Giada De Laurentiis' 6-Ingredient White Pesto Sauce Mimics Alfredo

Pesto is a long standing favorite for a fresh bowl of pasta, a sandwich spread, or a pizza sauce. Its bright green hue is the first indicator of its fresh herbal ingredients, namely basil. We have a bright and fresh pesto recipe that maintains tradition. But we also have a cilantro pesto recipe that speaks to the versatility of this beloved sauce. In fact, most of pesto's ingredients can be swapped, from herbs to nuts. Giada de Laurentiis tests the definition of pesto with a 6-ingredient pesto sauce that omits herbs altogether.

Her white pesto swaps pine nuts for walnuts, and gets its namesake hue from a hearty dollop of ricotta. In a reel de Laurentiis shared on her instagram page, she touts her pesto sauce as a fresh version of Alfredo. The six ingredients used in white pesto are walnuts, ricotta, parmesan, lemon, olive oil, and garlic. De Laurentiis starts by adding walnuts to a food processor to grind into a fine crumble before adding a few cloves of garlic, freshly grated parmesan, lemon zest, and creamy ricotta. These ingredients come together in the food processor on high with the help of an olive oil drizzle. Ricotta is a creamy and rich substitute for the heavy cream and butter used in a traditional Alfredo sauce recipe. The parmesan and walnuts make for an especially nutty, salty profile while the lemon zest brings the perfect brightness to complement the dairy.

As an alfredo-dupe, the most obvious application for white pesto is as a pasta sauce. And de Laurentiis' viral recipe reel shows how pesto and fresh pasta come together with the help of starchy pasta water. She uses her own Giadzy brand of manfredi, a long pasta with ruffled edges. You can find other types of pasta with equally fun shapes to trap a creamy white pesto sauce. We like this three-pack of nodi, fusilli, and ziti by Giadzy. Starchy pasta water is especially important because it thins the sauce enough for it to coat the pasta. You could add sauteed cremini mushrooms or slices of chicken breast to make a one-pot meal out of white pesto.

Without the addition of water, white pesto is as paste-like as its green cousin. You could thus use it as a spread for your next sandwich. It'd work as a substitute for pistachio cream to slather into a focaccia sandwich with mortadella and sun dried tomatoes or as a crostini topping. It'd also taste delicious as a fancy breakfast toast spread to top with a fried egg and a sprinkling of red pepper flakes. Use white pesto as the foundation for a white pizza like this easy french bread white pizza or this extra cheesy spinach artichoke pizza.