Creamy Alfredo Sauce

A quick easy recipe that can either be used with or without meat. No question on that it is yummy - how can it NOT be with butter, garlic, and cheese all mixed together!

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 cups milk
6 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

Melt butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Add cream cheese and garlic powder, stirring with wire whisk until smooth. Add milk, a little at a time, whisking to smooth out lumps. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. Sauce will thicken rapidly, thin with milk if cooked too long. Toss with hot pasta to serve.

NOTE: I used garlic cloves instead of garlic powder. I also put in more parmesan cheese (probably a cup and a little more).

"Healthy" Option: OK, so nothing really about this recipe is healthy (i.e. butter, cheese, more cheese), but I have found that you can use fat free cream cheese without any taste or consistency difference. It will take it longer to melt, but otherwise no one is the wiser. :-D