lemony protein “alfredo”
can you guess the star ingredient? i bet you can lol
The star ingredient of today’s filling and delicious vegetarian pasta is huge on TikTok and Instagram, and beloved by people trying to hit their protein goals…
It’s cottage cheese! Did you guess it? Well, technically cottage cheese is the co-star — flavor-wise, lemon’s the big deal here.
Cottage cheese is very trendy in the food world right now because it’s high in protein (a cup has about 25 grams), low in calories, and has a pretty neutral taste, so it can be snuck into all sorts of dishes to add creaminess and protein while taking on whatever flavor you want it to.
Today we’re using cottage cheese to make a creamy, dreamy, proteiny pasta. It’s very easy to make (all you have to do is blend a sauce and boil some noodles!), very delicious (it tastes like a mix between pasta al limone and alfredo), and it’ll keep you full longer than a bowl of traditional alfredo would.
If you don’t like cottage cheese straight out of the tub — I know the lumpy texture weirds some people out — I bet you’ll still like it here. It gets silky smooth in the blender. And whether you care about your macro intake or not, you’ll love these noodles!
This is not our first rodeo with a lemony pasta here at What To Cook, but each of them has its own personality. When you want to do the least, make lemon basil pasta with garlicky crunchies. When you only want to wash one dish afterward, go for one-pot spaghetti al limone. And when you want a bunch of protein, make today’s!
Serves 4 to 6
Cook time: 25 minutes
Tools:
Large pot
Microplane or grater
Colander
Coffee mug or glass measuring cup for scooping out hot pasta water
Ingredients:
