Roasted Garlic Cream Pasta (Printable)

Al dente pasta tossed in a silky roasted garlic cream sauce, finished with freshly grated Parmesan for pure comfort.

# What You Need:

→ Roasted Garlic

01 - 2 whole garlic bulbs
02 - 2 teaspoons olive oil

→ Pasta

03 - 12 ounces fettuccine or spaghetti
04 - Salt for pasta water

→ Cream Sauce

05 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
06 - 1 small shallot, finely chopped
07 - 1 cup heavy cream
08 - 1/4 cup milk
09 - 2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese
10 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
11 - 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
12 - Pinch of nutmeg, optional

→ Garnish

13 - Extra Parmesan cheese for serving
14 - Chopped fresh parsley, optional

# How-To:

01 - Preheat oven to 400°F. Slice the tops off garlic bulbs to expose cloves, drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil, and roast for 35 to 40 minutes until soft and golden. Remove from oven, allow to cool slightly, then squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves.
02 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente according to package instructions. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
03 - Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped shallot and sauté until softened, approximately 2 minutes.
04 - Mash the roasted garlic cloves into a paste and add to the skillet, stirring constantly for 1 minute until fragrant.
05 - Pour heavy cream and milk into the skillet, whisking to combine thoroughly. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until slightly thickened.
06 - Stir in Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and nutmeg if using. Simmer gently until the cheese melts completely and the sauce achieves a velvety consistency.
07 - Add drained pasta to the sauce and toss to coat evenly. Add reserved pasta water in small splashes until the sauce reaches desired consistency.
08 - Transfer to serving plates immediately and garnish with extra Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley if desired.

# Expert Hacks:

01 -
  • The roasted garlic becomes sweet and mellow, folding into the cream like butter instead of biting back.
  • It looks fancy but you're really just roasting garlic and boiling pasta, nothing tricky or stressful.
  • The sauce clings to every strand, silky and rich, with just enough Parmesan to make it feel indulgent.
  • It reheats beautifully the next day, which almost never happens with cream sauces.
02 -
  • Don't skip reserving the pasta water, that starchy liquid is what helps the sauce hug the noodles instead of sliding off.
  • Roasted garlic can burn quickly once exposed, so keep an eye on it in the final minutes and pull it when the cloves are golden, not brown.
  • Add the Parmesan off the heat or on very low heat, high heat can make it grainy and clumpy instead of smooth.
03 -
  • Roast extra garlic bulbs and keep the cloves in olive oil in the fridge, they'll last a week and you can add them to anything.
  • Use a pasta with ridges or curves like rigatoni or gemelli if you want the sauce to really cling.
  • Finish the dish with a tiny drizzle of good olive oil right before serving, it adds a subtle richness that makes it taste restaurant-quality.
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