So Bad, But Oh, So Good

Recipe: Alfredo Sauce
Source: The Old Farmer's Almanac: Everyday Recipes
Time: 10 minutes
Ease: 1
Taste: 5
Leftover Value: 5, does not freeze well
Down the Drain or Keep in the Strainer: Keep it in the Strainer

Alright.  We all know that heavy cream is the devil, and butter is his close, faithful subject.  We also know that sin in sweet for a short time, and then you wake up one morning with your thighs twice their normal size and when you stand up your feet disappear.

If you can forget all that, please enter the world of Alfredo sauce.

The good news is that by making this recipe you avoid all the preservatives of buying Alfredo sauce in a jar and you shave off probably half the fat you would have had if you ordered it at a restaurant.

The bad news is that it involves heavy cream, and if you've been paying attention so far heavy cream = devil.

While this is not the absolute best Alfredo sauce I've ever had, it is workable all things considered.  Up until this recipe, making homemade Alfredo sauce involved a Kraft recipe where cream cheese was the main component.

So again, all things considered, this is a pretty good recipe.

The only issues I had were:
1. It does not freeze well.
2. Even though I was generous with the amount of garlic and seasonings I put in it, it could have still used more.

Here's what you'll need:
+1/2 stick butter
+1 cup heavy cream
+1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan
+minced garlic
+salt
+pepper
+nutmeg
+parsley

This sauce literally takes less than ten minutes to make.  Make sure to boil the water for the fettuccine well beforehand.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat.

I love melting butter.  It is one of my top ten reasons for getting up each morning.

After the butter is completely melted, stir in the cream.  Simmer for five minutes.

While the butter and cream simmer, grab a hunk of Parmesan cheese and grate a cup and a half.

Smile to yourself because you've had that Parmesan cheese sitting in your fridge lonely for a little over a month.  For a short time there you had been worried that it would never fulfill its lifelong destiny of becoming Alfredo sauce.

Perhaps I'm the only one with such an experience?

I hope not.

Add the cheese to the butter and cream.

Toss in some minced garlic.

Sprinkle in a little nutmeg.

If you want to get fancy, throw some broccoli or peas into the boiling water with the fettuccine.  Drain, then return back to the pot.

Give the Alfredo sauce a little whisk.

Realize that you forgot to add some parsley.  Sprinkle it in (and take a picture focusing on your pretty bracelet rather than the parsley).

Pour the sauce over the noodles and stir.

Convince yourself that this was so much healthier than buying a jar of Ragu Alfredo Sauce, which in the end, it really, truly, is.

It's all about eating with a clear conscience.