Meatless Monday: Pasta Alfred-OH!

So today is Meatless Monday and I thought, we have some nice rotini, some broccoli and cauliflower, let's make some Alfredo sauce and call it a night. And then I went to the refrigerator. We were out of butter.

I HATE going to the store for one ingredient, don't you? And I have no excuse; I was at the store yesterday, I should have gotten some butter then. I forgot. So here's what I did. I melted half a cup of Smart Balance spread over low heat in a pan, then I smashed and minced 2 cloves of garlic and added them to the spread with a generous sprinkle of salt. As that was getting warm and fragrant I added 1 1/2 C of half and half to the pan and then began to grate some fresh parmesan and added it slowly to the milk/faux butter mixture. I kept adding and whisking, and testing for thickening. Then I decided to add some grated mozzarella as well, a small handful at a time, pretty much continually whisking.

It just wasn't thickening up. I began to get desperate. I added a bit of cornstarch and water slurry to the mixture as well, then raised the heat slightly as the pasta was almost done and the broccoli and cauliflower florets finished steaming in the microwave. I think I added altogether about 2 C of cheese between the parmesan and the mozzarella and about 3 tsp of the cornstarch and water slurry. I turned the heat off the the sauce as I served the bowls. The additional time of just sitting there finished the thickening process. I put pasta and vegetables into each bowl and then topped them with the Alfredo. It was without a doubt the BEST homemade Alfredo sauce I have ever made. Clingy, thick, and cheesy, the sauce coated the rotini and the veggies beautifully. The kids asked for seconds AFTER they had already had a slice of vanilla cake. A success snatched from the jaws of certain defeat.

My menu for the week;

Meatless Monday: Alfredo rotini with cauliflower and broccoli
Tuesday: Beef Brisket with vegetables
Weird Wednesday: Veggie and Cheese Oven Omelet with salad and homemade honey biscuits
Thursday: Chicken and Rice Casserole
Fish Friday: Smoked Fish (and something else, not sure what yet)
Saturday: Homemade Pizza (I owe you a review of Upside Down Pizza)
Sunday: Roasted Chicken with dressing and mashed potatoes