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February 23, 2010 16 Comments

Taste and Believe… Mushroom & Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo (REDUCED FAT)

You must be thinking, “NO WAY”?  Oh.. YES WAY!  You have to taste this recipe to believe it.  Fettuccine Alfredo is one of those classic Italian dishes we all love, but are too darn scared to order because of the fat content, am I right, or am I right?  I can honestly say the last time I ordered this dish was probably back in 2004… I kid you not!  It was at Marinella Restaurant, a romantic and cozy little Italian restaurant in the West Village, New York City, where else?  This dish was absolute perfection (the nyc version), the mushrooms cooked in a cream sauce mixed in with Chicken and Fettuccine… I’m salivating. 

My objective was to make something similar without compromising taste and texture too much, and cutting down all that fat and calories. 

How did I do it? 

1. Most recipes of Fettuccine Alfredo consist of 8 tablespoons of butter (that’s 1 stick), my version uses 2 tablespoons.  Hey, I can’t cut out all the fat.

2. Most recipes of Fettuccine Alfredo use cream, mine uses 1% milk and I added cornstarch, this will help thicken the sauce to achieve the right texture.

3. I didn’t mess with the cheese, I used about 1.5 cups of Parmesan Cheese… this is a rich dish after all, however cheese provides a lot of nutritional benefit, so indulge a little.

That’s it!  So simple.

My Tasters:
I have been meaning to make this dish for a while and I decided to make it on a Sunday afternoon.  Luckily my sister (Deepa) and my oldest niece (Salena – btw… terrific swimmer), were in the area, so they decided to stop by.  It worked out perfect.  Salena decided to help herself to a second serving, she’s 14, I believe that alone speaks for how good my dish really is… you know how kids/teenagers these days are so darn picky about food and eating their veggies!  My sister tried this dish and raved about how good it was, she is the best cook I have ever known, so that should count for something, right?

Oh, and my husband didn’t like this dish… just being honest, he doesn’t care for alfredo sauce, but if I love it, it’s a keeper!  🙂

Taste it and believe it!

NUTRTION: Milk and Cheese are an excellent source of Calcium and Protein.  Mushrooms are a very good source of Vitamin B6 and Protein.  Finally, broccoli adds tons of nutrition value… Vitamin A, C, and K; Fiber and Folic Acid.


INGREDIENTS:

  • Barilla Fettuccine – 1 box (unfortunately they don’t make Whole Grain)
  • Crushed Red Pepper Flakes – 1 tsp (optional)
  • Garlic – 2 cloves (chopped)
  • Broccoli – 1 head (cut into florets and steamed)
  • Mushrooms – 8 oz. box (sliced)
  • Butter – 2 tbsp
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 1 tbsp (for mushrooms) + 1 tsp (for water)
  • Milk 1% – 3 cups (2 cups initially; 1 cup later with cornstarch)
  • Cornstarch – 2 tbsp
  • Parmesan Cheese – 1.5 cups (grated)
  • Black Pepper – 1/2 to 3/4 tsp
  • salt to taste
  • Italian Parsley – 1 handful (chopped)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Heat a pot of water, while it comes to a boil, continue to step two.

2. Here is what you will need to cut up.  Chop the garlic.  Cut the broccoli into florets.  Clean and slice the mushrooms.

3. Take a pot, heat on dial #4, add 1 tbsp oil. 

4. Once heated, add the Crushed Red Pepper (I forgot), garlic and mushrooms.

5. Cook for a few minutes, or until the mushroom is slightly brown and softens.  Keep stirring to prevent the garlic from sticking.

6. Now add salt.

7. This will cook another 5 minutes, this is what you should have.  Keep stirring.

8. Set aside, because you will need the pot again.

9. Once the water comes to a boil… add salt and 1 tsp of Olive Oil.  Add fettuccine.

10. Add broccoli to a colander, place the colander above the pasta water, this will steam the broccoli. 

11. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, or until Al Dente.

12. Back to the same Mushroom Pot, heat on dial #3, add the butter.  Make sure it doesn’t burn.

13. Once melted, add 2 cups of milk.  Increase heat to dial #5.  Keep stirring.

14. Add salt and black pepper.

15. Now in a separate bowl, add 1 cup of milk and 2 tbsp of cornstarch.  Mix.  This will help thicken the sauce.

16. Add this to the butter & milk mixture.  Keep stirring occassionally.

17. Grate 1.5 cups of parmesan cheese.

18. Add the cheese and stir some more.

19. Once the sauce thickens, this is what you should have.  Notice bubbles forming around the corners and the whisk should be coated with sauce.  Stir occassionally.  Lower the heat to dial #2.

