Alfredo di Lelio created Fettuccine Alfredo in 1908 based on a simple, historic recipe.

Di Lelio’s wife, Ines, had just given birth to their son who would later take on the moniker Alfredo II. Ines was not recovering fast enough from the birth, and De Lelio decided he needed to nurse her back to health with a simple dish.

To increase her calorie intake, he added extra eggs to the fresh pasta he made. The pasta turned a rich golden color — likely because his pasta had more yolk than whites. He cooked the pasta and then finished it with butter and cheese.

Butter and cheese are a historic pasta condiment, but Di Lelio took it a step further. He added extra butter after mixing the ingredients together, so a little butter sat on top of the pasta.

Ines recovered and was instrumental in getting the delicious dish on the menu at Di Lelio’s restaurant in Rome. Here Di Lelio’s showmanship turned the dish into a spectacle.

Fettuccine Alfredo was prepared table side. Di Lelio was accompanied by strong musicians who played along while he mixed the cheese and butter and pasta together earning him the nickname the maestro.

He eventually was gifted a set of golden utensils to mix the pasta dish, which the family still has and uses today in the restaurant in Rome.

Serve with 1 lb fresh egg fettuccine, serve with solid gold fork and spoon

Ingredients

½ lb butter
½ lb Parmigiano-Reggiano

Instructions

Beat the butter and cheese together.
Cook the pasta.
Drain pasta, but allow some of the starchy water to remain.
Combine pasta with the butter and cheese.