Christy Rost: Delectable Pasta Dish a Recipe For Romance
No matter the time of year, a bowl or plate of pasta makes me feel cozy inside.
It’s the ultimate comfort food for busy weeks, chilly days, and romantic dinners a deux.
If I want that meal to be a meatless one, I turn to one of my favorites – pasta Alfredo.
When I see pasta Alfredo on a menu, it always reminds me of romantic anniversary celebrations with my husband at an Italian restaurant in our Houston neighborhood. This elegant restaurant featured an expansive menu, but the linguine with creamy Alfredo sauce was simply the best. Add a little candlelight and a glass of wine, and it was a recipe for romance.
This simple but delectable one-pot dish is easy to make at home and requires only a few ingredients – your favorite pasta, a shallot, heavy cream, salt, pepper, parmesan cheese, and a garnish of chopped parsley.
A surprising but integral ingredient is the water in which the dry pasta is cooked. Once the pasta is al dente, which means “to the tooth,” I reserve two cups of the cooking water before draining the pasta in a colander.
Many cooks dump the water without a second thought, but the cooking water is rich with flavor and starch from the pasta, which ultimately helps to thicken the sauce.
Sauteed minced shallot, heavy cream, and a little pasta water are brought to a boil and cooked until the amount of liquid is reduced by half. As the liquid reduces, it concentrates the flavors and thickens into a silky sauce.
After seasoning the sauce with salt and pepper, the cooked pasta is transferred to the pot and gently stirred into the sauce minutes before serving.
Pasta Alfredo is divine on its own, but like risotto, it also provides a foundation for a more complex meal.
Grilled shrimp or a sauteed medley of sweet bell peppers or mushrooms may be served alongside or gently stirred into the pasta just before serving.
Big on flavor and comfort, pasta alfredo is a quick and easy dish that’s ideal for meatless meals as an entrée or side dish. Don’t forget the candlelight!
Christy Rost is a cookbook author, host of Celebrating Home cooking videos, and longtime Park Cities and Preston Hollow resident. Her ‘At Home with Christy Rost’ cooking series for Eat This TV Network airs on AmazonFire, AppleTV+, Roku, Samsung TV, and YouTube. Please visit christyrost.com for details and recipes.
