Fettuccine Alfredo

Oh, alfredo. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

Fettuccine Alfredo and I go way back. We're like best friends...we've been through so much together and I always know it's got my back. (Also, I know it's adding pounds to my backside, so that's an ongoing issue.)

The first meal I ever made for Brian was fettuccine alfredo. It's his favorite meal, so I knew I had a good chance of impressing him. I had the water boiling for the pasta, had my sauce going, Brian comes over and then disaster struck. I had bought two packages of fresh fettuccine because Giada said that the sauce sticks better to fresh pasta. When I went to open the packages, the pasta was molded. EWW. Poor Brian had to rush to the grocery store and buy more pasta for me because I had a sauce to tend to. Thankfully the closest grocery store still carried fresh fettuccine back then because now they do not.

It's still one of our favorite dishes, as it always will be, and the last time I made it, this happened. It's an incident that still makes me shudder.

Also, it's one of lists on my Bucket List o' Recipes. It's a very yummy recipe (it's alfredo sauce, of course it's yummy) and it's actually a "light" recipe. As light as alfredo can be at least. :)

Fettuccine Alfredo
Source: Cooks Illustrated Magazine, Spring 2008, Page 35

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup half-and-half
1 garlic clove, peeled and lightly crushed
Table salt and ground black pepper
Pinch ground nutmeg
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 (9-ounce) package fresh fettuccine

Directions:
Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in a large pot. Cook pasta according to package directions, 2 to 3 minutes. Reserve one cup pasta water, then drain.

Heat butter over medium heat in large saucepan until foaming. Whisk in flour until mixture is smooth and golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, half-and-half, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Discard garlic, stir in Parmesan and remove sauce from heat.

Once pasta is cooked, return sauce to low heat, add 1/3 cup pasta water and cooked pasta and toss until evenly coated. Cook until sauce has thickened slightly, about 1 minute. Add more pasta water as needed to thin sauce to proper consistency; adjust seasonings. Serve immediately.

Printable version

Recipes to Conquer

While I was at home sick last week, I did a lot of recipe searching for things to make when I felt better. I found this article and thought that I would take its advice and work through these recipes. It's titled "15 Recipes to Make Before You Die" which is a tad morbid, but a good premise. A bucket list, if you will.

The list consists of:

1) Yeast Bread
2) Beef Tenderloin Steaks
3) Cream Pie
4) Creme Brulee - Check
5) Fudge - I guess I can't count my cheater fudge :)
6) Cream Puffs
7) Crown Roast
8) Fried Chicken
9) Roux
10) Pasta and Cream Sauce - Check
11) Roasted Turkey and Gravy
12) Chocolate Pudding
13) Layer Cake
14) Souffle
15) Chicken Stock

My goal is to do at least two of these recipes a month. Since I already have a couple marked off, I'm left with 13 recipes to conquer. I'll come back and link up the recipes as I go, so that they're all in a concise list.

Pumpkin Creme Brulee

So Jade and I are at it again. You may remember when we both made sugar cookies. This time we're trying creme brulee.

Recently, we've had a nice run of really, really cool temperatures. It's like an early glimpse of fall, which is my favorite season. For it to be cooler than 80 degrees in August in Arkansas, that's saying something. So with the spurt of cooler temperatures, I'm ready for all things fall. Razorback football games, Thanksgiving, and especially things with pumpkin in it.

When I saw this recipe for Emeril's Pumpkin Creme Brulee, I had to have it. Now. Problem is, most of my stores don't carry pumpkin or if they do, it's in giant cans. Never fear. I've put the remaining pumpkin mixture into small ziploc bags and stuck them in the freezer so that I can have pumpkin whenever I want!

Pumpkin Creme Brulee
Source: Emeril Lagasse

2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar, plus 4 teaspoons
8 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 cup mashed cooked pumpkin
Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Arrange 8 (1/2-cup) ramekins or custard cups in a large metal baking pan.

In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Bring to a bare simmer over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until frothy and lemon-colored. Slowly add 3/4 cup of the hot cream mixture, whisking constantly. Add the egg mixture to the remaining hot cream, and whisk. Add the vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin, and whisk until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl. Divide among the prepared custard cups.

Add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the cups. Bake until the custards are just set in the center but not stiff, 45 minutes to 55 minutes. Remove from the oven and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 3 hours or overnight.

Sprinkle each custard with 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining sugar. Using a kitchen torch, caramelize the sugar. (Alternately, preheat the broiler, and broil until the sugar melts and caramelizes, watching closely to avoid burning and rotating the cups, about 1 to 2 minutes.) Place on small dessert plates and serve.

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I really enjoyed making the creme brulee. It was a lot easier to make than I thought it would be. Plus it was a really easy recipe to half since I can't be trusted with 8 little creme brulees running around.

Be sure to check out Jade at The Mess Pot to see her creme brulee!