20. Check on the fettuccine and broccoli.  Set aside the broccoli.  Drain the fettuccine.

21. Now add the broccoli and mushroom to the sauce.  Check for salt!!!

22. See how the veggies are nicely coated.

23. Now chop the Italian Parsley. 

24. Add this to the sauce.

25. Add the fettuccine to the sauce.  Toss.

26. Serve after 15 minutes, this will allow the sauce to thicken, the pasta will absorb the sauce, everything will be well coated.  What do you think?

Previous Post: « Eggless Mocha Chocolate Cake (REDUCED FAT & 246 Calories)
Next Post: Yet another version of… Aloo Palak (Potatoes cooked with chunky Spinach) »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Carolyn Jung says

    February 24, 2010 at 5:10 PM

    Ah, cornstarch is the secret ingredient! I was wondering how you got the sauce so thick and creamy. Love how you lightened this typically super fattening dish.

    Reply
  2. honeywhatscooking says

    February 24, 2010 at 8:21 PM

    Hi Carolyn..
    Thanks!! Yes, cornstarch is the secret ingredient. I'm sure if you combined that with 2% milk, it would be even more delicious. It worked out really well with 1%. Enjoy!!!
    -ngs

    Reply
  3. Anonymous says

    February 25, 2010 at 6:11 AM

    Yum! I love the pictures for every step 🙂

    Reply
  4. rhea says

    February 26, 2010 at 2:29 AM

    This was great didn't have Parmesan on hand so I used monterey jack instead it was still amazing!
    Great Recipe!!! 🙂

    Reply
  5. jasmin says

    February 26, 2010 at 2:52 AM

    this was delicious! excellent recipe!

    Reply
  6. honeywhatscooking says

    February 26, 2010 at 6:22 AM

    Thank you all.

    Reply
  7. Salena says

    March 1, 2010 at 12:52 AM

    I loved this. I had it for lunch the next day too!!! Can't get enough of it! 🙂

    Reply
  8. ngs says

    March 1, 2010 at 3:01 AM

    thank you, salena!

    Reply
  9. Nadia says

    March 10, 2010 at 11:13 AM

    made it for lunch today and turned out awesome, thanks dear, new visitor to ur site and it looks really good 🙂

    Reply
  10. jhiane says

    May 20, 2010 at 11:28 PM

    This looks amazing. I love alfredo fettucini. This looks like such a great healthier version

    Jhiane

    Reply
  11. Brad says

    October 5, 2011 at 12:15 AM

    This was good although unless you like yours spicy I would either omit or reduce the 1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes. My nose was running by the time I finished my plate!

    Reply
  12. bodyislife says

    May 19, 2012 at 10:53 PM

    I made this tonight for my family (as my pre-race meal for a marathon tomorrow!). I used skim milk and I thought it was delicious. I put the mushrooms to the side, then I mixed everything together, pulled out some with the broccoli for my son, then threw in the mushrooms and topped me and my husbands with the red peppers.

    This was a great recipe. I give it two thumbs up!

    Reply
  13. honeywhatscooking says

    May 21, 2012 at 3:15 AM

    @bodyislife – Thank you so much! You made my day. So glad to hear it worked out with skim milk – yay! Red Peppers is a great idea as well. 🙂

    Reply
  14. Aurela says

    June 6, 2012 at 11:50 PM

    Was looking for a recipe for alfredo with mushroom and brocolli..and came upn your site…love the recipe…will definitely try it…:):)
    Thanks soo much!

    Reply
  15. Lisa says

    August 13, 2012 at 2:52 AM

    Hi, I found this recipe through Pinterest and tried it last night. My husband doesn't consider anything a meal without meat, so I added chicken. I was short a little parmesan cheese, but I added it at the end to the plate, and it turned out delicious! We both had second helpings. Thank you for sharing this recipe, I've added another dish to my monthly menu! 🙂

    Reply
  16. honeywhatscooking says

    August 15, 2012 at 3:39 AM

    @Lisa – you are welcome. So glad to hear that he enjoyed this meal. Chicken would be a very nice touch, I agree.

    Reply

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