Personally, I think that when Ricchi and Poveri created the song
It will be because I love you
, they were not thinking of any
signorina
of the time, but rather that the “
È un'emozione, che cresce piano
” was dedicated to one of the many delicious preparations with which the Italian cookbook has.
How well those from the country of the boot have been able to sell themselves: their recipe book - if you don't have
The Silver Spoon,
you are taking too long - is a fusion of a thousand and one cultures and, without a doubt, we can affirm that it is the most traveled and well-known in the world.
Pizza, pasta, risotto, is there really any remote town on the planet that doesn't have a
more or less reliable
little
trattoria
?
Of course, this is not always good because, as with all world-replicated kitchens, many times food is prostituted to unsuspected limits, losing the original flavor.
Today's recipe is exactly the opposite case;
a dish that was created on Roman soil, but which reached its greatest popularity outside of it: Alfredo pasta.
It was the year 1907 and Alfredo di Lelio was walking down Via della Scrofa smiling: he had made the decision - very relevant in the future - to transform his small winery into an authentic Italian restaurant.
Passionate about cooking from a young age, it was clear to him that it was time to turn on the stove and take a step forward in the growing Italian gastronomic revolution.
Alfredo, one morning in 1914;
Worried about his wife Inés, who was pregnant and without appetite, he decided to prepare a dish based solely on butter and cheese (in those years it was believed that butter or
donkey
improved intestinal health).
With her own hands she prepared the pasta - not without first praying to Santa Ana, protector of pregnant women - and the sauce;
just as he said years later.
“The water is boiled, with moderate salt, and the pasta is added.
Once the pasta is cooked, it is drained and poured into a hot plate, which has previously been butter.
It is covered with the Parmesan and mixed carefully ”.
The result?
Inés was so surprised that she forced Alfredo to include the dish among the recipes on the menu.
This is how this easy recipe was born, made up of only three ingredients: al dente pasta, fresh butter and Parmesan cheese (simple but spectacular when the ingredients are of quality).
And it is there, after devising a simple dish for a pregnant woman, that she found America.
The meeting between America and Rome takes place in 1920, when two Hollywood artists -Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford- decide to spend their honeymoon in Europe.
Passing through Rome, they try the fettuccini Alfredo and are so ecstatic with the succulent dish that, upon returning to America, they comment on its benefits to their friends.
As a thank you they send Alfredo a couple of gold cutlery with the dedication: “
To Alfredo, the King of the noodles
” (For Alfredo, the king of noodles).
The popularity was such that after a while, Alfredo Di Lelio expanded his kitchen to the United States with the Alfredo's restaurant in New York's Rockefeller Center -still open- where every February 7th they celebrate Alfredo fettuccine day.
Like any great dish, this one has been versioned many times: with fresh cream, with roux or béchamel, adding chicken or egg ... the options are endless, but where there is a centuries-old, simple and delicious recipe, take the rest away.
Any modification?
Instead of long fresh pasta (fettuccine) you can use dried from reliable brands such as Cipriani or Sandro Desii, and the Parmesan can give way to national Manchego cheeses or, for example, the Colono de Quesos y Besos, which works wonderfully.
A touch of black pepper is also allowed and the better the butter, the better the result (ask at your cheese factory).
Difficulty
There is no difficulty.
None.
Ingredients
For 4 people
400 g fresh fettuccine or similar egg pasta
120 g of creamy butter
160 g of dry Parmesan or Manchego cheese
Salt
Black pepper
Preparation
Grate the cheese very fine.
Put the pasta to cook in boiling salted water for the time indicated so that it remains al dente.
Prepare a source and arrange half of the butter in it.
Remove the pasta from the pot directly to the source and add half of the grated cheese, stir very well carefully so that everything is mixed and the sauce is made.
Add the rest of the butter and cheese and also a little cooking water from the pasta itself, mixing well.
Add enough water so that everything is creamy.
Add salt if necessary - usually the cheese is salted enough -, finish with freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately.
If you make this recipe, share the result on your social networks with the hashtag #RecetasComidista. And if it goes wrong, complain to the Chef's Ombudsman by sending an email to defensoracomidista@gmail.com