So, this isn’t really alfredo, it’s more of a (not) alfredo recipe… I’ve made too many alterations for it to truly be alfredo, but it’s still creamy and delicious!
I mean, I love alfredo with all of its buttery, creamy, parmesan-y goodness, but I also know that I can’t afford to eat a 2,000 calorie meal. So, I made a few switches to lighten it up a smidge and added some broccoli florets to get in some green. If you like to live dangerously, go all out and use cream in place of the milk.
This pasta comes together super quick and uses staple ingredients so it’s a nice standby for those nights that you just really don’t feel like cooking. If you want to up the protein, you can quickly grill up some chicken breast on a countertop grill, slice it up, and then serve it on top. This is a super versatile recipe!
Oh, also, this recipe is super easy to cut in half… I just wanted to use the entire package of pasta and broccoli so I made a large batch.
Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo
Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo
Servings 8Ingredients
- 16 oz. dry fettuccine ($1.63)
- 16 oz. frozen broccoli florets ($1.29)
- 1 clove garlic ($0.08)
- 4 Tbsp butter ($0.45)
- 4 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.06)
- 3 cups milk ($0.94)
- 1 cup grated parmesan ($0.96)
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg ($0.02)
- to taste salt & pepper ($0.05)
Instructions
- Begin to boil a large pot of water to cook the pasta. When it reaches a full boil, add the pasta and cook for 7-10 minutes or until al dente. When the pasta is finished cooking, reserve 1/2 cup of the starchy pasta water and then drain the pasta in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, thaw the broccoli in the microwave and begin to make the parmesan sauce. Mince the garlic and cook it over medium heat in a medium sauce pot with the butter until the garlic has softened slightly (3-5 minutes). Add the flour, stir and cook for 2-3 minutes more. This is the “roux” that will thicken the sauce.
- Whisk in the milk. Increase the heat to medium-high. Whisk the milk mixture until it comes up to a light simmer. As soon as it reaches a simmer it will thicken and should be able to coat a wooden spoon (see photos below). Turn the heat off and whisk in the parmesan cheese. Add freshly cracked black pepper, nutmeg, and salt to taste. Make the sauce slightly saltier than you’d prefer if you were eating the sauce alone. Once it’s spread out over the pasta and broccoli it will taste more mild.
- Return the cooked pasta to the large pot that it was boiled in (with the burner turned off). Add the reserved pasta cooking water and toss the pasta to loosen it up. Add the thawed broccoli and then pour the parmesan sauce over top. Stir to coat everything in the sauce and then serve!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Step By Step Photos
Begin by boiling the water for the pasta. Once it reaches a full boil, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve about a 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water before draining it in a colander.
Meanwhile, cook the minced garlic and butter in a medium pot over medium heat until the garlic is softened (3-5 minutes).
Stir in the flour and continue to cook and stir this mixture for 2-3 minutes. It’s important to cook this for a few minutes to slightly toast the flour. This prevents a “floury” flavor in the final sauce. Make sure to continually stir while it’s cooking.
Next, whisk in the milk and increase the heat slightly (to medium-high). Allow the sauce to come up to a light simmer, whisking occasionally.
When the liquid reaches a simmer, the starch granules in the flour will swell and thicken the sauce. It should be thick enough to coat a wooden spoon as shown.
Turn the heat off as soon as it has thickened. Add the parmesan cheese and whisk until it melts in.
The cheese will further thicken the sauce. It should now coat a wooden spoon even more.
Season the sauce with salt, freshly cracked pepper, and a pinch (1/8th tsp or so) of nutmeg. Make the sauce slightly saltier than you’d think because once it’s spread out over the pasta and broccoli, it will taste more mild.
Add the drained pasta back to the large pot that it was boiled in. Make sure the burner is turned off. Add the reserved pasta water and toss to loosen the pasta. Add the broccoli (thawed), and pour the parmesan sauce over top.
