I hope you are all having a wonderful week! At the moment, I am in the midst of my dead week, which is the STUDY week before finals. *crying a river* Unfortunately, this blessed dead week makes me feel like I have all the time in the world (AKA I don't do any productive studying). Fortunately, I decided to use my time to write a much overdue blog post about my delicious, creamy low-fat Alfredo pasta! :) Yum yum yummers~!
Side Educational Blurb: Typically, I would be an advocate for full fat like whole milk because it naturally comes out the cow that way, but because dish is already heavy in fats, I feel like it's better to be thrifty with the fat here. Although, in general, you need fat to help absorb nutrients, provide energy, protect organs, keep your hair & skin beautiful, and much more! :) So, make sure you're getting lots of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats in your diet! My favorite sources of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are from avocados and nuts! I can eat these for days! Yum! ^___^ Saturated fat is okay too, but in limited amounts b/c it raises bad cholesterol, increasing your risk of cardiovascular diseases && DEFINITELY DO NOT CONSUME TRANS FAT b/c all it does is wreck havoc in your body. Trans fat is a manmade product created by hydrogenating vegetable oils so that vegetable oils can remain solid at room temperature. The problem with trans fat is that it raises bad cholesterol (LDL) while lowering good cholesterol (HDL). Eating trans fats can increase your chances of getting cardiovascular disease and stroke. You can recognize saturated fats and trans fats because they are usually solids at room temperature.
I feel like my low-fat Alfredo recipe is a great alternative for those trying to keep up a healthy lifestyle while still being able to indulge in one of their favorite Italian dishes without losing flavor! Another pro is that this easy dish only takes 25 minutes to make! :)
Ma Low-Fat Alfredo Pasta
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
*12 oz whole wheat pasta of choice
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp grated lemon zest
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp whole wheat flour
**1 cup low-fat (2%) milk
Salt (I used about 1/2 tsp.)
2 tbsp cream cheese
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 tbsp dried oregano, parsley, or italian seasoning OR 3 tbsp fresh herbs
Pepper
*Side note: I used plain old enriched spaghetti b/c I didn't have whole wheat fettuccine on hand.
**Side note: I also tried using almond milk, but that did not go well. SO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE COW'S MILK!!! Or at least a milk that doesn't have a strong distinct flavor.
Directions:
***Prepare pasta & sauce simultaneously for maximum efficiency. :)***
Pasta:
1.) Prepare pasta as directed on box or fresh pasta as you normally would.
2.) Reserve 1 cup cooking water.
Sauce:
1.) Melt butter in large nonstick pan (big enough to add in the pasta later) over medium heat.
2.) Add lemon zest and garlic. Cook until garlic browns, about 1 minute.
3.) Add flour while stirring with wooden spoon, about 1 minute.
*4.) Whisk in milk (or vigorously stir in milk with wooden spoon...I didn't have a whisk on hand. T_T;), until milk thickens, about 4 minutes.
Before milk has thickened.
5.) Stir in cream cheese, parmesan cheese, and herbs. When cheese has melted and ingredients are evenly mixed, turn off heat.
*Side note: You can test to see if your sauce is at the perfect consistency by running a finger down the back of the wooden spoon. If the sauce does not try to cover up your finger mark, your sauce is good to go! :)
Pasta & Sauce:
1.) Add pasta & 1/2 cup cooking water into the sauce pan.
2.) Gently toss to combine. Add more cooking water to loosen, if needed.
3.) Add salt & pepper to taste, if needed.
Serve & Enjoy! <3
Because Fettuccine Alfredo is traditionally made with lots of heavy cream, butter, and cheese, it can easily add up to 1000+ calories and over 60 g of fat! Based on a 2000 calorie diet, that's almost half your calorie intake and almost all your daily fat intake! With this recipe, you can cut the calories down by half and the fat down to 13 g. What's better is that you still get the full creamy and cheesy taste with every bite! :)I had a fun time trying to this recipe out and I hope you enjoy it! :) Let me know what you think in the comments below! Tata for now~! <3 ^______^
Nutrition Info (per serving): Calories 456.6 Total Fat 13.3 g Saturated Fat 7.3 g Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3 g Monounsaturated Fat 3.2 g Cholesterol 35.3 mg Sodium 681.3 mg Potassium 137.2 mg Total Carbohydrate 64.7 g Dietary Fiber 7.8 g Sugars 4.4 g Protein 21.0 g Vitamin A 8.3% Vitamin C 1.8% Calcium 37.1%
Calorie counter used: http://www.sparkpeople.com/calorie-counter.asp
References:
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/FatsAndOils/Fats101/Trans-Fats_UCM_301120_Article.jsp
Recipe adapted from:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/low-cal-fettuccine-alfredo-recipe.html
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