davik

For all of the guys out there who are looking to impress girls with a romantic dinner (or really anyone who wants to impress their significant other) I'm going to do something I don't usually do and share my award-winning signature dish.

The recipe itself is a fettucini alfredo with basil and cracked pepper chicken. You'll have to forgive the fact that I don't have exact proportions on this so I'm just kind of estimating; taste it as you go and decide how much you want to put in.

For the alfredo sauce:
1/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

For the chicken:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 package Fresh basil (usually ends up being several handful of leaves)
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp rosemary
1-2 tbsp black pepper
olive oil
garlic 2-3 cloves

Start by cleaning the basil and carefully cutting the tops with the flowers off, you'll need to save two of these as garnish for the dish (I think it's a little better than the customary parsley sprig). Slice the rest of the basil into strips; set aside a small handful of the sliced basil to go into the alfredo sauce, the rest will be cooked with the chicken. Mince the garlic cloves. Using a spoon or a mortar and pestle coarsely crack the black pepper (can use a pepper mill, but it'll take a long time to grind that much pepper and most pepper mills will grind it too finely). If you have a mortar and pestle grind the rosemary, if not just crack it up by hand.

In a large deep skillet heat the olive oil at a little more than medium heat, saute the garlic until it is beginning to turn a light golden; add the chicken. As the chicken is cooking add the basil and pepper slowly, allowing the the basil added before to cook down some before adding the next. Completely cook the chicken and remove from heat.

In a small pot melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium low heat. Add cream and simmer for 5 minutes, then add garlic and cheese and whisk quickly, heating through. The sauce will look fairly thin at this point but will thicken as it cools. Pour the sauce into the skillet with the chicken and add the fresh basil, heat on low.

Cook the fettucini noodles according to instructions, strain and add a small amount of olive oil to keep them from sticking. Place fettucini on a plate and top with alfredo and chicken, garnish with the basil flower.

To really make this impressive a few things should go with it; get a good loaf of french bread and warm it, baked brie is an excellent accompanyment to the french bread. A simple salad with a light basil and rosemary vinagrette is a nice starter, and definitely get a bottle of wine for with the meal (and probably another for after). For the wine I would suggest a flavorful red, but not one that is too dry (a merlot will typically work well), and get a good bottle (spend more than $15 a bottle unless you really know your wine, I would suggest a merlot from benziger wineries, they tend to be less dry wines with a good flavor, run about $18 a bottle, though it's a hard winery to find).

collide

davik, will you be my date?

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"inhuman fiery goat worship" is an anagram for "information superhighway" -kingvolc

edmos1

many thanks, it is my girlfriends favorite dish, I will give it a try.

davik

Fraid my girlfriend would do horribly unpleasant things to me if I took you up on that offer

kalashnikov

that sounds excellent!

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'Charmant, respektlos, und immer betrunken.'

davik

Actually just made this for my girlfriend for our year and a half (was the meal I made when I asked her out and she's loved it ever since, though I try to save it for special occasions even if it is faster than half the stuff I make).

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"Whenever you find that you are on the side of the majority, it is time to reform."
-- Mark Twain

amonkie

MMmm... I think it's time for me to show somebody this link and have them make it for me!

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Calling from deep in the heart, from where the eyes can't see and the ears can't hear, from where the mountain trails end and only love can go... ~~~ Three Rivers Hare Krishna

collide

You know the way to a woman's heart is food. Smart move.

__________________
"inhuman fiery goat worship" is an anagram for "information superhighway" -kingvolc

davik

Yeah well, I have to have something going for me other than being a geek of near biblical proportions and an obsessive runner :P