Light(er) Fettuccine Alfredo and a Long Overdue Update

I’m baaaack! Miss me? I started writing a post 2 months ago, and never got around to posting it. I’ll give you the Coles notes version of how I was feeling at the time:

I was tired. I was not motivated to cook. Part of it was circumstantial, part of it was laziness, and the other part of it was me being almost at the breaking point with…the TERRIBLE TWOS. Oh my goodness, they are real. So real that you will wonder (possibly out loud) whatever possessed you to want to have offspring.

We fluctuated between temper tantrums and feeling like we are talking to a brick wall. “Don’t touch that. DON’T touch that. Don’t TOUCH that. DON’T TOUCH that. DON’T TOUCH THAT!” The kid was getting timeouts like they were going out of style.

You constantly question yourself. Is this normal? Are we doing something wrong? How can a kid seriously earn at least 5 timeouts a day? Everything ended in a meltdown of some type – either tears, yelling “no”, or full blown temper tantrums. Whether it’s that we didn’t understand him when he asked us for something, or we gave him penne instead of “pasketti”, or we wouldn’t let him grate the Parmesan cheese himself, or write with the permanent marker, or use the scissors, or run across the street. Seriously…we are some mean parents.

Thankfully, that phase seems to have passed. For now.

Deep breath.

You would think we would learn but instead, we have this brilliant idea: “Let’s do this again!”

That’s right, baby #2 is on the way, due at the end of February 2014. I’m feeling great…now. Aside from the terrible twos, that was the other major reason I haven’t been posting. Eating was a chore for me. Nothing appealed to me except for cornflakes, fruit and cucumber sandwiches, and I really didn’t think you needed a “how to” on making a cucumber sandwich.

Thankfully all the food aversions have passed, and I’ve been busy, busy in the kitchen. Over the last couple of months, I have gone on a slightly crazy canning spree. I made a 6x batch of tomato salsa.

Pickled green beans.

Pickled asparagus.

Corn salsa.

And pickled jalapeños.

I also made a batch of raspberry jam that set so beautifully but tastes like burnt sugar because of a layer that burned on the bottom of the pot. I want to cry having to throw out all that work.

Last weekend I taught my first cooking class on homemade bread. I had so much fun, and it completely reinvigorated me to get back into this blog and sharing recipes with you.

And now, without further ado, I have a new recipe for you! My Mom used to make this as a “treat” for us growing up. I always assumed it was a super special, super complicated and time consuming recipe. Until I made it the first time and realized two things: 1) This is so quick and easy to make and 2) It is a light(er) version of the classic Fettuccine Alfredo. Moms…they always have so many tricks up their sleeves.

Instead of using heavy cream, this recipe calls for making a roux with butter and flour, then adding a lighter milk, and finally thickening up with some fresh grated Parmesan and light cream cheese. It is officially a favorite in our household too and I make this on an almost weekly basis. Hubby and I always top ours with shrimp, clams or chicken, leaving it plain for our picky little eater. With this recipe, anything goes!

Print Recipe

Light(er) Fettuccine Alfredo

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 4 servings

Author: The Gourmet Housewife

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 cup skim or 1% milk
• 2 tbsp light cream cheese cubed and softened
• 1 1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan
• 375 g fettuccine noodles
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley or 1 tsp dried
• pepper to taste

Instructions

• Cook fettuccine according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
• Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
• Stir in flour. Gradually whisk in milk to make a sauce. Whisk in cream cheese and Parmesan and stir until smooth.
• Season with parsley and pepper. Pour over noodles and serve warm.