Hi again, and sorry for the deklay! My sweet hubby took over the computer playing his World of Warcraft game...UGH! But anyway, when I was here before, I didn't read ALL the posts, but I just did now, and I see the Recipe Bazaar recipe is VERY much like mine, but I'll post mine anyway. :hmmm: I use 1 1/2 lbs of fettuccinne for these amounts, but of course you can adjust. I find that once the sauce is stired into the pasta, it really doesn't reheat very well. My advice is to make just what you need.
1 1/2 pkges of "good" cream cheese, sliced into chunks (don't waste your money on generic, it just turns into an oily glob)
1-3 cloves of fresh garlic minced (amt. depends on your own taste, but don't use powder for this recipe)
Olive Oil (enough to coat bottom of a 2qt. sauce pan
Butter -2 tbsp, separated
Dried Parsley- about 2 heaping tbsp
About 1/2 tsp sugar....yes, sugar
:sly:
Dash of Red Pepper Flakes
About a cup of Parmesan
S&P to taste- i don't add salt because I find the cheese gives it more than enough flavor. i do use the pepper, and if i have it, i use white instead of black
A couple of "heavy handed" sprinlkes of nutmeg
Some milk for thinning
In the bottom of of pot, pour enough olive oil to coat, and make about 1/4 inch deep. Put half the butter also, and heat on low till butter "just" melts. Then add your garlic, and saute till soft, being VERY careful not to brown. Browning ruins any delicate recipe like alfredo.
Next, turn the heat up to a slightly high medium, and add your cream cheese. The cream cheese should be at room temp, or softened in the microwave. Now stir constantly till you get it smoothed out. You can use a small whisk or wooden spoon. Once the cream cheese gets to a hot temp, and has completely melted, you need to add the S&P, red pepper, and sugar.
Now keep stirring, and add enough milk to thin it, but don't go TOO thin. Next take the parsley, and instead of just sprinkling it in, take it out using your fingers, and "roll" the flakes between your 1st 2 fingers of both hands to "release" the flavors and oils. (you should do this with all your dried herbs when cooking your sauce too)
Now after making sure that the mixture is at a good heat (not too low at 1st)... you want it to be able to "cook" a little more. THEN it's time to turn it down to low, and let it go for about 10 minutes. It should "swell" during that time. But remember to stir and thin too.
When the 10 minutes is up, remove from stove, stir in the cheese, and the optional nutmeg. Put the other tbsp of butter on top to melt, but do not stir it anymore. Just let it "rest" for another 5-7 minutes before pouring on top of the pasta.
PS- sometimes i like to add a little basil too.
Sorry for the LONG way of writing it. But this is the way it was ALWAYS made in my family, and I had to "walk" my way thru it....LOL! I hope it's easy enough to understand.
Theresa :chef: :stir: