Last night a very fun dinner was enjoyed in my house. My eight year old son, who recently began to enjoy cooking, told me he wanted to make dinner. He picked out a recipe from a kids cookbook I had pulled out for him. He was so excited when we began to cook but it takes much patience to cook with my son as he has a lot of energy. I have never been fond of children spinning around and dancing in my kitchen, but he was certainly having fun, as he should.
When the meal was prepared and we were about to start plating, Anthony said, “I want to serve everyone at the table.” This made me know every part of the meal meant a lot to him and he wanted to go all out, so I got out the good pasta bowls and the napkin rings. Inspired by Holy Communion that morning, he asked about serving grape juice in wine glasses, so Anthony’s dinner became quite the dining experience.
The food was hysterical; it was a kid version of Fettuccine Alfredo complete with a hot dog cut to resemble an octopus on top. It was not a complicated recipe, therefore he could handle it mostly on his own and have a great sense of accomplishment in doing so. He even insisted on washing the dishes!
I explained to my son that there are many great cooks in his family and that his ancestors on his granddaddy’s side were from Austria right on the border of Italy. Today the province is actually a part of Italy, so I am certain they must have been cooking up some wonderful Fettuccine Alfredo recipes in their day.
So below is a healthy adult Fettuccine Alfredo recipe and also Anthony’s inspired recipe for you to try with the little ones! Buon appetito!
Fettucine Alfredo for Grown-ups
3/4 cup vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth
4 large cloves garlic, peeled
4 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
1 small zucchini, cut into matchsticks
2 teaspoons cornstarch, mixed with 1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, or to taste
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
-Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Combine broth and garlic cloves in a small saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the garlic cloves are soft, about 15 minutes.
-After the garlic has simmered about 10 minutes, cook fettuccine in the boiling water, stirring often, for 8 minutes. Drop in zucchini and cook until the fettuccine is just tender, about 1 minute more.
-Meanwhile, transfer the garlic and broth to a blender. Process until the mixture is smooth, about 1 minute. Return the mixture to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add cornstarch mixture; whisk it until slightly thickened, about 15 seconds. Remove from the heat and whisk in sour cream, nutmeg and pepper. Return the pot to very low heat to keep the sauce warm. (Do not boil.)
-Drain the pasta and place in a large bowl. Add the sauce and 1/2 cup Parmesan; toss to coat well. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately, passing the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan separately.
Anthony’s Octo-Dogs and Shells
4 hot dogs
1 1/2 c. uncooked small shell pasta
1 1/2 c. frozen mixed vegetables
1 c. prepared Alfredo sauce
yellow mustard in squeeze bottle
cheese-flavored fish shaped crackers
-Lay 1 hot dog on cutting surface. Starting 1 inch from one end of hot dog, slice hot dog vertically in half. Roll hot dog 1/4 turn. Starting 1 inch from same end, slice in half vertically again, making 4 segments connected at top. Slice each segment in half vertically, creating a total of 8 “legs.” Repeat with remaining hot dogs.
-Place hot dogs in medium saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat; set aside.
-Prepare pasta according to package directions, stirring in vegetables during last 3 minutes of cooking time. Drain; return to pan. Stir in Alfredo sauce. Heat over low heat until heated through. Divide pasta mixture between 4 plates.
-Drain octo-dogs. Arrange one octo-dog on top of pasta mixture on each plate. Draw faces on “heads” of octo-dogs with mustard. Sprinkle crackers over pasta.
