Fettuccine Alfredo

Last Sunday I had a craving for fettuccine alfredo, but wasn't in the mood to go out to eat. SP found a recipe and we took to the kitchen, producing this luscious plate of creamy, rich pasta.


I had tried this Giada recipe a few years ago (with the lemon) and promptly threw it out. I'm sorry if anyone reading this thinks this sounds like a good recipe, but lemon and cream just do not belong together, at least not in this kind of pasta recipe. Besides, lemon can curdle cream so I'm not sure why this seemed like a good idea. We followed the recipe exactly, only leaving out the lemon juice and zest.


It was exactly what I wanted - rich and delicious with plenty of sauce to sop up with the noodles. We made sure to use fresh, eggy fettuccine and it really made all the difference. Unfortunately it made quite a bit of pasta and since alfredo doesn't reheat very well I'd recommend halving the recipe for only two people.

Fettuccine Alfredo
Slightly Modified from Giada

18 ounces fresh fettuccine
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
12 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups grated Parmesan
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground white pepper

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Drain.

Add 2 cups of the cream to a heavy large skillet. Add the butter and cook over medium heat just until the butter melts, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Add the pasta and toss. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of cream, and Parmesan to the cream sauce in the skillet. Add the nutmeg, salt, and white pepper. Toss the pasta mixture over low heat until the sauce thickens slightly, about 1 minute.