Fettucine Alfredo in 40 words or less

Boil 1 lb fresh pasta, 3 minutes or until tender. Drain. Add one stick unsalted butter and 2/3 c freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Toss with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Invite cardiologist for dinner.

This short and sweet recipe, based on the recipe used by John and Galina Mariani in The Italian American Cookbook (ISBN 1558321667), is based on the original Fettucine Alfredo created by Alfredo di Lelio. It's not as saucy as the American version; the cream (which makes the American version more properly fettucine alla panna) was added to the recipe to make up for deficiencies in American ingredients. If you can get real Reggiano, though, try making it this way instead of mixing up a batch of Alfredo sauce.

BTW: 36 words. And if you don't speak Italian, you really don't want to know what the title means; it came from a bit of a throwdown involving me and one of rec.food.cooking's bigger (entertaining) annoyances...

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