16 Best Substitutes For Heavy Cream in Pasta | Get On My Plate (2023)

FAQs

What can I substitute for heavy cream in a recipe? ›

You can make a stand-in for the heavy cream called for in a recipe where it will be mixed with other ingredients. Melt 1/4 cup unsalted butter in a large glass bowl and gradually whisk in 3/4 cup whole milk or half and half. You'll end up with 1 cup of a cream substitute.

What Do Vegans Use Instead of Heavy Cream? Fortunately, nearly any plant-based milk can be made into a heavy cream substitute. Nut milks, including hemp milk, oat milk, coconut milk, and soy milk can all be used as the base for a heavy cream substitute with the addition of the right fats.

What Is the Role of Heavy Cream in Pasta? The heavy cream in pasta dishes is used to add the creamy texture to the dish and to thicken the pasta sauce. No matter if we are talking about a recipe of mac and cheese, Alfredo sauce, vodka sauce, or cheese sauce.

The two best substitutes for heavy cream in alfredo sauce are: Milk + Flour + Butter: Whisk together 1 cup of whole milk (make sure it's COLD), 2 tablespoons of flour, and 2-3 tablespoons of melted butter (cooled). Whisk until smooth. Once you heat this mixture it will begin to thicken like heavy cream.

In general you'll want to use ⅔ cup of milk and ⅓ cup of oil for each cup of heavy cream, and you can use this substitute in both cooking and baking recipes.

The most readily available sauce-thickener is flour. For a too-thin sauce, try adding a slurry (equal parts flour and water, whisked together) or beurre manie (equal parts softened butter and flour, kneaded together to form a paste)—both are ideal thickeners for rich and creamy sauces, such as steak sauce recipes.

Instead of heavy cream, you can use a combination of milk and butter for your pasta sauce. They will add a rich and flavorful profile to your pasta, with a similar fat profile, because the butter will add fat to the milk. Butter is actually 80–82 percent milk fat.

Similarly, a nondairy milk (such as soy or almond) and a neutral oil (like vegetable or canola) can replicate heavy cream in certain recipes—namely, sauces and soups, but also some baked goods.

Can I use sour cream instead of heavy cream? ›

Sour cream has a high enough fat content—about 20%—to make it a good substitute for heavy cream in some savory recipes, such as soups or chili. However, while some chefs swear that sour cream is a key ingredient for a killer whipped cream, it generally can't be used on it's own to make whipped cream.

Heavy Cream is one of the best options available to put in your creamy pasta dishes such as Alfredo Pasta Sauce, Tomato Cream Sauce, Parmesan Sauce, Vodka Sauce, and Truffle Cream Sauce. Since it is really thick even a little bit can be used to make a thick sauce.

Heavy cream usually has a high fat content, around 35%. Stabilizers are often added to help with texture and easier whipping. Half and half cream is equal parts heavy whipping cream and milk. It has a light creamy texture and is usually around 10% fat, but you can find light versions with less fat.

What can you substitute for milk in Alfredo sauce? For this recipe, I've used my favorite combination of dairy free milks: cashew cream and canned coconut milk. Normally I find the coconut milk to sweet, and the cashew cream a little nutty, but paired together, they mask each others non-dairy flavor.

Buttermilk is a great substitute for heavy cream in pasta dishes. It brings a light, tangy flavor to the dish and is lower in fat and calories than heavy cream. However, the pasta dish's texture may not be as creamy or thick as it would be with heavy cream.

Condensed milk is made by reducing a milk and sugar mixture. This creates a sweet and creamy product, and also called sweetened condensed milk. Heavy cream is a high fat dairy cream. There is no added sugar in heavy cream so they offer a very different flavor.

Evaporated Milk

Both have a similar creaminess and flavor to heavy cream, but with fewer calories and fat. Whipping cream is a nearly an identical product with just 5 percent less milkfat.

You can substitute heavy cream for milk by diluting it with a little water. Use half a cup heavy cream and half a cup water for every cup of whole milk. 1 cup whole milk: combine ½ cup heavy cream and ½ cup water.

Add cornstarch.

Add the cornstarch slurry into the heated milk and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent the milk from burning. This method is great for thickening soups. You will want to use one tablespoon of cornstarch for every cup of milk you want to thicken.

Cornstarch

This works as a great thickening agent. The easiest way to accomplish this is to mix about a spoonful of cornstarch to 2 spoonfuls of liquid – it could be water or chicken stock or even milk. You will add this mixture, also called a slurry to the sauce and as it starts to cook, the sauce will thicken.

How do you thicken a sauce without dairy? ›

Cornstarch or arrowroot

Cornstarch and arrowroot are gluten-free alternatives to thickening with flour. They'll also keep your sauce clear and cloud-free. You'll need about 1 tablespoon for every cup of liquid in the recipe. Mix the cornstarch with equal parts water to create a slurry and pour it into the pot.

Add more tomato paste or tomato sauce: To thicken a sauce made with fresh tomatoes, use a tablespoon or two of canned tomato paste or one fourteen-ounce can of tomato sauce. Both add deep tomato flavor and help to thicken the sauce slightly.

All we do is dip out about a half a cup of the cooking water just before draining the pasta. It will look cloudy and yellowish from the starch. Stir this into your simmering sauce a few tablespoons at a time. The sauce will thin out a little and then thicken as the starchy water is absorbed.

Combine 2 tablespoons flour with every 1/4 cup cold water and whisk until smooth. Add the mixture to your sauce over medium heat, and continue to stir and cook until you've reached your desired consistency.

No surprise there, really, since nothing about the dish appeals to traditional Italian palates; putting cream on pasta is so rarely done that in Rome, the home of pasta carbonara, the recipe calls for not a hint of cream.

In place of cream, I used a mix of unsweetened almond milk (you could use cashew or soy milk as well), and refrigerated coconut milk for extra creaminess. Finally, instead of parmesan cheese, I topped my pasta with nutritional yeast at the end which gave it the perfect cheesy flavor.

Regular whipping cream contains slightly less milk fat, anywhere from 30% to 35%. All three products can be used interchangeably. However, the higher fat content in heavy cream and heavy whipping cream does make it easier to whip cream into stable peaks that hold their shape longer.

If you're low on dairy ingredients, don't fret. Greek yogurt can substitute milk, sour cream and heavy cream. Milk: If you're short on milk, half and half or light cream, Greek yogurt can be used to make up for the difference.

Almond milk and all the other substitute milks are great cooking options if you want to use them as a creamy base for your pastas. It's protein-rich and comparable to dairy milks in terms of calories and nutritional value.

The white sauce has a definitive amount of calcium and protein content and is low in calories as compared to other sauces. Using olive oil in cooking prevents cellular damage and helps repair your liver. Moreover, it is easily digestible that way.

What can I use instead of milk in pasta? ›

If you don't mind a little tanginess in your macaroni, you can substitute milk with sour cream or a sour cream substitute like kefir or buttermilk. Simply add the sour cream a tablespoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency.

Vegan cream is a perfect dairy-free heavy cream substitute, great for coffee, gratins, stirred into soups, and used anywhere heavy creams are called for! We love making vegan cashew creams, you may already be familiar with our Vegan Cream Cheese, Vegan Sweet Cream, and Vegan Sour Cream, all using cashews.

Vegan soy heavy cream is a dairy-free version of heavy cream that uses soy milk and silken tofu to create a delicious, creamy, plant-based substitute. To make one cup of vegan soy heavy cream, you will need to combine 1 cup of silken tofu and soy milk (usually about 1/4 cup) to thin.

Oat Milk. Oat milk is perhaps the creamiest of all the plant milks. Its thick creamy texture means it's one of the closest plant-based milks to resemble dairy milk. Oat milk is quickly becoming a favorite non-dairy alternative to milk with popular brands like Oatly disrupting the traditional milk industry.

Coconut milk or cream

Rich in fat, both of these products are a great vegan substitute for heavy cream. Try in sauces and soups; the cream can be whipped. However, it doesn't quite have the body that heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has, so it won't ever form stiff peaks like whipped cream does.

For the ultimate DIY sub, use equal parts light cream and whole milk. If it's heavy cream that's in your fridge, for 1 cup half-and-half, substitute ¾ cup milk plus ¼ cup heavy cream.

