Creamy Gluten & Dairy Free Alfredo Sauce
Alfredo Sauce is one of those words you hear and instantly start getting hungry! Well, that’s how it is for me. When you are gluten free, Alfredo sauce can be tricky to make. Achieving a smooth consistency without grittiness from Gluten Free flour, is a challenge. If you have a Dairy issue, it gets even more tricky to get flavor that is even worth eating. So, experimenting is all you can do and hope something comes along that you can feel good about serving to your family and friends.
My family has always used coconut milk for pretty much everything. As you all know, this milk has a distinct flavor and is not the best when making any kind of sauces, gravy or mashed potatoes. Honestly, it is really gross! This prompted me to do more research and see if there was a way to neutralize the coconut flavor.
Baking Soda?
I finally found one place that suggested using a small amount of baking soda in the milk. The baking soda neutralizes the coconut flavor by working as a base to neutralize the lauric acid in the coconut milk. I tried it and IT WORKED!! I used dairy free butter, garlic, my favorite Gluten Free flour blend (will explain in the recipe) and unsweetened coconut milk with a little baking soda. WOW! It was so smooth, creamy and had that Alfredo taste that I had been missing! The real test was seeing if my toughest critics (my Family) would notice I used coconut milk. I had each of them try it and waited for their reaction. They all said, “That is really good, what did you do?” No one guessed what milk I used.
It is very exciting to share this with all of you! I have used this Alfredo sauce in a few recipes that I will be sharing in later posts. They all turned out great! Enjoy!
Creamy Gluten and Dairy Free Alfredo Sauce
Equipment
- Stove top
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp dairy free butter (I use earth balance or smart balance)
- 1 1/4 tsp minced garlic (I use ready to use garlic)
- 2 Tbsp Gluten Free Flour blend (*see notes*)
- 1 cup Silk unsweetened Coconut milk
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Start by measuring out your milk and adding the baking soda to it. Stir the milk well and set aside. In a Medium sauce pan, over low/medium heat; melt the butter. When melted and hot, add in the garlic. Saute garlic until slightly brown.
- Next, add in the flour. Stir, using a whisk and let the flour absorb all the butter. Let this cook in the butter for about 45 seconds to 1 minute, while stirring constantly. Don't let this get too brown or burn. ( If it seems to be browning, add the milk)
- Now, add in the milk while stirring with a whisk. Continue cooking and whisking until the sauce starts to get thick. Turn off the heat and add in as much salt & pepper as you like. You now have some yummy Alfredo sauce….ENJOY!!
Notes
Photo by Tijana Drndarski on Unsplash