Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese and milk

This post may contain affiliate links (disclosure). 

Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese and milk

Pasta with alfredo sauce is a very easy vegetarian main dish.  Making your own alfredo sauce from scratch is very easy.  My alfredo sauce recipe uses only 4 ingredients and takes about 5 minutes to make.  Once you try this easy alfredo sauce recipe, you will never want to use the alfredo sauce from the can.

This easy Alfredo sauce recipe makes enough Alfredo sauce for 1 pound of pasta.  This quantity of the sauce will coat the pasta, but it will not be swimming in the sauce.  So if you like more Alfredo sauce for your pasta, just double the recipe.

You can cook the pasta at the same time while making your Alfredo sauce.  Before making the Alfredo sauce, bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta.  Add the pasta to the pot of boiling water, and make the Alfredo sauce while the pasta is cooking.   Your pasta and Alfredo sauce will finish cooking at about the same time!  Drain the pasta and mix with Alfredo sauce, and you’ll have a delicious hot dinner – in less than 20 minutes from start to finish!

This Alfredo sauce uses Parmesan cheese – you need freshly grated or shredded Parmesan cheese.  Do not use the powdered Parmesan cheese from the can – it has grainy texture.  If you don’t have freshly grated or shredded Parmesan cheese, you can substitute it with Gruyere cheese or shredded Mozzarella cheese.

Pasta with Alfredo sauce is the ultimate weeknight meal – just 5 ingredients (including the pasta), all the ingredients are found in any grocery store and it takes under 20 minutes to prepare!  This recipe is simply perfect for those busy weeknights.

Click Here To Pin This Recipe

Easy Pasta With Homemade Alfredo Sauce Recipe

Once you taste the homemade Alfredo sauce, you'll never want to go back to the canned version! This pasta with Alfredo sauce is so creamy and delicious - the ultimate comfort food!

Cook Time15 mins

Total Time15 mins

Course: Pasta

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 4 servings

  • 1/4 cup butter 1/2 stick
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese freshly grated or shredded, not powdered
  • 1 lb pasta

  • Cook pasta according to package directions. While the pasta is cooking, make the Alfredo sauce.

  • Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.

  • Add heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Once it starts simmering, reduce heat to low to keep at a gentle simmer - do not let it boil.

  • Add minced garlic and Parmesan cheese and whisk until cheese melts (for about 2 minutes).

  • Pour the Alfredo sauce over cooked and drained pasta, and toss to combine.

I publish a new recipe several times per week. Want the new recipes in your inbox? Sign up for FREE notifications!

Save This Recipe

Enjoy your pasta with easy alfredo sauce!  If you’d like a lighter version of Alfredo sauce, you can substitute heavy cream with half and half.  If you like pasta, also check out my easy meat lasagna recipe – yum!

Save this for later on your social media:


Get Melanie's FREE Recipes In Your Inbox!

One of the most common sauces you will encounter in the Western world is Alfredo sauce.

Take a Look ↓↓↓

Although alfredo sauce is popular in Italian recipes in the United States, this beloved creamy sauce isn't a thing in Italy, believe it or not. Although serving pasta with cheese and butter started it Italy before the 15th century, the modern version of Alfredo sauce is something a bit different.

Alfredo sauce was invented by (you guessed it) a man named Alfredo. Alfredo di Lelio created the firest fettuccini Alfredo inm a piazza Rosa restaurant in 1892. Alfredo's mother ran the restaurant, and Alfredo created the famous fettuccine Alfredo to encourage his wife to eat after she had her first baby.

It is a favorite to be used in any pasta dish, and you will likely have tried it at least once in your lifetime, even if you cannot remember it.

It is a dish traditionally made of butter, parmesan cheese, eggs, and noodles, however, over the years this dish has adapted to include heavy cream as part of its ingredients.

But today we are looking at a recipe that takes this dish back to its roots, by replacing the heavy cream with milk.

So with no further ado, let’s take a look at how you can make a yummy alfredo sauce without milk for your next meal. 

My homemade alfredo saucerecipe using milk instead of heavy whipping cream is located below. It's a great classic alfredo sauce recipe that can easily be used with chicken alfredo. Yes, you can substitute zucchini noodles and almond milk in this alfredo recipe if you're more health conscious.

Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese and milk

Why might you replace the heavy cream?

As you read this, you might find yourself asking ‘Why should I replace the heavy cream?’, and that is a perfectly good question.

You might be wondering why you would want to adjust a dish that is already so yummy, but there are a few reasons behind this. 

As its name suggests, heavy cream is a heavy ingredient. It is incredibly high in fat, and this can prove too much for some people.

If you have to follow a low-fat diet, or you are trying to lose weight, the heavy cream could put you off eating an alfredo sauce.

So the easiest way to reduce the fat content in this dish is simply to replace the heavy cream. There are a variety of different things that you can use to substitute the heavy cream, however, the majority of these ingredients also alter the taste and texture of the dish.

Using milk as a replacement for the heavy cream is our favorite option because it does not alter the taste and texture of the alfredo sauce.

Instead, it gives you a yummy alfredo sauce which tastes exactly like normal, with plenty of texture and creaminess so that you can enjoy this low-fat alternative without noticing the difference.

Before we get into the method of how you bake your alfredo sauce with milk, let’s take a look at the ingredients that you will need. 

What you Need

Before we move onto how you can make your alfredo sauce with milk, let’s take a look at all the ingredients that you need for the dish.

For the best results, we recommend gathering and measuring your ingredients before you turn on your oven.

Preparation is key for any cooking you will complete, and it is especially important when you are cooking a sauce for a dish.

To make an alfredo sauce with milk, you will need:

  • 1 cup of cheese (preferably mozzarella)
  • ½ cup of butter
  • ½ cup of flour (preferably wheat flour)
  • 2 cups of whole milk 
  • ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese
  • A pinch of salt and pepper
  • 1 tsp of dried oregano

Alfredo sauce is a great option for a quick meal, as you will usually have the majority of the ingredients that you need in your home. It is easy to make, and a great dish to quickly throw together when you don’t want to cook.

So once you have gathered all the ingredients, follow this recipe and you will have a yummy alfredo sauce ready to eat, without all the fat that heavy cream adds to the dish. 

Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese and milk

What you Need to Do

If you fancy a yummy meal that contains alfredo sauce but don’t want all the nasty fat content that usually comes with this meal, you are in the right place.

Our recipe for alfredo sauce excludes the heavy cream and replaces it with milk for a low-fat option that is just as yummy. You won’t even be able to notice that the heavy cream is missing. 

Once you have measured out all of the ingredients that we have listed above, the first thing you need to do is turn on your stove. For the best alfredo sauce, low and slow is the way, so while it might take a little while longer, we recommend turning your stove on low heat.

Allow your pan to heat for a moment, before adding the ½ cup of butter that you measured earlier. You should take a spoon, preferably a wooden spoon, and stir the butter gently until all of the pan’s contents have melted. 

After your butter has completely melted, you should then take the ½ cup of wheat flour that you have measured. You will also need a sieve or a strainer for this part.

 You want the individual parts of flour to be as small as possible for them to mix properly with the butter, so you should sieve or strain the flour before adding it to the melted butter. Once you have added the flour, you should take a whisk or hand mixer and combine the flour with the melted butter. 

The butter and flour will be thoroughly combined when they form a paste-like mixture, you should continue to whisk the ingredients together until this happens.

Once you are happy that the mixture is the correct consistency, you should add one cup of milk to it.

You should stir these three ingredients thoroughly, ensuring that there are no lumps within its texture. Once all of these ingredients are combined, you should add the second cup of milk and repeat the mixing process.  

