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Spaghetti alfredo in white bowl topped with parmesan cheese and parsley.

Spaghetti with Alfredo Sauce


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5 from 1 review

Description

This Spaghetti with Alfredo Sauce is creamy, decadent and comes together in 15 minutes. It's the ultimate comfort food & a great weeknight meal. You won't believe how easy this recipe really is, with minimal ingredients needed!


Ingredients

Scale
  • 10 ounces of dry spaghetti pasta (a little over half of a 1 lb package)
  • 4 tablespoons salted butter
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (grated fine)
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 cup of reserved pasta water
  • Optional: 1 teaspoon of minced parsley for serving

Instructions

  1. In a large pot, boil water for pasta. Once it's boiling, add the spaghetti. Optional: add about 1 teaspoon of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of salt to the water to prevent sticking. The pasta needs to cook for 8 to 10 minutes until al dente. While it is cooking, make the Alfredo sauce.
  2. When the pasta is cooking, add butter into a large skillet over medium low heat. Once it melts, toss in the garlic and toast for about 60 seconds.
  3. Reduce the heat to low. Pour in heavy cream. Stir every minute or so and allow it to heat up without boiling. Cook for about 5-7 minutes. Note: The cream and butter will stay separated until the cheese is added.
  4. Once the pasta is cooked al dente, ladle out about 1 cup of pasta water into a bowl and set aside. Strain the pasta into a colander.
  5. Add the parmesan cheese and black pepper to the Alfredo sauce and stir with a wooden spoon until melted and thickened.
  6. Add pasta into the sauce with tongs and toss to combine. Spoon in pasta water a little at a time, until you create the desired consistency (you may not need any, but it's there if needed)
  7. Top with additional parmesan cheese, black pepper, and/or minced parsley. Serve and Enjoy!

Notes

This alfredo sauce recipe will not cover a full 16 ounce package of spaghetti. You will need to double the recipe if cooking that much pasta.

Do NOT strain all the pasta water. It is important to save one cup full of pasta water. You might not use any if the pasta has a lot of water in it, or you may use all of it if it takes people a bit to get to the dinner table. It's a great option to have on hand!

After adding the cheese, you will know it's thick enough when you can see the bottom of the pan when stirring (see the 2nd photo in step 5 above).

Make sure to read the spaghetti package and cook until al dente or just a minute or two past al dente. You don't want to overcook the pasta.

  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Category: dinner
  • Method: stovetop
  • Cuisine: italian