Jerry Jay's Classic Alfredo

My dad deserves credit for my love of food and my desire to be creative in the kitchen, and not simply because he made me try whatever was on my plate or because he solicited my help with dinner. If my dad got to eat and enjoy something at a restaurant when dining for business, he would often try to create an at-home version for our family to try as well. This brought a lot of excitement to weekend meals when we got to try things such as veal with volcano potatoes, shrimp scampi, or my favorite, fettuccine alfredo.

I was 8 or 9 when my dad introduced me to alfredo sauce. For a girl who thought spaghetti and meatballs was the definition of Italian food, the idea of a white sauce and green noodles was pretty outlandish. But I was game to try it (especially because it was my job to stir, stir, stir and keep the sauce from scalding in the pan), and it was glorious.

Here's what you need to recreate my first foodie experience:

1/2 package plain fettuccine pasta

1/2 package spinach fettuccine pasta

2/3 cup butter

1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

2-3 tbsps chopped fresh parsley (flatleaf or Italian)

Cook fettuccine according to package directions and drain. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Gradually stir in parmesan, then cream until well-blended. Continue heating sauce, stirring constantly (sauce should be on the verge of boiling, without ever actually boiling; if it starts to cross the line, remove from the burner until it settles back down, then reintroduce the heat). Remove saucepan from heat, and stir in parsley. Toss with fettuccine and serve.

Expect about 6 servings if you're using this recipe as a co-main dish. It goes great with hearty steaks from the grill, shrimp, or Italian grilled chicken (as pictured here).