Fettuccine Alfredo

1. Boil Water

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, using just enough water to cover the pasta by 1-2 inches. This will save you some time waiting for the water to boil and will also ensure that you have plenty of starch in the pasta water to help hold your emulsion (which is what makes restaurant pasta so good!). Add about two teaspoons of salt per quart of water, right before you're going to use it, as you don't want the water to reduce and become too salty. Once boiling, turn the heat to low and place a lid on the pot until you're ready to cook the pasta.

2. Sweat Aromatics

Melt the butter in a pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and sweat with a pinch of salt until it's softened but not brown.

3. Add Cream

Add the heavy cream to the pan and simmer. Stir occasionally until the cream reduces by about about 25%.

4. Cook Pasta

Bring the water back to a boil, toss in the pasta and cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute less than the package suggests for al dente. Reserve a cup of pasta water before draining.

5. Sauce Pasta

Add the drained pasta to the cream sauce along with a 1/4 cup of pasta water. Cook over medium heat to reduce the sauce to the correct consistency and finish cooking the pasta. The sauce should be thick enough to cling to each piece of pasta while not so thick that the noodles are clumping tightly together.

6. Finishing Ingredients

Remove your pan from the heat and add the grated cheeses, tossing and mixing until the cheese melts and the sauce is smooth. If the sauce is too thick, thin it out with a splash of pasta water.

7. Plate and Serve

Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper if needed. Plate and serve.