Fettuccine Alfredo is “Christmas Fettuccine” to me, ever since I first saw the movie “The Holiday”. Just in case you don’t know it: Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz play two women who exchange houses over Christmas to escape their failed love-lives, and then of course find love where they least expect it. On Christmas Eve, halfway around the world from each other, they both cheer themselves up with a plate of Christmas Fettuccine – and why not? Fettuccine Alfredo is a rich, celebration-worthy dish with a secret: it’s one of the easiest things in the world to make. Which makes it ideal for Christmas Eve – festive and special, and on the table in 15 minutes, so you can spend more time making merry.
Not counting salt, pepper and water, Fettuccine Alfredo only has three or four ingredients. I say three or four because I guess the cream is controversial. According to the writers at Bon Appetit, real Alfredo never has cream in it. Their recipe relies on pasta water alone for the liquid. I deeply respect Bon Appetit but in this case I respectfully disagree. The combination of cream and pasta water makes the ultimate sauce – rich and creamy, thick enough to coat the noodles but not the least bit gloppy.
The ingredient we really should be focusing on is the Parmesan cheese. I’m not going to insist that you use Parmigiano Reggiano, although it is the gold standard and it does make a difference in a recipe like this with so few ingredients. In addition to its flavor, what I like about Parmigiano Reggiano is that it’s readily available in solid block form, rather than pre-ground. That’s nice for a recipe like this when you want to use a microplane to shave whisper-thin shreds of cheese over the top of the pasta as a finishing touch.
Grating a large quantity of cheese with a microplane is hard work, though, so for the sauce I take a shortcut and either use pre-ground cheese from the deli counter, or grind my own by cutting the block into chunks and processing it in the food processor. As you toss the cheese with the pasta and a bit of the reserved pasta water, make sure the cheese melts completely, leaving no detectable lumps or grains of un-melted cheese clinging to the fettuccine (yuck). Then switch to the microplane to add the final shower of grated cheese. The thin shavings will melt on contact with the warm pasta so the overall effect is silky smooth.
If you don’t have a block of cheese and you’re going to use all pre-ground Parmesan, then I recommend skipping the garnish. Sprinkling little pellets of ground cheese over the pasta at the end would mar the sublime smoothness of the dish (refer to “yuck”, above). You could add a tiny bit more cheese when making the sauce to compensate.
Oh, and one more important tip about the cheese. Make sure to wait until the pasta has absorbed the butter and cream before you add the Parmesan. If you don’t, when the Parmesan hits the hot cream it will seize up and take on a consistency that closely resembles Silly Putty. That’s only a problem if you object to pasta tangled up with rubbery strings of goo and a pot covered with a layer of cheesy cement.
The recipe calls for 8 or 9 ounces of pasta. When I really want to make this dish special, I make my own pasta and use half a recipe, which is about 8 ounces. When I don’t have the time for that I buy refrigerated fresh pasta, which typically comes in a 9-ounce package.
Making Fettuccine Alfredo ahead and what to do with leftovers:
- For the best, creamiest consistency, make this dish at the last minute – since it comes together so quickly, that shouldn’t be a problem.
- Leftovers can be revived by sprinkling them with a little hot water and reheating in the microwave. They also make a fantastic Pasta Omelet.
To see this recipe as part of a Christmas Eve menu, complete with a game plan with timing for every step, read my post for Christmas Eve 2020.
Fettuccine Alfredo
Ingredients
- 8 or 9 ounces fresh fettuccine
- Kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup (2 ounces) ground Parmesan cheese
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for garnish
- Freshly ground black pepper, optional
Directions
- Step 1 Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a small handful of kosher salt and the fettuccine. Cook 2 minutes. Before draining the fettuccine, scoop out and reserve 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain the fettuccine and set it aside.
- Step 2 Return the pot to the stove over medium heat and add the butter, swirling the pan to melt the butter without letting it brown or burn. When the butter is melted, add the cream. Bring the cream to a simmer.
- Step 3 Add the fettuccine and cook the pasta in the butter and cream, tossing with tongs, just until the cream is absorbed by the pasta, about 1 minute.
- Step 4 Remove the pot from the heat and add the ½ cup of ground Parmesan, and a splash of the reserved pasta water. Toss with the tongs until the cheese is melted. Add more pasta water as needed to create a sauce that coats the pasta thickly but isn’t gloppy or sticky. You should not see any grains of Parmesan cheese. Add kosher salt to taste.
- Step 5 Use the tongs to transfer the fettuccine to a serving bowl or individual plates or pasta bowls. Use a microplane to grate additional Parmesan cheese on top. Top with black pepper if desired.
