One of the things we missed the most when we went vegan was the rich and creamy taste of fettuccine alfredo. The traditional recipe calls for butter, heavy cream and parmesan cheese, but in our healthy vegan version, we used coconut cream, olive oil and pumpkin puree.

Coconut cream is a great substitute for heavy cream. It contains less water than coconut milk so it has a richer and thicker texture (great for cooking sauces). It’s a good source of B vitamins which help the body convert eaten food into useable energy (glucose).

Olive oil is a great source of good fats. It helps reduce inflammation, maintain healthy cholesterol level and prevents blood clots.

Pumpkin is rich in vitamin A which is great for keeping our eyesight sharp! It also has 394 mg of potassium per cup! Potassium is essential for muscle health, metabolism and cognitive function. We need potassium for our muscles to contract and relax. Potassium also helps extract energy from the nutrients we consume and allows oxygen to reach the brain, increasing cognitive brain function.

This recipe makes 6 huge portions and has 16.7 grams of protein per serving. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Fettuccini with Pumpkin Blood Orange Alfredo Sauce

• Yield: 6 servings
• Preparation: 10 minutes
• Cooking: 25 minutes
• Total: 35 minutes
• Diets: Vegan Vegetarian

Ingredients

• Baby Broccoli: 8 spears
• Blood Orange: 1/2 cup juice
• Canned Great Northern Beans: 1 cup
• Coconut Cream: 2/3 cup
• Fetuccini: 1 container, around 16 oz
• Marsala Wine: 6 tbsp
• Meyer Lemon: 1/3 cup juice
• Olive Oil: 1 tbsp
• Onion: 1 large
• Pepper: to taste
• Pine Nuts: 1/4 cup
• Portabella Mushroom: 3 large
• Pumpkin: 1 can, puree
• Rosemary: 3 tbsp, chopped
• Sage: 2 tbsp, chopped
• Salt: to taste
• Thyme: 3 tbsp, chopped

Instructions

1. Follow pasta box instruction on how to boil pasta. Undercook the pasta, at least 3 minutes before al dente. Drain and set aside. It will be combined with the sauce later.

2. Wash all vegetables. Cut onion and mushroom caps into long thin strips. Discard mushroom stems. Separate broccoli stems using knife. Set all vegetables aside.

3. Remove great northern beans from can and wash thoroughly. Set aside.

4. Turn stove on, medium heat. In a sauce pan, add oil. When the oil starts to heat up, add onion. Separate the onion strips/layers from each other. Cover the pan until onion becomes translucent.

5. Add beans into the pan. Stir and cover pan for 2 minutes.

6. Add the mushrooms, salt, ground pepper, rosemary, thyme and sage. Stir and cover for another 4 minutes.

7. On high heat, add marsala wine, blood orange juice and meyer lemon juice. Stir and wait for sauce to bubble.

8. Put stove back on medium heat when the sauce bubbles. Add coconut cream and pumpkin puree. Stir and simmer for 8 minutes. The sauce should be light, but creamy. Add some water if the sauce becomes too thick.

9. Add baby broccoli spears. Stir and cover until broccoli reaches your desired texture. I prefer my broccoli crunchy so I don’t leave it in the pan for too long.

10. Add the pasta, mixing constantly with cooking tongs. Let it simmer for 3 minutes. Make sure the pasta is sufficiently covered with the sauce.

11. Turn stove off. Garnish with pine nuts. Serve hot.

Remember to tag #ourbeetlife if you try this recipe!

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