Our opinions about food are a funny thing. When I was pregnant with Nicholas, for Valentine’s Day, I ordered a complete dinner for two from a small local restaurant. One of the selections was a delicious shrimp salad. But then I got food poisoning that lasted for f-o-u-r l-o-n-g d-a-y-s, and it took me a good year until I would go back to the restaurant again.
When The Husband was a teenager, he was on a family trip to Disney World, and got sick from eating Fettucine Alfredo. To this day, it doesn’t matter who is making it, he refuses to eat Alfredo sauce. And, of course, it happens to be one of my favorite sauces. I’ve gotten around that a bit by adding a bit of tomato sauce to Alfredo, and calling it pink sauce. Shhh!
The free food magazine from Kraft arrived the other day, and a recipe for a low-calorie, low-fat Alfredo sauce caught my eye. Anything with 5 minutes of prep time is certainly worth a look, right? In keeping with my personal “use what’s on hand” challenge, there was no extra trip to the grocery store needed, and in 15 minutes the recipe was done. With no heavy cream or milk, it’s not as rich as a typical Alfredo sauce, so not a wow recipe, but still good nonetheless, and pefect for a harried weeknight. Nicholas has never had Alfredo sauce and inhaled the whole plate, so you know it’s kid-friendly too.
On the cream cheese, I happened to have one on hand that had chives in it, and it worked equally well, although Nicholas made us pick out all the little chive pieces. Between the chives and parsley, this is a perfect addition for Kalyn’s Weekend Herb Blogging.
So, fess up. What are YOUR funny food phobias?
Until tomorrow…
A year ago today… the debatable Sandra Lee.
Smarter Fettuccine Alfredo
Recipe courtesy of Kraft
Prep Time: 5 min
Total Time: 20 min
Makes: 4 servings, 1 cup each
8 oz. fettuccine, uncooked
1-1/4 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
4 tsp. flour
1/3 cup PHILADELPHIA Light Cream Cheese Spread (I used one with chives)
3 Tbsp. KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg (I skipped)
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
COOK pasta as directed on package. MEANWHILE, combine broth and flour in medium saucepan. Stir in cream cheese spread, 2 Tbsp. of the Parmesan cheese, the nutmeg and pepper; cook 2 min., stirring constantly with wire whisk until mixture boils and thickens. DRAIN pasta. Toss with sauce. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese and parsley.
Notes: 300 calories and 6 grams of fat per serving.
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
The behavior you are describing is pretty normal and probably an beneficial adaptation. It is called “acquired aversion”. Think about it: you are an early human, trying new foods in the savanna; if something that you eat makes you sick (and you survive), it is probably a good thing not to eat it ever again.
My food is SpaghettiOs. When I was five SpaghettiOs was the last meal I had before I came down with the flu.
Gave a whole new meaning to “Uh-oh! SpaghettiOs!”.
Oysters. Somehow I got passed the “it’s raw and you don’t have to chew it” ick factor and ate a few in a dive in the French Quarter. I came down with a rocking case of food poisoning that ruined what should have been a super fun girls’ trip.
Scrambled eggs made me sick when I was a child. Now I´m 60+. I can´t eat it.
I got food poisoning a few weeks ago..NOT fun times
When I was a kid, I choked on a fried mozzarella cheese stick. I couldn’t eat them for a long time. I still cut them into smaller, more manageable pieces so the cheese isn’t likely to really stretch out long and get stuck in my throat.
Also, everyone has these stories, but tequila was the first liquor to make me vomit. That was 6 years ago, and I still can’t smell tequila without feeling nauseous.
i got sick once after eating green beans when i was 7. never touched them since!
i got that kraft magazine this week and wanted to try the alfredo. thanks for reviewing it for us!
I had to take medication when I was younger that made me sick. My mom would open the capsules and mix it into food. To this day I can’t even look at a capsule without wanting to throw up and can’t eat lemon yogurt or applesauce.
i choked on a piece of bacon when i was little, but i still inhale it because it’s just that good. except now i chew.
i’ve always had a nervous stomach though, so there isn’t much i’ve eaten that hasn’t been regurgitated. but some of the things i still don’t eat: cherf boyardee anything and papa john’s pizza!
Oh I have so many food biases. I hate cooked veggies and while I am trying to get over that there are two vegetables that I absolutely cannot handle cooked: bell peppers and carrots. They are oh so gross.
Also cooked fish. I want my fish raw.
Haha, nothing is forbidden for me (or maybe I just don’t want to think what is).
Your recipe does sound delicious, though.
If you go back and read my “Liquid from the devil” thread at the CLBB started on Thanksgiving day you would understand why Taco Bell and Jaegermeister make me want to hurl. Even seeing a commercial for Taco Bell turns my stomach!
v – Didn’t know there was an actual name for this; learn something new every day. :)
Paul – lol, I’ll say!
Shawnda – I’m sure raw oysters is a popular “acquired avesion.” The Husband and I love them, but so far, we’ve been lucky.
Karin – wow, that’s quite a long time to stay away from scrambled eggs!
wheresmymind – I sympathize, food poisoning is the worst.
Charise – one of the boxed cake companies used to make a caramel cake and caramel frosting, and the smell of that always made me nauseous too. I think they stopped making it, so maybe it was more than just me. ;)
girlville – it was good. Not as rich as typical Alfredo, but perfect for a quick weeknight meal with stuff you probably have on hand.
Alisha – I can see why capsules bring back bad memories!
Jessica – phew! Bacon is too good to give up. I hear you about nervous stomach. Both The Neighbor Wife and I have that problem too, and the list of things we can’t eat is slowly growing, especially after my surgery last February.
Kitarra – raw fish? I hope we’re talking about just sushi, oysters and clams!
Scott – my kinda attitude!
Robyn – lol, I remember that thread well. Brought back fond memories of Jaggermeister when I was younger. Didn’t get sick from it, but has a great New Years’ Eve with it. ;)
Very interesting that a good eater like Nicholas who likes salad will still pick out the green stuff. Kids are just like that I guess.
Kalyn – I tried to tell him it was salad, which wasn’t too much of a stretch, but he’s too smart for that and wasn’t buying it.
How simple! It sounds really good and I like the lower-fat bit. And the fast bit…
I couldn’t eat cream cheese for about 5 years because of getting sick….thank the gods I got over that one!