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This Fettucine Alfredo Has A Secret Ingredient That Makes It SUPER Healthy (And Vegan!)

Author:

Liz Moody

Author & Podcaster

By Liz Moody

Author & Podcaster

Liz Moody is the host of the top-rated The Liz Moody Podcast, author of bestselling books "100 Ways to Change Your Life," "Healthier Together: Recipes for Two—Nourish Your Body, Nourish Your Relationships," and "Glow Pops," and a popular online content creator who has helped millions of people transform their lives. A regular speaker, panelist, and podcast guest, Liz shares her own deeply personal anxiety journey that led her to where she is now as well as actionable, fun, and science-based ways for everyone to live their best lives.

Photo by Tieghan Gerard

Half Baked Harvest has long been one of the most drool-worthy blogs on the internet, and Tieghan Gerard’s long-awaited first cookbook, Half Baked Harvest Cookbook: Recipes From My Barn in the Mountains, carries on that same tradition with stunning aplomb. It’s bursting with colors, exciting but accessible flavor combinations, and just-this-side of healthy recipes that are still completely crave-worthy. This genius twist on Alfredo subs the classic cream sauce for a surprising ingredient: chickpeas. Say what? “Combining hummus with a little of the pasta cooking water creates the creamiest, most scrumptious, and truly alfredo-like-tasting sauce ever, and yet there is zero cream,” explains Tieghan. You can also easily make it vegan. “Just omit the butter and use an equal amount of extra-virgin olive oil, then omit the Parmesan and use and equal amount of nutritional yeast,” says Tieghan. Voilà! Your new favorite dinner is served.

No-Guilt Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo

Ingredients

2 small heads broccoli, cut into florets
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon cayenne
½ teaspoon garlic powder
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound fettuccine pasta
1 cup plain hummus
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (sub olive oil for vegan version)
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving (sub nutritional yeast for vegan version)
¼ cup chopped fresh basil, plus more for serving
Fresh parsley, plus more for serving
Pinch of crushed red-pepper flakes

Method

Preheat the oven to 450ºF.
On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the broccoli with the olive oil, cayenne, garlic powder, and a big pinch each of salt and black pepper. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, tossing once, until lightly charred.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until al dente according to the package directions. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta and immediately return it to the pot. Add the hummus, about ½ cup of the pasta cooking water, the lemon zest, lemon juice, butter, and Parmesan. Toss until a creamy sauce forms. Thin the sauce with more pasta cooking water, a little at a time, as needed. Add the basil, parsley, and red pepper flakes. Taste and season as needed with salt and black pepper.
Add the broccoli to the pasta and toss gently. Serve immediately with extra Parmesan and fresh basil and/or parsley on top.

Based on excerpts from Half Baked Harvest Cookbook: Recipes from My Barn in the Mountains by Tieghan Gerard, with the permission of Clarkson Potter, a division of Penguin Random House. Copyright © 2017.