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Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo with Sausage

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If you love a great creamy pasta dish with over-the-top deliciousness, but want one that’s easy on the waistline, you’re going to love our Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo with Sausage. It’s figure-friendly without sacrificing flavor!

This fettuccine with sausage recipe does not contain cream or butter, making it low-calorie and low fat for a pasta dish. Lower the calories even more and choose your favorite gluten-free pasta. The light alfredo sauce doesn’t contain gluten either so with GF pasta it’s a perfectly delicious gluten-free fettuccine with sausage. (Make sure to buy GF sausage!)

This recipe was updated from 2018 to improve our readers experience. No changes were made to the recipe.

Top view of a white plate filled with Fettuccine pasta combined with sausage, mushrooms, and cheese and garnished with fresh parsley. A block of parmesan sits over a grater next to a wire dish of grated cheese over a green napkin.

Where did the Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo Recipe Come From?

I was leafing through the food network magazine, July/August 2014 edition, and saw a recipe for the Tagliatelle Con Salsiccia.

I loved the combination of the sausage and the mushrooms but didn’t like the heavy cream cheese and butter combination. Well, I really do, but I know my heart and thighs don’t.

What is Alfredo Sauce?

Fettuccine Alfredo is one of the unhealthiest pasta dishes that you can eat. It’s loaded with fat and calories. A typical portion of this decadent dish has 1200 calories, 75 grams of fat, 47 grams of saturated fat and gives you more than half a day’s worth of sodium.

Our Alfredo sauce doesn’t have an ounce of butter or cream making it a delicious creamy sauce that’s non-fat, low-calorie, and gluten-free!

Close up side view of a white plate filled with Fettuccine pasta combined with sausage, mushrooms, and cheese and garnished with fresh parsley. A block of parmesan sits over a grater next to a wire dish of grated cheese over a green napkin.

Doesn’t that look amazing? One of the ingredients in this recipe that helps make it healthier is arrowroot powder (also known as arrowroot starch) derived from the tropical arrowroot plant.

It is a gluten-free and vegan method to thicken sauces, fillings, and even jams and eliminates the use of making a roux which is made with butter and flour as the thickening agent. It also gives the dish a creamy texture and appearance without adding calories.

I learned of this method from Rocco Dispirito, an author of several books and he’s known for taking fat-laden high-calorie Italian food and trimming the fat and calories.

How to Make Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo

  1. First, get your pasta water boiling and cook your pasta to the doneness of your choice while you work on the sauce.
  2. Once the pasta water is on, you’ll need to sauté the onions, mushrooms, and garlic.
  3. Next, remove this from the skillet and cook the sausage.
  4. Then make the sauce and pour it over the sausage, stirring until it thickens.
  5. Once the sauce has thickened, add the cooked onions, mushrooms, and garlic.
  6. Stir in the cooked pasta to combine, and serve.

How do you make Light Alfredo Sauce?

  1. Stir arrowroot powder and 1/4 cup water together in a cup or small bowl until combined.
  2. Pour the arrowroot and water mixture into the sausage and stir until it begins to thicken.
  3. Add the pre-cooked onions, mushrooms, garlic, and about 2/3 of the parmesan cheese and stir until creamy.
Side view of a white plate filled with Fettuccine pasta combined with sausage, mushrooms, and cheese and garnished with fresh parsley. A block of parmesan sits over a grater next to a wire dish of grated cheese over a green napkin. A glass of wine sits in the background.

I am kind of an organization nut in the kitchen so I had all my ingredients ready to go before I got started making this recipe. Even so, by the time I was done playing mad chemist with this recipe, my kitchen looked like a bomb had gone off. John walked in and thought we had been ransacked.

This dish comes together quickly so I really recommend having everything together before you start.

Tips and Variations for Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo

  • Use medium-low heat when you combine the Alfredo Sauce ingredients. That will allow the sauce to thicken but not too quickly.
  • Save a little pasta water to use if the sauce becomes too thick.
  • Just wipe the mushrooms clean with a brush or dry paper towel. Don’t submerge them in water because they’re like little sponges.
  • Sneak in a few pre-steamed vegetables.
  • Use low-carb or gluten-free pasta.
  • Garnishing the dish with freshly grated parmesan makes it restaurant-worthy.
  • Reduce the calorie count again by choosing turkey sausage.
  • Add red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, or tiny broccoli florets in with the onions, mushrooms, and garlic when you sauté the vegetables. Summer squashes such as yellow squash and zucchini would also work well.

Storing and Reheating Leftovers

Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Use an airtight container. Reheat in a skillet or microwave with a little bit of butter or chicken broth to rehydrate the pasta. You won’t need much, a couple of tablespoons will do. We don’t recommend freezing skinny fettuccine alfredo because it can change the consistency of the sauce.

Top-down view of a white plate filled with Fettuccine pasta combined with sausage, mushrooms, and cheese and garnished with fresh parsley. A block of parmesan sits over a grater next to a wire dish of grated cheese over a green napkin.

More Pasta Dishes To Enjoy

I guess destroying my kitchen to develop this recipe was definitely worth it. Since making this recipe over and over, I have averted the original chaos.

If you like this recipe, we would appreciate your comment and a 5-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review!

