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Basil Alfredo Sauce

angled shot of the basil Alfredo swirled pasta noodles in a white bowl, with gold forks to the left. A pan of the pasta blurred in the background.

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5 from 1 review

Basil Alfredo is a delicious spin on an Alfredo sauce! Lots of finely chopped basil adds an herby flavor to help balance this cheesy cream sauce.

Ingredients

Thin linguini, about 3/4 of the box
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped basil, I use this pre-chopped basil
2 tablespoons flour
3 cloves garlic, grated
2 and 1/4 cups half and half
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Reserved pasta water (for thinning the sauce)

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Once water has come to a boil add the pasta and cook. I always like to do about 3/4 of the box, I’ve found the full box is just way to much pasta! Once the pasta is boiling, ladle out 1/2 cup of the pasta water to use in the sauce if needed.

2. In a medium pan over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the grated garlic and diced basil and cook for 1 minute. Then, add the 2 tablespoons flour and stir, cook for another 30 seconds. Pour in the half & half and whisk so that the flour mixture blends into the cream. Then, add the salt, pepper, garlic powder, Parmesan cheese, and nutmeg. Stir to combine then bring to a bubbling simmer and simmer 5-7 minutes to thicken.

3. If the sauce gets too thick, add small amounts of the reserved pasta water to thin it out. I usually need to add some of the pasta water to get the right consistency I’m looking for. Not too thick, but not too runny either!

4. To serve, add as much of the noodles as you’d like to the sauce and stir to coat. Garnish with more Parmesan, pepper, and a dash of nutmeg.

Enjoy!