Alfredo sauce is a simple, easy recipe consisting of butter, cream, and plenty of parmesan cheese seasoned and reduced into a decadently creamy emulsion to pour over fettuccine. Technically, the traditional recipe is gluten free. But many store-bought jarred Alfredo sauces use a roux, adding flour to thicken the sauce. We went looking for gluten-free store-bought Alfredo sauces, tasting and ranking 8 brands according to flavor, consistency, and sweet vs. salty tastes. We ranked Livwell in last place.
Not only is Livwell a brand that omits gluten, but it omits dairy as well. Certified vegan and gluten-free, Livwell Alfredo sauce didn’t taste bad. But it didn’t taste like cheesy Alfredo sauce either. Instead of cheese, cream, and butter, the foundational ingredients of the sauce were cashews and cauliflower blended with aromatic flavoring agents like garlic and onions and finished with a hearty helping of lemon juice. While the flavor of Livwell was a mix of fresh, tangy, and rich, it lacked the cheesiness and dairy richness that defines Alfredo sauce. Just because it’s a vegan cheese sauce doesn’t mean that it has to lack cheesiness. Our recipe for vegan Alfredo uses a cashew base, too, but includes crucial cheesy flavor agents like miso paste and nutritional yeast.
What we found downright off-putting, however, was the chunky, super-thick consistency of the sauce. We expected a creamy, smooth texture that coats and clings to any type of pasta. Unfortunately, the sauce’s chunky graininess failed to distribute evenly throughout the pasta we added it to.
Other uses for Livwell cauliflower Alfredo
If you want a cheesy creamy Alfredo sauce, Livwell is not the sauce for you. However, we think its zesty flavor and ultra thick, pasty texture could be put to good use in other applications. It’s certainly thick enough to serve as a dip for crudités. You could spread it over crostini to top with an umami-rich blend of sun dried tomatoes and olive relish. You could add it to your next grain bowl or plate of grilled vegetables. Or you could try blending the sauce with a handheld immersion blender with a teaspoon of miso paste, a ⅓ cup of nutritional yeast, and ¼ cup hot, starchy pasta water to make Livwell Alfredo sauce worthy of its name.
If you’re wondering why a gluten-free designation is so important when you’ll be serving Alfredo sauce over pasta, gluten sensitive diets have soared over the past few decades. The food industry has more than met the demands for gluten-free products, including pasta. We have our own ranking of different gluten-free pasta brands to explore, some using alternative grains like rice and corn, and others using starchy legumes like garbanzos and lentils for a protein-packed meal.
