Alfredo and Meatballs
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Alfredo and Meatballs are a delicious combination you never knew you needed! Rich homemade creamy alfredo sauce topped with light chicken meatballs will be a new family favorite! (And it’s done in about 30 minutes!)
What You Will ❤️ About Alfredo & Meatballs
- Quick – You can do this for a weeknight meal! The meatballs take about 20 minutes to bake and you can do the pasta & sauce while they’re in the oven.
- Comfort Food – there is no better comfort food than alfredo! It’s rich and creamy and just goes down like a warm hug.
- Easy! Homemade alfredo sauce is really simple and trust me – it’s so much better than the jarred stuff! You’ll never buy it again!
Alfredo Ingredients
Alfredo is super simple to make and I urge everyone to make it vs buying a jarred sauce. It’s so much better!!!! Trust me!
- Fettuccine – Fettuccine is classic but you can use any pasta other than angel hair as it’s not hefty enough to handle the sauce.
- Butter – I like to use salted butter for this but unsalted works as well you just might need to add a touch of salt to taste
- Garlic – again – so few ingredients – use fresh garlic if possible
- Flour – this will mix with the butter to make a roux and will thicken the sauce
- Half and half – you can use half and half or heavy cream but I prefer the half and half texture-wise
- Parmesan cheese – I highly recommend grating yourself because this is your main flavor for the pasta. You can also use Romano cheese if that’s easier to find.
Meatball Ingredients
There are so many ways to make meatballs and most of the time you’re thinking pork & beef – but since the alfredo is heavy – I decided to lighten this up with chicken meatballs!
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Ground chicken – You can swap the ground chicken for turkey, pork or beef and use the same seasonings
- Panko bread crumbs – you can also use torn bread or regular breadcrumbs if you like
- Milk – I like to mix the bread with milk so it soaks up the liquid and acts as a binder with the egg but keeps the meatballs from being too heavy
- Egg
- Seasonings: Onion flakes, Minced Garlic, Dried Oregano (you could swap with Italian seasoning)
- Fresh Herbs: Parsley & Rosemary – these are both much more fragrant when fresh!
- Dijon mustard – I love the flavor Dijon adds!
- Coarse sea salt & black pepper
Recipe Variations
There are numerous variations you can make on this easy dish. Here are a few ideas:
- Swap Pasta – you can use linguine or even macaroni noodles
- Protein – I used ground chicken to make them a little lighter but you can swap ground turkey, pork or ground beef as well
- Veggies – add sauteed mushrooms or broccoli in when you serve
- Air Fryer Meatballs – these meatballs were made in the oven but you could also make them in the air fryer
How to make Alfredo with Meatballs
Basically – we’re going to get the meatballs going and then when they’re just about done – start your alfredo! They’ll all be done at the same time! Homemade alfredo only takes 5-7 minutes! So in about 30 minutes your alfredo meatballs recipe is on the table!
- Preheat oven to 350º
- In large bowl, combine panko and milk and set aside for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, add onion flakes, garlic, chicken, egg, parsley, rosemary, thyme, mustard, salt & pepper. Combine meat mixture gently with hands.
- Gently shape meatball mixture into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place balls on a parchment covered baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes until meatballs are 160º in the center when checked with meat thermometer.
- While meatballs are in the oven, Cook pasta according to package instructions to al dente.
- When there is five min left on pasta and meatballs, in a large deep non-stick skillet over medium heat, add butter to pan. Once melted, add garlic to the pan.
- Cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally
- Whisk in flour
- Quickly add in cream, milk and cheese.
- Whisk frequently until sauce simmers and remove from heat
- Drain pasta when done
- Remove chicken from air fryer and let rest for five minutes. Then slice.
- Add cooked pasta to alfredo and toss lightly. Top with meatballs.
- Serve and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and parsley or basil
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Tips, Tricks & FAQs
Store leftovers in an airtight container (I like these glass ones) in the refrigerator for up to a week. Reheat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes – you might want to stir a little milk/cream in so the sauce will reconstitute. I wouldn’t recommend freezing alfredo.
Sure! Juste heat according to package directions and add to alfredo!
Get Heather’s NEW cookbook – Air Fryer Cooking for One today!
More Meatball Recipes
What to serve with Alfredo & Meatballs
More Alfredo Recipes
Alfredo and Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp milk
- 2 tbsp onion flakes
- 2 tbsp garlic minced
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary crumbled
- 1/2 tbsp thyme
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp coarse sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Fettuccine Alfredo
- 1/2 lb Fettuccine
- 6 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 2 tbsp flour
- 3 cups half and half
- 1 cup Parmesan or Romano grated
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º
- In large bowl, combine panko and milk and set aside for 5 minutes.1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs, 2 tbsp milk
- After 5 minutes, add onion flakes, garlic, chicken, egg, parsley, rosemary, thyme, mustard, salt & pepper. Combine meat mixture gently with hands.1 lb ground chicken, 2 tbsp onion flakes, 2 tbsp garlic minced, 1 large egg, 1/4 cup fresh parsley, 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, 1/2 tbsp thyme, 1 tbsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp coarse sea salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper
- Gently shape meatball mixture into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place balls on a parchment covered baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes until meatballs are 160º in the center when checked with meat thermometer.
- While meatballs are in the oven, Cook pasta according to package instructions to al dente.1/2 lb Fettuccine
- When there is five min left on pasta and meatballs, in a large deep non-stick skillet over medium heat, add butter to pan. Once melted, add garlic to the pan.6 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp garlic
- Cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally
- Whisk in flour2 tbsp flour
- Quickly add in half and half and cheese.3 cups half and half, 1 cup Parmesan
- Whisk frequently until sauce simmers and remove from heat
- Drain pasta when done
- Remove chicken from air fryer and let rest for five minutes. Then slice.
- Add cooked pasta to alfredo and toss lightly. Top with meatballs.
- Serve and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and parsley or basil
