Paper Palate

I’m always a bit leery of attempts to lighten classic, heavy comfort foods. Too often these recipes replace fat calories with sugar calories, rely on processed foods to lower calorie counts, or bear little resemblance to their rich counterparts. But when America’s Test Kitchen goes light, I’m bound to pay attention. The folks behind Cook’s Illustrated magazine know their food science.

Cook’s Illustrated Light Recipes, Spring 2008 ($6.95 U.S./$7.95 Canada) will be on newstands until June 16, making the transition from heavy winter fare to light summer goodies a little easier. It includes classics like meatloaf, macaroni and cheese, scalloped potatoes, a variety of cookies and New York-style cheesecake. Cook’s Illustrated’s regular columns - Quick Tips, 101, Done Right, Kitchen Notes, and product reviews also focus on lightening the caloric load.

Tonight I let the magazine dictate my family’s dinner: low-fat fettuccine Alfredo and a leafy salad with balsamic vinaigrette. One popular restaurant chain’s fettuccine Alfredo weighs in at 850 calories and 48 grams of fat. A mass-produced variety of balsamic vinaigrette contains 100 calories and 10 grams of fat, if you’re lucky enough to not slosh half the bottle on your salad when the dressing gushes through the bottle’s wide mouth.

With two recipes and a portion control tip from the Quick Tips column, let’s see if Cook’s Illustrated can lighten the load without losing the flavor.

Low-Fat Fettuccine Alfredo

from Cook’s Illustrated Light Fare magazine, Spring 2008

Serves 4

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1/4 cup half-and-half
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and lightly crushed
• Table salt and ground black pepper
• Pinch ground nutmeg
• 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (9-ounce) package fresh fettuccine

1. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Using ladle or heatproof measuring cup, pour about 1/2 cup boiling water into each of 4 individual serving bowls; set bowls aside to warm.
2. Meanwhile, heat butter over medium heat in large saucepan until foaming. Whisk in flour until mixture is smooth and golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, half-and-half, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Discard garlic, stir in Parmesan, and remove sauce from heat.
3. Stir 1 tablespoon salt and pasta into boiling water and cook, stirring constantly, until al dente, 2 to 3 minutes. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain pasta.
4. Return sauce to low heat, add 1/3 cup pasta water and cooked pasta, and toss until evenly coated. Cook until sauce has thickened slightly, about 1 minute. Add more pasta water as needed to thin sauce to proper consistency; adjust seasonings. Working quickly, empty water from warmed bowls and fill with pasta. Serve immediately.

Calories: 320

Fat: 12 grams

Instead of fettuccine I opted for fresh cheese tortellini to give the meal a bit more protein, and because that’s what I had in my fridge. Of course, this means my dinner was higher in calories and fat than the recipe. The sauce held up to the flavorful pasta, and I have no doubt that its velvet texture and rich flavor will work with regular fettuccine. Even though the garlic is merely steeped, the sauce has a potent garlic flavor. While that was fine with my family and me, you might want to remove the clove a bit earlier in the cooking process if you want a milder sauce.

After step #2 the sauce becomes extremely thick and goopy. At this stage it’s essentially an Alfredo concentrate - extremely flavorful but unusably thick. At first I wondered if thinning the sauce with pasta water would dull its flavors, but it didn’t. However, do be careful to add the water gradually. I went a bit too far and my sauce was a bit runnier than I would have preferred.

Low-Fat Balsamic Vinaigrette

from Cook’s Illustrated Light Fare magazine, Spring 2008

Makes about 1 cup.

• 6 tablespoons water
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons minced shallots or red onion
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 medium garlic clove, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 teaspoon)
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Shake all ingredients together in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Dressing can be refrigerated for up to 1 week; bring to room temperature, then shake vigorously to recombine before using.

Calories per 1-tablespoon serving: 35

Fat: 3.5 grams

Water? Really? I was skeptical about this, but as the accompanying article explained, the intensified flavors of the other ingredients combated the large amount of water, making a vinaigrette on par with the full-fat balsamic vinaigrette I usually make.

In this issue’s Quick Tips column, Elyse Boule of Greenwood Village, Colorado, suggests putting vinaigrette in a child’s sippy cup without the spill-proof valve. This allows you to shake small amounts of vinaigrette evenly over salads. It worked well, but I do recommend labeling the sippy; I know my four-year-old would be less than thrilled to get a mouthful of dressing when she’s expecting milk. Also, after a week of the plastic absorbing the flavors of shallots, garlic, and vinegar, I doubt if the flavors will ever disappear. That’s fine, because I intend to make this method a regular in my kitchen.

An extra perk: this meal can be prepared in less than an hour.