I had a special guest cooking with me this week – my husband, Daniel! He’s a great cook, but just doesn’t cook that often. He usually makes dinner for the kids and me on Valentine’s Day and sometimes for our anniversary. He first made this dish for me when we were dating (probably helped seal the deal), and then a couple of times since. He made it for Valentine’s Day this year and I decided it would be a great dish to share on the blog! This is basically an Alfredo recipe, but he adds chopped hazelnuts and the result is fantastic! It adds some texture and crunch to an already delicious pasta dish. You should definitely try this one!
Here are the ingredients
2 T butter
1 c heavy cream
1 c freshly grated parmesan
1/4 t nutmeg
1/2 c hazelnuts Salt and Pepper to taste.
Pasta of your choice. Today we used Fettuccine because it just seemed right for an Alfredo sauce. But you can totally use any kind of pasta you want.
It’s important to cook your pasta first, drain and set aside. The reason is that this sauce only takes a couple of minutes to make and you’re going to toss your cooked pasta in it and then serve immediately. Today we didn’t quite time it right and the pasta took several minutes more to cook, so the sauce reduced and thickened up quite a bit. If that does happen, it is not the end of the world. You can just add a splash or two of reduced sodium chicken broth to thin it out a bit. Also, cook the pasta a minute or two less than the box says because it’s going to cook a little more when you add it into the sauce and you don’t want it overcooked.
Chop the hazelnuts into small pieces. I used my manual food processor to chop. I really, really love this little chopper. I have a nice food processor that I use for bigger jobs, but when it’s a small amount of something that I’m needing to chop, this is my go to tool. It’s so easy to use and easy to clean. Check it out here!
Here’s my guest chopping the hazelnuts and showing me how to make this delicious sauce!
You need to get the hazelnuts to this consistency.
Melt your butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
As soon as the butter is melted, add the cream and let it simmer for a minute or two.
Now add the cheese, hazelnuts and nutmeg, stir and let simmer for another minute or so.
Turn off the heat and add the pasta right to the skillet and toss it well with the sauce. Taste it and see if you need more salt or pepper and adjust accordingly.
For Valentine’s Day this year, Daniel served this pasta with a salad and some chicken cutlets that he breaded and cooked in white wine and butter. It was a perfect combination.
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