While continuing to stir the mixture, you should then begin to add the cheese to the sauce. You should begin this by first adding the mozzarella cheese, and add it a little at a time, ensuring that it is thoroughly mixed in before you add more.

Once you have added all of your mozzarella, you should then add the parmesan cheese to the mixture. While you do this, you should constantly mix the ingredients, ensuring that no lumps of cheese or flour remain in the recipe. 

After these ingredients have been added, you will be able to use the sauce in a meal. However, we also recommend including salt, pepper, and oregano to add more flavor to the sauce.

You should add your teaspoon of oregano, along with a pinch of salt and pepper then stir the mixture thoroughly for approximately 5 minutes.

After this time has passed, the sauce should become thick and this means that it is ready to use with fettuccine or whichever pasta you prefer. 

Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese and milk

Other Things You Can Add

For some people, alfredo sauce is a bit too bland. After all, it is a base sauce, and it does not contain many different flavors, so it is understandable that you might want to make alterations to your sauce.

As well as replacing heavy cream with milk to reduce the fat content, you can add ingredients to the dish to alter the flavor.

You could add other herbs, as well as the oregano, to your dish to create a better depth to the flavor. Alternatively, you could add some vegetables into the mix, or even chicken if you like to have meat in a pasta dish.

Alfredo sauce is so popular because it is easily adaptable to you, so you should try and add different ingredients to the sauce until you find the flavor that works perfectly for you. 

Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese and milk

Gluten-free:  No

Dairy-free:  No

Suitable for nut allergies: Yes

Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 15 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4

Calories 166 kcal

  • Saucepan

  • Wooden spoon

  • Sieve or strainer

  • Whisk

  • 1 cup of cheese (preferably mozzarella)
  • ½ cup of butter
  • ½ cup of flour (preferably wheat flour)
  • 2 cups of whole milk
  • ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese
  • A pinch of salt and pepper
  • 1 tsp of dried oregano

  • Place a pan onto your stove on a low heat.

  • When the pan is warm, add ½ cup of butter and stir until melted.

  • Sieve in your wheat flour and combine with the butter. When fully combined, your mixture should have a paste consistency.

  • Add in one cup of milk and stir until mixture is smooth. Then add a second cup of milk and repeat the mixing process.

  • Add your mozzarella cheese slowly into the pan. Ensure that it is fully incorporated into your mixture before adding your parmesan cheese.

  • Add salt, pepper and oregano to the mixture to add a more authentic taste.

  • Stir for 5 minutes, until the mixture has thickened and ready to serve.

Calories: 166kcal

Keyword Alfredo Sauce, Alfredo Sauce With Milk, Alfredo Sauce With Milk No Heavy Cream

Summary

In short, you might choose to replace the heavy cream in your alfredo sauce with milk to reduce the fat content.

If you wish to do this but don’t know where to begin, we’ve put together this handy recipe that shows you how to easily make alfredo sauce with no heavy cream. 

Can I use mozzarella instead of Parmesan?

Mozzarella melts beautifully and will provide a rich creamy and cheesy base for pasta sauces and risottos. Moreover, it can be grated on top of salads and pasta as a final addition. Start with a 1:1 substitution of mozzarella for Parmesan.

What can I use instead of Parmesan cheese in Alfredo sauce?

Substitutes for Parmesan Cheese? Parmesan cheese is the most common grated cheese used for Alfredo sauce. However, cheeses like Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, Pecorino Romano Cheese, Grana Padano, Pecorino, and other hard cheeses can be used.

Can I replace Parmesan with mozzarella in Alfredo?

If you don't have freshly grated or shredded Parmesan cheese, you can substitute it with Gruyere cheese or shredded Mozzarella cheese.

Can you melt mozzarella into a sauce?

I recommend using a pre-shredded mozzarella cheese, not fresh. Fresh mozzarella (while super delicious!) can get stringy and not melt as well in the pasta sauce. You can also use a pizza blend which has mozzarella and other cheeses like parmesan and cheddar for a meltier creamier pasta.