Fettuccine alfredo
Silky, rich and made from scratch with butter, cream and real parmesan, the kind of alfredo that makes the jarred stuff taste like glue.
- 30 min total
- 20 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 4
- About $2.03 a serving
- 720 calories
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1¼ cups parmesan wedge, finely grated
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 12 oz fettuccine
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 720 calories, 22 g protein, 67 g carbs and 41 g fat, and costs about $2.03 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No parmesan wedge? Grated parmesan works.
- No fettuccine? Spaghetti works.
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No fresh parsley? Cilantro works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Fill a large pot with water, add the salt, cover and over high heat.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
While it heats, finely the parmesan and the garlic.
Grate. Grating means rubbing food across the holes of a grater to make fine shreds or flakes. It spreads cheese, garlic or ginger evenly through a dish so it melts right in.
How you’ll know: Even shreds fall off the back of the grater, and you stop while the piece is still big enough to hold.
Mince. Mincing means chopping something into the tiniest pieces you can, smaller than a grain of rice. Tiny pieces melt into the dish, so you get the flavor without biting into a chunk of garlic.
How you’ll know: Every piece is tiny and about the same size, and the pile starts to look almost like a paste.
Dolly’s tip: Grate it yourself. Pre-grated parmesan has anti-caking powder that makes the sauce gritty.Cook the fettuccine 1 minute less than the package says, stirring in the first minute so the ribbons don’t stick.
High heatTimer: 10 min
Meanwhile, the butter in a large over low heat, add the garlic, and cook 30 seconds.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Low heatTimer: 30 sec
Pour in the cream and let it bubble very gently for 3 minutes, until it slightly.
Thicken. Thickening means cooking a sauce or soup until it’s less runny, by simmering it down or adding something like cornstarch. A thicker sauce clings to food instead of pooling on the plate.
How you’ll know: It coats the back of a spoon, and a line drawn through it with your finger holds its shape.
Low heatTimer: 3 min
Scoop out 1 cup of , then the fettuccine.
Reserve pasta water. It means scooping out a cup of the starchy cooking water before you drain the pasta. A splash helps the sauce cling and turn silky, and it’s the step everyone forgets.
How you’ll know: A mug of cloudy water is sitting by the stove before the pasta goes into the colander.
Drain. Draining means pouring off liquid, like tipping pasta into a colander or spooning extra fat out of the pan. Pour hot grease into a can or jar, not the sink, where it hardens and clogs the pipes.
How you’ll know: Only a few drips are left, and the food isn’t sitting in a puddle.
Add the fettuccine to the , then the parmesan a handful at a time, with tongs until the cheese into a smooth sauce.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Low heat
Dolly’s tip: Go slowly and keep the heat low. Rushing the cheese into a hot pan makes it stringy.Loosen with splashes of until it’s glossy and flowing, then in the pepper.
Reserve pasta water. It means scooping out a cup of the starchy cooking water before you drain the pasta. A splash helps the sauce cling and turn silky, and it’s the step everyone forgets.
How you’ll know: A mug of cloudy water is sitting by the stove before the pasta goes into the colander.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Low heat
Dolly’s tip: It thickens as it sits, so leave it a little looser than you think.Serve right away with parsley on top.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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