flour – it will be a mess. Nut flour doesn’t thicken like regular flour does. Gluten free flour would work! I haven’t tried with almond milk, but I think it would work. It definitely won’t be as creamy or delicious.