AlfredoSauce.us

Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce

If you love garlic but find raw garlic too sharp in a cream sauce, this is the recipe for you. Two whole heads of garlic, roasted low and slow until soft and sweet, get mashed into a base of butter, cream, and Parmesan for a sauce with deep garlic flavor and zero bite.

ALL ROASTED

Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce

A creamy Alfredo sauce built entirely around sweet, mellow roasted garlic, with no raw garlic added.

Prep10 minutes
Cook40 minutes (mostly roasting)
Total50 minutes
Serves4 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 whole heads garlic
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 cups Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

  1. Heat your oven to 400 degrees F. Slice the tops off both heads of garlic, drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil, and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until soft and golden.
  2. Let the garlic cool slightly, then squeeze the cloves out of their skins into a small bowl and mash into a paste.
  3. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
  4. Stir the roasted garlic paste into the butter and cook for 1 minute.
  5. Pour in the heavy cream and simmer gently for 3 to 4 minutes.
  6. Lower the heat and whisk in the Parmesan a handful at a time, until smooth.
  7. Season with salt and pepper, then toss with hot pasta right away.

Notes

Using two full heads of garlic, all roasted, gives this sauce a sweeter, deeper, more mellow garlic flavor than a recipe that uses fresh garlic. There is no sharp bite here at all.
Roast extra garlic while your oven is already on. Roasted garlic keeps in the fridge for about a week and is good stirred into mashed potatoes, spread on bread, or added to soups.

How This Differs From Our Other Garlic Alfredo Sauce

We also have a garlic Alfredo sauce recipe that combines roasted garlic with fresh garlic cooked into the butter, for a sauce with both sweetness and a sharper edge. This recipe is different on purpose, it uses only roasted garlic, for a fully mellow, sweet garlic flavor with no raw bite at all. Choose this version if you want garlic flavor without any sharpness, choose the other if you want both.

Getting the Roast Right

Roast the garlic until the cloves are soft enough to squeeze out easily and have turned a deep golden color, about 35 to 40 minutes at 400 degrees F. Undercooked roasted garlic will still have some bite left, and overcooked garlic can turn bitter, so check it at the 35 minute mark and give it more time if needed.

Make Ahead Tip

Since roasting takes the most time in this recipe, roast a few extra heads of garlic whenever your oven is already on for something else. Stored in a sealed container in the fridge, roasted garlic keeps for about a week, which means you can have this sauce ready in 20 minutes instead of 50 on a night you plan ahead.

Serving Suggestions

This sauce is rich and a little sweet, which pairs especially well with mushroom Alfredo sauce flavors or with simple roasted vegetables on the side. It also works well as a base for chicken Alfredo.

Storage

Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days. The flavor deepens a bit overnight. Reheat gently over low heat with a splash of cream.

How is this different from your other garlic Alfredo sauce?

Our garlic Alfredo sauce recipe combines fresh and roasted garlic for a sharper, more direct garlic flavor. This recipe uses only roasted garlic, which gives a sweeter, more mellow result with no raw bite at all.

Can I roast the garlic ahead of time?

Yes, roasted garlic keeps in a sealed container in the fridge for about a week. Roast a few extra heads at once and you will have it ready whenever you want to make this sauce.

Why does roasting change the flavor so much?

Roasting breaks down the compounds in garlic that give it a sharp, pungent bite, while caramelizing its natural sugars. The result tastes sweeter and nuttier instead of spicy and sharp.