Date Night Dinners - One Pot Alfredo

2/06/2015 tringel 0 Comments

As were looking for a dinner to try this week, Brenden and I found this delicious sounding and looking pasta recipe. We were both in the mood for pasta and something easy so we agreed to try it. However, we were both also skeptical of the process. It looked so good on Damn Delicious, the blog we found it on, but would we be able to pull it off. I was worried the sauce would not become a sauce, and Brenden feared the fettuccine would not cook well but rather get burnt to the pot.

To my surprise, the sauce thickened up nicely and fairly quickly. Make sure not to over do it, but if you do you can just add an extra dash of milk for a quick fix. And Brenden was excited that the fettuccine cooked through perfectly. But there was still the matter of taste.



I watched as Brenden twirled his noodles in his fork. The aroma filling the room as I waited was promising. He took his first bite.

"I want to dance." Brenden stated.

"What?" I thought. I was confused.

"It's that good," he said.

I chuckled and immediately dove into my plate. Brenden hates to dance. In fact he doesn't dance. Period. So with those few words, he had made quite a statement. And it was right on point.

The dish was rich and creamy, and the fact that it was so quick and easy to make, made it taste even better. It is the perfect go-to dish for an on the go night - totally satisfying and filling without all the hassle. Restaurant Fettuccine has nothing on this. Plus there are so few ingredients, there leaves little to feel guilty about unlike the 1,000+ calorie restaurant plates.

Even better, everything is totally adaptable.

• Change up the portions: make a half portion for a solo dinner or double it for a family event. 
• Give it more depth: add cooked chicken or shrimp to add protein; add sautéed veggies for those healthy nutrients, or get fancy and add both. 
• Make it vegetarian: use vegetable stock or even water instead of chicken.

One Pot Fettuccine Alfredo
Recipe adapted from damndelicious.net, One Pot Garlic Parmesan Pasta

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup whole milk
• 2 cups chicken (or vegetable) broth
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 8 oz. uncooked fettuccine
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup italian cheese, finely grated

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. 
2. Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. 
3. Stir in chicken broth, milk, butter and fettuccine
4. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. 
5. Bring to a boil
6. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until pasta is cooked through, about 18-20 minutes.
7. Stir in Parmesan. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk as needed until desired consistency is reached. 
8. Serve immediately and enjoy.