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Linguine with Garlic Cream Sauce

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on September 12, 2011

Time

40 minutes

Yield

Serves 4 to 6

Linguine with Garlic Cream Sauce

Ingredients

1 cup milk (reserved from garlic poaching)½ cup heavy cream ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste1 ½ teaspoons fresh oregano leaves, minced, or ½ teaspoon of dried oregano¼ cup roasted garlic puree¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese Salt and ground black pepper 1 pound linguine

Before You Begin

Although this pasta dish is not totally cream-free, the garlic puree (see related recipe) and poaching milk make appealing and tasty substitutes for the amounts of cream and butter usually found in standard Alfredo-style sauces.

Instructions

  1. Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in a large soup kettle.
  2. Bring milk, cream, red pepper, and oregano to boil in a medium saucepan; simmer, whisking constantly, until milk mixture reduces by half. Lower heat; whisk in garlic puree until sauce emulsifies slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste; cover and keep warm.
  3. Meanwhile add 1 tablespoon salt and the linguine to the boiling water; boil until linguine is just tender, 7 to 9 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving some of the cooking water. Toss linguine with sauce. If the sauce is too thick to coat pasta evenly, add the cooking water 1 tablespoon at a time. Serve with additional finely grated Parmesan and ground black pepper.
Linguine with Garlic Cream Sauce

Linguine with Garlic Cream Sauce

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

40 minutes

Yield

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

1 cup milk (reserved from garlic poaching)
½ cup heavy cream
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 ½ teaspoons fresh oregano leaves, minced, or ½ teaspoon of dried oregano
¼ cup roasted garlic puree
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and ground black pepper
1 pound linguine

Ingredients

1 cup milk (reserved from garlic poaching)
½ cup heavy cream
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 ½ teaspoons fresh oregano leaves, minced, or ½ teaspoon of dried oregano
¼ cup roasted garlic puree
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and ground black pepper
1 pound linguine

Ingredients

1 cup milk (reserved from garlic poaching)
½ cup heavy cream
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 ½ teaspoons fresh oregano leaves, minced, or ½ teaspoon of dried oregano
¼ cup roasted garlic puree
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and ground black pepper
1 pound linguine

Why This Recipe Works

Many roasted garlic recipes recommend drizzling garlic with olive oil, wrapping it in aluminum foil, and tossing it in the oven but we found this method to be unreliable and it also sometimes gave the garlic a bitter taste. One reason garlic can be tricky to roast is that it is relatively dry. To add some moisture to the garlic in our roasted garlic recipe, we poached it in milk—producing a final product that was beautifully golden in color and perfectly tender.

Before You Begin

Although this pasta dish is not totally cream-free, the garlic puree (see related recipe) and poaching milk make appealing and tasty substitutes for the amounts of cream and butter usually found in standard Alfredo-style sauces.

Instructions

  1. Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in a large soup kettle.
  2. Bring milk, cream, red pepper, and oregano to boil in a medium saucepan; simmer, whisking constantly, until milk mixture reduces by half. Lower heat; whisk in garlic puree until sauce emulsifies slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste; cover and keep warm.
  3. Meanwhile add 1 tablespoon salt and the linguine to the boiling water; boil until linguine is just tender, 7 to 9 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving some of the cooking water. Toss linguine with sauce. If the sauce is too thick to coat pasta evenly, add the cooking water 1 tablespoon at a time. Serve with additional finely grated Parmesan and ground black pepper.

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