Growing up, the words chicken fettuccine alfredo held a special sway with Sarah and me.
Chalk it up to our Chinese upbringing that tended to be devoid of most junk foods, and an overall desire to save money on the part of our mom.
Case in point: Cheetos at the school lunch bargaining table were tantamount to gold ingots for us, and we would (often in vain) try to trade our peach yogurt for just a handful. Dark times, folks. Dark times.
Every so often, though, my mother would cave at the grocery store, and Sarah and I would immediately jump for the most coveted of grocery store junk foods: frozen dinners.
Specifically, Stouffer’s Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo. Those trays of creamy goodness were laden with sodium, fat, and carbs to the point of being a drug-like experience for our little kid brains. Pretty sure that even if I were to eat one now, it would still be one of the best things ever.
Fast forward 15 years, and we like to think that our palates have become a bit more refined. Plus, the forbidden allure of the frozen foods aisle has lost some of its draw.
Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, however, is still a special dish for us—one that we only enjoy on the rarest of occasions when we throw caution, good sense, and all carb-related concerns to the wind in the name of imbibing some creamy, cheesy, herbacious deliciousness.
Add a touch of very grown up roasted garlic for good measure, and you’ve got this version of our childhood favorite, Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo.
Do yourself a favor and make it before the New Year’s guilt kicks in, and the peer pressure to only consume raw fruit and vegetable juices becomes too much to take.
Onwards!
Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo with Roasted Garlic: Recipe Instructions
First, roast your garlic by preheating your oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees F. Take your head of garlic and peel off as much of the papery outer layers as you can. Trim 1/4 inch off the top of the garlic to expose the tops of the garlic cloves, and place on a small sheet of foil. Drizzle the garlic with olive oil, and seal it in the foil. Pop into the oven to roast for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
When your garlic has been roasted, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine according to the package instructions and drain, reserving about a cup of the pasta cooking water.
Warm the butter and cream in a large skillet over medium heat and season with salt and pepper to taste (careful with the salt––you’ll also be adding cheese, which is quite salty).
Stir in cooked pasta, shredded chicken, roasted garlic, and parmesan cheese. If you need to thin out the sauce, add a splash of the pasta cooking water.
Sprinkle with parsley and serve your chicken fettuccine alfredo hot off the stove!
Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo with Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
- 1 head garlic
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound fettuccine (450g)
- 3 tablespoons butter (45g)
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream (355 ml)
- salt and pepper
- 1 rotisserie chicken (shredded)
- 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese (150g)
- 2 tablespoons parsley (finely chopped)
Instructions
- First, roast your garlic by preheating your oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees F. Take your head of garlic and peel off as much of the papery outer layers as you can. Trim 1/4 inch off the top of the garlic to expose the tops of the garlic cloves, and place on a small sheet of foil. Drizzle the garlic with olive oil, and seal it in the foil. Pop into the oven to roast for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- When your garlic has been roasted, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine according to the package instructions and drain, reserving about a cup of the pasta cooking water.
- Warm the butter and cream in a large skillet over medium heat and season with salt and pepper to taste (careful with the salt––you’ll also be adding cheese, which is quite salty). Stir in cooked pasta, shredded chicken, roasted garlic, and parmesan cheese. If you need to thin out the sauce, add a splash of the pasta cooking water.
- Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
nutrition facts