Toss the pasta and broccoli in the sauce until everything is well coated. Serve warm!
Easy-peasy! Ooh, peas would be nice in this instead of broccoli, too!
This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.
I had 2 cups of heavy cream leftover so I added a cup of water. It was delicious. The broccoli soaks up the sauce and tastes great. I like the suggestions of adding more vegetables. Will do that next time. And I think sundried tomatoes would be nice, too.
This is delicious! I cut the recipe in 1/2 because there are only 2 of us. I had fresh fettuccine and I had cream to use up, I used 1/2 skim milk and 1/2 cream. The sauce was excellent. This dish is a keeper. Thanks. I think the guy who said this was terrible, clearly didn’t read the recipe. He said it tasted like flour. Recipe says, cook the flour and butter 2-3 minutes, so it won’t taste floury.
This was an AMAZING recipe! Just made it and woah, it is SO good! Thank you so much for sharing!!
I love fettuccine pasta and yours was so good! My whole family loved them and have already asked me to make them again. Your directions were so easy to follow..Thanks so much!
Terrible. Tasted like a spoonful of flour. I am not sure what I did wrong. This recipe was a big fail. Don’t recommend it.
Can u refrigerate sauce to be heated up next day?
Yes you definitely can.
Great call on using milk rather than cream! It worked just as well and I agree that it is lighter and better! I added bacon, mushrooms and peas to mine. Will make again!
Let us know what you think Victoria!
Good recipe. Did not use nutmeg abd also added cream cheese and used penne pasta instead. I enjoyed this recipe and so did my picky 5 year old! Thabks for sharing!
This turned out great. Thank you so much for all the recipes you come up with. My wife is out of work, and I’m retired so these meals really are helping us out until we can get back on our feet again. But even when we do, I will still be making these tasty recipes. I added some sliced mushrooms along with the broccoli to balance out the carbs. I also used 2% milk which didn’t negatively impact the creaminess of the sauce at all. Once you get it hot enough, it will thicken and with the Parmesan, that really thickened it up. While this might not have been “traditional” Alfredo, I actually thought it was better. Heavy cream can be too rich, filling you up after only a few bites, which makes you sleepy afterward. This was lighter and with the seasoning I added, it was very very tasty. It’s a keeper. My wife said it would also taste great with peas which is often added in “traditional” Alfredo, in case you didn’t know. I used fresh pasta that they sell at my local grocery store, Sprouts Farmers market. They’re only on the west coast. The noodles are a bit wider than the dry fettuccine but oddly enough they’re less calories than the dry packaged fettuccine. Don’t know why fresh pasta has less calories, but I ain’t complaining. Plus you can tell the difference when you eat the fresh pasta. So much better than the dry. The texture is more substantial, almost chewy. I love it to death.
This was so delicious, easy and cheap to make! Have already made it twice, once with broccoli and the other with chicken! Five ⭐️!!!!
I chopped bacon, onion, garlic, ginger, sun-dried tomatoes, I ran out of all purpose flour so I made my own out of oat flour and chia seeds. My nutri bullet does everything! It turned out perfect, I used mozzarella and cheddar cheese instead of parmesan. Awesome with the broccoli! LOL sounds like I made my own recipe
Thanks for the recipe! I hoped to find something here that I could cook using only the ingredients at hand and wasn’t disappointed. So I cooked this using pecorino romano as I had it in the fridge. Came out wonderful!
This was my first time making Alfredo pasta, but this recipe was delicious. I added a lot of red peppers to spice it up and carrots for more veggies!
Made this for a meal with a friend and loved it! I kinda would like it a little spicier though, any suggestions? I was thinking maybe red pepper flakes?
Yes, red pepper flakes would do the trick! :)
I’ll have to try this version!
I added nutmeg into mine =)
Made this with Trader joe’s black bean rotini instead of noodles. Delicious! Recipe was otherwise perfect as is. Loved the addition of the broccoli.