Top-down view of a plate holding Fettuccine Alfredo with Sausage garnished with parsley and cheese.

Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo with Sausage

Author: Julie Menghini
IIf you love a great creamy pasta dish with over-the-top deliciousness, but want one that's easy on the waistline, you're going to love our Skinny Fettuccine Alfredo with Sausage. It's figure-friendly without sacrificing flavor!
5 from 12 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Dish, Pork
Cuisine American
Keyword: Fettuccine with Sausage and Mushrooms
Servings: 4 Servings

Ingredients
  

  • 8 oz whole wheat Fettuccine pasta cooked al dente
  • 1 lb mushrooms roughly chopped
  • 1/2 cup yellow onion diced
  • 5 cloves garlic minced
  • 9 oz turkey sausage browned and drained.
  • 2 cups chicken stock homemade or purchased
  • 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
  • 4 tsp arrowroot powder
  • Olive oil extra virgin
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/4 cup parsley chopped

Instructions
 

  • Drizzle olive oil into a skillet and when hot add onion and mushrooms.  Cook until onions begin to soften, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and remove from the heat.
  • Heat cooked sausage and chicken stock together in a large skillet or dutch oven.  Stir arrowroot powder and 1/4 cup water together in a cup or small bowl until combined.
  • Pour the arrowroot and water mixture into the sausage and stir until it begins to thicken
  • Add onions, mushrooms, garlic and about 2/3 of the parmesan cheese and stir to combine.
  • Add the cooked Fettuccine noodles and stir to combine.
  • Add salt and pepper to taste.
  • Add chopped parsley if using.  Serve immediately and garnish with remaining parmesan cheese.

Notes

I used an Italian flavored turkey sausage. Don’t use a breakfast sausage.

Nutrition

Calories: 491kcalCarbohydrates: 58gProtein: 36gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 964mgPotassium: 863mgFiber: 1gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 560IUVitamin C: 11.7mgCalcium: 354mgIron: 4.1mg

Nutritional Disclaimer

This recipe was calculated using the exact brands and measurements I used to make this recipe. If you are following a strict diet please note changing anything will cause the nutritional info to change. My calculations are intended as a guide only.

Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!

Do some of your recipes require that you destroy the place? Come on, I love those stories!

Pour yourself a nice glass of wine and a slice of great crusty bread. You deserve it! Cheers.

This is definitely a comfort dish just like these recipes

Pin this amazing recipe!

Close-up of a plate filled with Fettuccine with Sausage garnished with cheese and parsley.

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5 from 12 votes

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78 Comments

  1. My body thanks you for this delicious, healthier version of Fettuccine. I thank you for adding the sausage and mushrooms.

  2. We live in the same city — can you hear my family whooping and hollering over this one?? We had it for dinner and there isn’t a morsel left! thank you for the amazing recipe!

  3. I was skeptical that this would taste s good as the full fat version, but was making it for a friend with severe dairy allergies and kept some for my family! I am so glad I did, so so very delicious!

  4. We love comfort food like this especially with sausage added too! My family is going to love this for dinner tonight! I can’t wait to give this a try.

  5. My family have just discovered alfredo sauce and love it. Think its the tasty garlic flavours that does it for us. We are Scottish so its not really a thing over here. I’ve been looking for more interesting recipes to use alfredo sauce with and your one looks great. Thanks!

  6. Yum! Pasta ans sausage are such a classic combination, and Alfredo sauce takes it to a whole new level.

  7. Such an easy and comforting pasta! It has all of my favorite flavors and I love how you lightened the sauce.

  8. These fettuccine look amazing and I love that you made the sauce light but still very delicious! Thanks for sharing this, my family will love it!

  9. It’s hard to believe that something that is this creamy and delicious is figure friendly too! I can’t wait to put this one on the table. Dan and I are doing great with our diets and great choices like this will make it even easier!

    1. I’ve just loved some of the pictures you’ve posted and love that you can get outside year around. I hope you and Dan love this recipe. We sure do.

  10. I swear I can destroy my kitchen boiling water!! This looks so delicious, and my thighs love that you made it healthy!

  11. Loving these flavors together, Julie! A big plate of pasta like this is total comfort food for me. And my kitchen is always a hot mess after I’ve been in it as well! 😉

  12. This pasta dish looks delicious! I love the flavors of sausage and mushrooms together. This meal would be worth the extra clean up time, but I’ll plan ahead like you suggest 🙂

    1. Thank you, Sandra. I promise after the first time didn’t experience the kitchen bomb. It’s our go-to!

  13. I love anything with sausage and anything with mushrooms! Pairing these together is simply a meal WE LOVED! It was delicious! Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipe! Its going to go into our regular rotation!

    1. Thank you so much, Michele! I’m a sausage mushroom combo lover and could probably rebrand the blog as such LOL!

  14. Julie! This dish of pasta looks absolutely incredible!!! Its hearty, so full of flavor and just beautiful!! I’ve never used arrowroot powder but am intrigued to give it a try in this recipe!

    1. Thank you so much, Angela! I hope you will try the arrowroot. As an Italian wife, my husband loved it and didn’t miss all the butter and cream.