Easy Fettuccine

When you want something creamy and comforting on the table in 30 minutes flat, this fettuccine delivers. Butter melts into a blend of sour cream and heavy cream, the cooked noodles get tossed in, and a shower of grated Parmesan ties the whole thing together.

It’s not quite an Alfredo and not quite a carbonara. It’s its own thing: simpler than both, richer than you’d expect from so few ingredients, and ready before you’ve finished setting the table.

Serve it as a side next to grilled chicken or steak, or eat it straight from the bowl with a fork and zero regrets.

Kitchen Tips

• Keep the heat low when making the sauce. Sour cream splits if it gets too hot. Gentle warmth is all you need to bring it together.
• Save some pasta water. If the sauce gets too thick after tossing with the noodles, a splash of starchy pasta water loosens it up without diluting the flavor.
• Use real Parmigiano-Reggiano. The pre-grated stuff in the green can melts differently and doesn’t have the same nutty, salty punch.

Variations

• Garlic cream: Saute 3 cloves of minced garlic in the butter before adding the cream for a more savory version.
• Bacon fettuccine: Crisp up a few strips of chopped bacon and toss them in with the noodles at the end.