Garlic Buttered Parmesan Noodles
So easy and quick, but what a delicious, satisfying side dish for any entree or as a light meal - buttery, cheesy, and carby. A soul-soothing trifecta!
My favorite son, my only son, is now an adventurous eater and relishes many different foods but his diet growing up consisted of Dorito Chips and hotdogs - straight from the fridge. In his teenage years he allowed noodles into his diet, which became a staple. He would have loved this dish back then, except for the garlic and oh, not a speck of parsley ,please and who could be expected to consume pepper. So I guess not.
But now as an adult he relishes garlic and even deigns to consume parsley and in fact, will eat anything put in front of him. More than once he’s asked why I hadn’t made a certain recipe before. I give him “the look” which means - I made this at least once a week when you were young, but you wouldn’t touch it.
Garlic Buttered Parmesan Noodles is such a simple side dish fussied up with the cream cheese and garlic. My son’s basic pasta, butter and Parmesan cheese just require these simple touches to take it to the next level. Any shaped pasta will do, but the spiral pastas, fusilli or rotini provide more surface area for the sauce to enrobe. Whose son could resist!
Garlic Buttered Parmesan Noodles
12 ounces medium-width egg noodles
4 tablespoons butter
3-4 large garlic cloves minced, according to taste
2 tablespoons softened cream cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 - 3 ounces Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley plus more for garnish
-Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon olive or vegetable oil to cooking liquid. Cook noodles according to package directions until just tender, 9-13 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.
-Meanwhile, heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat until melted. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly until garlic is slightly softened and mellowed, about 2 minutes. Do not allow garlic to brown. Add cream cheese to skillet and stir until softened. (It will still be a bit lumpy.) Remove skillet from heat.
-Once you've drained the pasta, set skillet with the garlic butter mixture back over medium heat. Add a couple of tablespoons of the pasta water to the garlic butter mixture then stir with a whisk over heat until cream cheese is melted and incorporated with the butter. Add drained, cooked pasta, the remaining reserved pasta water and parsley; toss well to coat.
-Cook and stir until heated through, adding more pasta water if pasta seems too dry. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl or platter, top with more grated Parmesan cheese then garnish with additional parsley if desired. Serve warm. Makes 6 servings.
Saute the garlic in melted butter for a couple of minutes, to soften it.
Toss the cooked noodles with the melted butter garlic, Parmesan cheese and parsley -then it’s ready to serve!
Season to taste with salt and freshly cracked pepper followed with another toss.
Serve along side any entree, saucy or not or as a simple light meal. Deliciously simple!
PERSNICKETY NOTES:
*Any type of pasta can be used, but the more surface are on the pasta shape, the better for butter and cheese to cling too. Other good choices include, fettucine noodles, farfalle, bucatini, etc.
*The addition of cream cheese is optional but adds a bit of creaminess and tang to the butter sauce, which helps it to coat the pasta better.
