Cottage Cheese Alfredo

This cottage cheese alfredo is a lower fat, lower calorie version of the rich and creamy pasta favorite! One of the best cottage cheese recipes, it’s an easy dinner to make and the best part? You’d never even know it’s healthy.

Show of hands: who hates alfredo?

You.. there, in the back. GET OUT. You are but a robot amongst us sent to destroy the empire.

The alfredo empire of deliciousness, that is. Uh… I digress. Another show of hands: who loves the fat and calories in a bowl of creamy, rich fettuccine alfredo?

You.. there, in the back. GET OUT. I hate you for your metabolism.

Alfredo has always been one of my favorite pasta sauces, but I tend to reserve it for a special occasion treat, due to the high amounts of butter, cream, and cheese. And then… I found this. We typically associate cottage cheese with gummy bites at an assisted-living center or our tiny-ass dog Magnolia, whom we were instructed by the vet to feed cottage cheese mixed into her dry food so she’d put on some pounds (11, going on 12! But we still tell everyone she’s a week-old lab, for the sake of O’s masculinity). But think again, people! Blended with some other ingredients, it transforms into a luxurious, creamy sauce, at a fraction of the guilt and hippyness.

Why This Recipe Is So. Dang. Good.

• It’s wonderfully rich and creamy, thanks to the cottage cheese, but lower in fat and calories. Also thanks to the cottage cheese!
• This cottage cheese recipe comes together really, really quickly, and you could make it almost entirely during the time your pasta is boiling.
• You can add all sorts of different spices or seasonings to this cottage cheese alfredo. It’s super versatile.

But be warned. You might have to fend off dozens of requests a day for this stuff. I’m not lying.

The first time I made this, O ate his bowl — and subsequently licked the bowl clean — in total silence.

“He hates it,” I told myself. “Oh well. It’s still so much better for us, and I think it’s pretty damn delicious.”

An hour later.

“That was the best thing I’ve ever had,” O spouts, unprovoked. “Can we have it again tomorrow?”

No. No, we can’t. But “tomorrow,” he repeated the question. I repeated the answer. I need variety, dammit! No matter how good something is. The day after “tomorrow,” he repeated the question, and I, the answer. And so on, until I caved and whipped it up the next week. And then the week after that as a sorry-I’m-going-to-St.-Louis-without-you-and-leaving-you-to-fend-for-yourself dish. I’m not exaggerating in claims of how insanely good this stuff is.

Update: Now that O and I have been married for what feels like a hundred years and have a kid, I have a new anecdote to verify the deliciousness of this cottage cheese recipe. My kid freaked out because somewhere along the line that day he was promised “mac and cheese,” and I kind of thought this would work for that particular request. He wailed a bit but finally tried it. My picky, picky toddler then claimed,

“I love it so much. I want to eat it on Wednesday. I want to eat it on Monday. I want to eat it a lot of times when we come home.“

So… if that doesn’t tell you something about this cottage cheese alfredo, I don’t know what would.

Tips for Success

• Make sure you blend the cottage cheese alfredo mixture until it’s very smooth. 
• This cottage cheese recipe is best with about half a pound of pasta. If you don’t mind a less saucy pasta, upping your pasta poundage is fine!
• Simmer your sauce just until it’s thickened – you don’t want to reduce it too much!

Variations

• Instead of basil and oregano, sprinkle in a bit of Cajun seasoning and serve with blackened chicken, tomatoes, and green onions for a Creole pasta.
• Use cultured cottage cheese to make this cottage cheese recipe even healthier.
• Try arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch if you have to or want to avoid corn.

If You Love This Recipe, You’ll Also Love…

• Whole30 Tuna Zoodle Casserole
• Creamy Pumpkin Sage Alfredo with Ronzoni Gluten Free Penne
• Fried Zucchini Basil Gluten-Free Pasta with Fresh Mozzarella
• Baked Feta Pasta
• Healthy Chicken Alfredo with Spaghetti Squash (Whole30, Paleo, Dairy Free)
• Keto Alfredo Sauce

And if you’re looking for a wonderful version of classic Fettuccine Alfredo, this recipe from Erren’s Kitchen is fantastic!