This isn't the real thing, or not quite the real thing. I make it with 3 ingredients - pasta, butter, parmesan - gloriously mixed together. For other recipes you almost need a chef's training to get the consistency right. I just mix the butter and parmesan with the pasta and a little pasta water.
This gorgeous and quick pasta dish of 3 ingredients – so unusual in today’s current fashion of long ingredient lists - is often called Fettuccine Alfredo, although it’s original name was Fettuccine al Burro.
Traditionally this dish did not include cream – the sauce was an emulsion between butter and parmesan. However, of course, the American version is made with cream, butter and cheese. Choose which ever version you prefer. But look for simple recipes, not ones that have, say, cornflour in it 😶
It is said that in the 1020’s Alfredo, a restaurateur, was trying to find a dish that his pregnant wife, who had lost her appetite, would eat. He added cheese to a simple pasta-and-butter dish and she loved it. When he introduced it to his restaurant it became popular around the world.