Good side dish with Fettuccine Alfredo?!
Good side dish with Fettuccine Alfredo?
My g/f is a picky eater but loves pasta and I'm going to make a romantic setting tonight with candle and wine tonight when she gets off work and she will come in and see it.
I'm going to make shrimp fettuccine alfredo and I know she will love that but what is are some good side dishes that go along well with that? As I said she is a picky eater so give me a lot of suggestions if you can so I can kind of sift through them. I want something that goes well with the taste of alfredo and not something out of the ordinary that you might think going with it.
(she doesn't like green veggies.)
Answers: With creamy sauces (especially Alfredo w/ its Parmesan and/or Romano cheese) I enjoy a palate cleansing fruit salad. Pineapple, citrus fruit sections (Mandarin orange, pink grapefruit, etc) and tart apple (granny smith, lodi, braeburn, johnathon) chunks with a few red or blue grapes and banana slices for taste contrast. Toss the apple and banana with a bit of lime, or lemon, juice to retard their tendency to turn brown after they're sliced. It's a pity she doesn't like green veggies because a mixed greens (baby spinach leaves, romaine, bib or butter lettuce, endive, etc) salad w/ vinaigrette dressing is refreshing. Hot blackberry or raspberry pie/cobbler are desert choices. Warm, lightly buttered, crusty bread is welcome w/ most any food. Since this is a romantic dinner I'd go easy on garlic, onion and strong fresh herbs such as cilantro. If she likes sweet potatoes or yams you can bake a few slices w/ butter. Maybe a carrot and raisin salad? Cole slaw is an option, as many who do not care for green veggies will eat raw cabbage. No green veggies really puts the kibosh on your choices. I nearly always serve steamed broccoli spears w/ butter and lemon sauce when I serve Shrimp Alfredo.
Good company is always the best part of the meal. Enjoy! grilled chicken cant go wrong.. for sure some kind of garlic toast or bread...and try tiarmisu for dessert! :) A nice thick stuffed porkchop mixed olives with boccocinni (those little mozzarella balls)
bruchetta
grilled eggplant and zucchini Well I was going to suggest a garden salad, but if she won't eat veggies then I would go with Garlic Bread and a nice white wine. how about a bread dipping sauce...most italian places serve fresh herbs on a plate w/ olive oil and fresh bread....my favorite part lol...not too sure on where you would find it...guess you can go to a local resturant...or a specialty shop...i get mine at food shows...
or feta cheese stuffed tomatoes w/ olive oil red wine vinegar over top w/ a little fresh basil.
or you could always throw some cooked marinated chicken breast in the alfredo...or bacon... Grill some zuchinni and red or green bell peppers on a Geroge Foreman grill. Season with good quality sea salt and pepper.
If you don't have a G.F. Grill, saute fresh sliced zuchunni and peppers with olive oil, fresh garlic, rosemary, and a little lemon juice.
Either way, it's healthy and will bring some color to the meal. I was gonna suggest simple steamed Broccoli....but she doesn't like green veggies.
How about a simple steamed cauliflower.....maybe with a little olive oil drizzled on top and then sprinkled with some Panko bread crumbs.....then pop under the broiler briefly to brown the bread crumbs....I'd drizzle the bread crumbs with a bit of olive oil also.
Maybe put the cauliflower in individual ramekins......just off the top of my head.... Wow, she is picky, but try slivered mangos. Peel and slice like french fries, and drench them in lime or lemon juice.
I love jicama and apple slaw. Peel and grate 1 or 2 apples and an equal amount of jicama, add lemon or lime juice to keep the apple from browning, add walnuts or pecans, cheddar cheese, grapes or raisens, and mayo.
I also like heart of palm with blue cheese dressing, but ranch is fine also.
Mandarin oranges are always good....
and pineapple sticks.... (cut like french fries also) Broccoli goes really well with Alfredo sauce, but if she doesn't like green veggies, I'd just go with bread. Preferably garlic bread, but if she doesn't like garlic, that could be tough. If you're not sure about her feelings about garlic, I'd make a little garlic bread and a little not-garlic bread.
Good luck! I would serve a salad of spinach leaves, bacon bits, hard boiled egg slices crutons and a sweet vinagrette. More fettucini alfredo.... yumm... My hubby is picky too - and doesn't like green veggies, but will eat a green salad with enough cheese, rranch and bacon on it. Also, there are some REALLY good premade garlic cheese breads on the market as well. One night we had sliced grilled steak with our fettechini and it was really good. Well since you are already adding shrimp ((((add plenty of shrimp, you might want to grill it chilis makes an awesome alfredo shrimp pasta but they grill their shrimp with like a garlic seasoning)))) and this is a real fatty dish, i suggest either a garden salad or just some garlic bread and a dessert... there really aren't anysides that go with it a good loaf of bread with a dipping sauce of olive oil and herbs and a caprizi (spelling has to be off) salad (very little green involved) that is sliced tomatoes alternated with a thin slice of motzerella cheese then part of a basil leaf contine to layer in that order til the plate is full or you run out of ingredients. once the plate is assembled lightly drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the entire dish and sprinkle lightly with a good kosher or sea salt.