How to Make Creamy Alfredo Sauce From Scratch

Alfredo sauce is often served over fettuccine, but it can be used with any noodles.

Alfredo sauce is a buttery, creamy topping that turns any kind of pasta into a rich, decadent meal. The sauce was developed in 1914 by an Italian man named Alfredo di Lelio in an attempt to get his wife, who was pregnant and had lost her appetite, to eat. The original recipe had only a few ingredients: fettuccine, butter and Parmesan cheese. Today, most recipes also include heavy cream for an extra creamy sauce.

Things You'll Need

• Large saucepan
• 1 cup butter
• 3/4 pint heavy cream
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese or a combination of both

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in the saucepan.

2. Whisk the heavy cream into the butter and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook until the sauce thickens to your liking.

3. Add the cheese to the butter and cream mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Serve the sauce immediately. The sauce thickens as it cools.

Tips & Warnings

• You can add more flavor to the basic sauce by adding minced shallots. Saute them in the butter before adding the cream and other ingredients.

• You can add garlic salt for additional flavor when you season the sauce.

References

• Today Food: The Original Fettuccine Alfre:
• AllRecipes.com: To Die For Fettuccine Alfredo
• Food Network; Fettuccine Alfredo; Emeril Lagasse; 2004