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Lightened Up Fettuccine Alfredo

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I came across this recipe a few years ago and tried it then, and loved it.  The big problem is that Drew didn't love it, but that's likely due to the fact that he doesn't love most pasta dishes.  He does love lasagna, but the rest he tolerates.  So it's for that reason that I rarely make pastas, but this past week I had some cream cheese and a few evenings alone and decided to make this alfredo sauce that remained such a nice memory. 

It really didn't disappoint this time, so I decided to share it with you.  If you make it, I hope you do enjoy it!  It's tasty, easy, and easy on the wallet.  It's also a great recipe for additions, such as chicken and broccoli.  I simply pan grilled a chicken breast and steamed some frozen broccoli to add in. 



MY ONE SUGGESTION is that you mix your flour and a little broth in a separate bowl to form a slurry or paste rather than dumping in the flour into the pan- it'll just lump up that way. 

Fettuccine "Alfredo"
serves 4

1/2 lb. fettuccine, uncooked
1-1/4 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
4 tsp. flour
1/3 cup cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese
3 Tbsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. pepper
 
COOK pasta as directed on package, omitting salt.
MEANWHILE, mix broth and flour (SEE MY ONE SUGGESTION) in medium saucepan with whisk until well blended. Add reduced-fat cream cheese, 2 Tbsp. Parmesan, nutmeg and pepper; cook 2 min. or until mixture comes to boil and thickens, stirring constantly.
DRAIN pasta; return to pan. Add sauce; toss to coat.*** Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan.   
 
***If adding in things like cooked chicken or steamed broccoli, add now. 
 
Notes
  • Aside from the flour suggestion, I also would like you to know that I made individual servings of pasta, and therefore only used a portion of the sauce at a time.  It stores pretty well in the fridge a few days.

SK's Broccoli Slaw

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Do you ever crave foods that you normally don't eat?  A couple weeks ago I really, really wanted some broccoli.  I like broccoli fine, but don't usually seek it out.  So, with Aldi's wonderfully low prices on produce, I bought some broccoli and went to work making this slaw dish.  It's not only on smittenkitchen.com, it's also in her cookbook

This is an easy dish that is a great make-ahead, and I ate it at least 2-3 days for my entire lunch.  It stays with you a little while.  I like that.  So, I recommend this recipe.  See notes for suggested changes/ a warning.



Broccoli Slaw
from Deb at smittenkitchen.com 

Makes about six cups of slaw
2 heads of broccoli
1/2 cup thinly sliced almonds, toasted
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup buttermilk, well-shaken
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallot (or, you could just use a little extra red onion to simplify it)

Trim broccoli and cut it into large chunks. From here, you can either feed it through your food processor’s slicing blade, use a mandoline to cut it into thin slices, or simply had chop it into smaller pieces. I used the stem and the flowerets, but if you have a broccoli stem aversion you can just use the tops.

Toss the sliced broccoli with the almonds, cranberries and red onion in a large bowl. Meanwhile, whisk the dressing ingredients in a smaller one, with a good pinch of salt and black pepper. Pour the dressing over the broccoli (if you’ve skipped the stems, you might not want it all; I otherwise found this to be the perfect amount) and toss it well. Season well with salt and pepper to taste.

Should keep up to a week in the fridge.

Notes
  • My warning- I made this dish in February, which means that fresh onions are not happening right now.  Onions are "hotter" or stronger in winter, so the onion I used was kicking.  You can avoid this by doing one of the following:
    • Use shallots for the whole thing- they have a milder flavor
    • After chopping your onion, place in a strainer and rinse and allow to drain for a few minutes