Fettuccine Alfredo with Grilled Chicken and Shrimp

 

Coming up with new ideas for dinner can be difficult some times.  I normally ask Chris if he has any requests and he usually responds with a "whatever you make will be good".  Although that is a very nice statement, that doesn't help on the days I'm in limbo.  Every once in a while, though, he'll surprise me and actually make a request.  When he does, I jump on it.  This is one of those requests.

When my friend Ruth and her husband were out here visiting last month, they came over one night and we took them to dinner at this Italian restaurant, called RigaTony's.  It was there that I found out that Chris likes fettuccine.  Yes, that's right, we've been together 4 years and I just now find that out..which is quite strange since I LOVE pasta and want to cook it at least once a week (ok, I want to cook it more, but I keep it to once a week because of Chris).  When we first started dating, he said he really only liked angel hair.  Ok, I thought that's what he said, but what he really said (or meant to say) WAS, he preferred angel hair over penne or ziti or spaghetti.... I never did mention fettuccine, so I guess that's more my fault than his.  ANYWAY, since I found out his love for fettuccine, I've been trying to add it in to the mix on occasion.  And what better way to add it into the mix than with a recreation of the dish he had that RigaTony's - Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken.

I had to grill the chicken and shrimp... it was just a must, but you can bake everything, pan sear everything, or even buy pre-cooked chicken.  The real show here is the Alfredo sauce and although I have featured this Alfredo sauce here twice, this is well worth re-posting.  Remember, though, this is not for the health conscience...but it is for those of you that just want to indulge a little...which we should all do from time to time!

Fettuccine Alfredo with Grilled Chicken and Shrimp
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
1 large chicken breast
12 small to medium shrimp or 6 large shrimp
olive oil
garlic salt
pepper
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
2 Tablespoons all purpose flour
1 pint heavy cream
1 - 1 1/2 cups parmesan
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper (if you have white it would be better)

Directions:
Rinse the chicken and the shrimp, pat dry.  Drizzle olive oil over both sides of the chicken breast and over the shrimp, season both with garlic salt and pepper.

Oil the grill grates and preheat grill to medium-high.  Thread the shrimp onto wooden skewers that have been soaking in water for at least 1 hour.  Place the chicken directly over the flame and the shrimp on the top rack of your grill.  Grill the shrimp until it is cooked through (they should be pink) and golden brown.  Grill the chicken for 8-10 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in the middle.  Remove both from grill and allow to cool.  Slide or chop the cooked chicken.  You can cut the shrimp in half too if you desire.

Cook the fettuccine according the the package directions.  Drain well and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, add the butter and melt over medium heat.  Add the flour, stirring to combine.  Allow to cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly.  Slowly whisk in the heavy cream.  Allow to come to a slow simmer.  Reduce heat to low and add the parmesan cheese.   Stir continually, until the cheese has all melted and the sauce has thickened.  Add the garlic salt and pepper; stir to combine.  Add the chicken and shrimp to the sauce.  Pile fettuccine onto a plate or in a bowl, pour sauce over top, and enjoy!

 

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