Monday's Menu

One of the things we used to eat quite frequently was those boxed noodle side dishes. They were usually in flavors like Herb Parmesan and Fettuccine Alfredo. But I'm not buying those anymore.

We do miss them though. So it was quite a find coming across this recipe for alfredo sauce. I can still make our noodle side dishes now. I just vary the type of noodle or throw in a little extra seasoning for a different side.

Or, if I want it to be a main dish, I'll grill some chicken to slice and mix it in. We've enjoyed it many times already.

It's important to try and use parmesan cheese that you grate yourself. Already grated, fresh parmesan is usually coated in an anti-caking agent that can make it difficult for your sauce to come together.

I've been grating my cheese in my handy dandy salad shooter (I have one I got for $2 at a thrift store and picked up another at a garage sale recently for about the same). Rugrat isn't even concerned about the noise of it anymore. She's heard it often enough now that it is just background noise to her. That gives me encouragement about the vacuum.

So have a try at some alfredo sauce. It's really easy and pretty darn good.



Alfredo Sauce

1 lb. whole grain pasta
2 Tablespoons butter
1 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup fresh Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta. Drain and set aside. In a large saucepan, melt butter and 2/3 cup of cream together.  Once the cream and butter start to thicken (after a couple minutes) turn the heat off. Mix in drained noodles. Turn the heat back on to medium-low and add the remaining ⅓ cup cream and all of the Parmesan cheese. Allow cheese to melt while tossing pasta in sauce to coat. Season with salt and pepper or other seasonings as desired. Serve immediately.