Butter is a whopping 80% fat, so combined with whole milk, it works as a heavy cream substitute. Just melt 1/4 cup butter, then whisk in 3/4 cup whole milk until smooth.

One cup of heavy cream can be replaced with one cup of evaporated milk, or three-quarters of a cup of milk plus one-third of a cup of butter. Editor's note: Evaporated milk lends a slightly toasty, caramel taste, so keep that in mind when adding it to recipes.

Pasta also releases starch into the water while it cooks—and that starchy liquid plays a starring role in helping your sauce bind together. “The creaminess comes down to the emulsion of water, fat, and starch. And by having that extra starch, you can reduce the fat,” Boni says.

Cream-Based Sauces

Alfredo Sauce: Alfredo is a rich, creamy white sauce mixed with butter and grated Parmesan cheese seasoned with pepper, and sometimes nutmeg. Alfredo sauce is typically served on fettuccine noodles and topped with vegetables, chicken or shrimp.

How do you moisturize pasta? ›

If the pasta still looks (and tastes) too dry, keep adding the starchy water, a little bit at a time, until the sauce is silky and as creamy as you would like it to be. If the pasta water is well-seasoned, it'll enhance the sauce instead of diluting it. Finally, taste the pasta before serving it.

To Use Half and Half as a Heavy Cream Substitute

It's just half whole milk and half light cream, so it makes a good stand-in. To make this substitution, replace the heavy cream with an equal amount of half and half.

Heavy cream is thick and has a rich flavor, but it's not very sweet, as it doesn't contain any added sugar. Half-and-half tastes similar to milk, but it's creamier and a bit more flavorful. Coffee creamer is often high in added sugar and generally much sweeter than both half-and-half and heavy cream.

According to the US Food and Drug Administration's labelling standards, heavy cream must contain at least 36 percent milk fat. It is pasteurized or ultra-pasteurized and can be homogenized. The same holds true for products labelled heavy whipping cream.

Sour cream has a high enough fat content—about 20%—to make it a good substitute for heavy cream in some savory recipes, such as soups or chili. However, while some chefs swear that sour cream is a key ingredient for a killer whipped cream, it generally can't be used on it's own to make whipped cream.

Use Greek Yogurt When You're Low on Your Favorite Dairy Ingredients. If you're low on dairy ingredients, don't fret. Greek yogurt can substitute milk, sour cream and heavy cream. Milk: If you're short on milk, half and half or light cream, Greek yogurt can be used to make up for the difference.

If you have butter and milk (whole milk or even half-and-half work best), you can make your own heavy cream substitute. To make 1 cup of heavy cream, melt 1/4 cup of butter and slowly whisk in 3/4 cup milk. This works for most baking or cooking recipes that require heavy cream, but it will not whisk into stiff peaks.

Half and half is an equal blend of whole milk and cream. This is the best substitute for heavy cream in your pasta if you still want a creamy, rich flavor, but you don't have heavy cream on hand. The half and half has less fat content, but it's still quite creamy.

The best substitute for heavy cream is half & half with butter. Half-and-half already has a high fat content. By adding a little bit of butter, you can mimic the fat content of heavy cream. It only takes a little bit of butter to make 1 cup of heavy cream.

Similarly, a nondairy milk (such as soy or almond) and a neutral oil (like vegetable or canola) can replicate heavy cream in certain recipes—namely, sauces and soups, but also some baked goods.

How can you thicken without heavy cream? ›

The most readily available sauce-thickener is flour. For a too-thin sauce, try adding a slurry (equal parts flour and water, whisked together) or beurre manie (equal parts softened butter and flour, kneaded together to form a paste)—both are ideal thickeners for rich and creamy sauces, such as steak sauce recipes.

Evaporated milk is an ideal heavy cream substitute in recipes that use heavy cream as a liquid. It won't whip well, but it's a great way to add moisture to baked goods. Substitute an equal amount of evaporated milk for heavy cream.

Evaporated milk works well as a heavy cream substitute in sauces or soups calling for whole milk. In the making of evaporated milk, regular cow's milk is pressure-cooked until it sheds about half of its water content, making it thicker in consistency. For a healthy substitute, try evaporated skim milk.

Evaporated Milk

Both have a similar creaminess and flavor to heavy cream, but with fewer calories and fat.