Tuesdays at the Table and a Valentine's Day recap

Happy Tuesday! I have mixed feelings about this work week. This is the last week of work for three of my co-workers that were laid off in January. It will be very difficult to say goodbye to them. On the other hand, it is a holiday week, which means I only have to work four 8 hour days as opposed to my normal 10 hour day. I am seriously giddy on weeks like this... you have no idea how long those extra two hours a day are.

In today's edition of Tuesdays at the Table, I'm going to be sharing a step by step picture tutorial on how to make alfredo sauce. Let me tell you - I love me some alfredo. For years, I never tried to make it at home, and I'm not sure why. One day I decided to give it a whirl, and it turned out wonderfully! Alfredo is so simple and easy to make, and it only requires 4-5 ingredients.

Here's what you need:

• Garlic
• Heavy whipping cream
• Parmesan cheese
• Butter
• Cream cheese (optional)
• Spices

Begin by heating your garlic. I usually turn the burner on medium for this step. You'll know the garlic is ready when it sizzles.

Melt your butter. I let the garlic sizzle a little too long. It shouldn't be that dark. Oopsie! This is about 3 tablespoons of butter.

This is an optional step, but if you choose, you can add cream cheese here. I had it on hand, so I added it, but sometimes I don't. It makes your sauce a little thicker.

Lower your heat to medium low (around a 3) and add your cream. You want to heat the cream slowly so that it does not scorch. Simmer for 3-5 minutes. I think I added about 1.5 cups of cream.

Add the parmesan cheese. This is 1 and 2/3 cups of parmesan cheese. Don't stress about exact measurements; you're just eyeballing everything here. You can't get this wrong. If it is too thin - add more cheese. If it is too thick - add more cream. Easy peasy!

Stir until your cheese is melted, about 1-2 minutes. Add in your spices. I use an italian blend and a little garlic powder.

Simmer for 20 minutes. At this point, I turn the heat to the lowest possible setting.

I know some people prefer to ladle the sauce over the noodles, but I like to add the noodles to the alfredo sauce and stir. This ensures that the noodles are well coated. Here's the final product. As you can see, this makes a ton of alfredo! It is great for lunch leftovers.

I made this for the husband on Valentine's Day. I also made a chocolate bundt cake that I can definitely file under "tasty but hideously ugly" category. I wrote down the ingredients but failed to write down the bake time, so I just guesstimated. When we cut into the cake, it wasn't done in the middle. Oh, well! The top and bottom parts were delish. Check out that frosting - not one of my better efforts.

Jason and I actually celebrated Valentine's Day on Friday. We made reservations at 82 Queen, one of the nicer restaurants in downtown Charleston. Neither of us had ever been there before, and I don't think we'll go back. It was one of those places where the food is good, but not THAT good, if you know what I mean. It was outrageously expensive and the taste of the food didn't justify the price tag.

I had the fillet of beef, served over boursin mashed potatoes and caramelized onions. The beef was actually a little tough and dry, and for $30, I expected better.

Jason had the roasted duck, rice, and string beans. He wasn't a fan, although he usually loves roasted duck (gross).

We were both disappointed in our restaurant choice, so we headed out for a walk around the city and ended up at a rooftop bar for drinks and dessert. I had a chocolate martini and we shared the creme brulee. The dessert was amazing, and the chocolate martini tasted just like chocolate milk. Delish!

We ended our night at Starbucks, which is how we end pretty much all our date nights.

Here I am, attempting to rock the retro glam look I showed you last Thursday. I took Becca's advice and added some hair bling as well. I really liked my eyes, but I think that maybe I just can't pull off red lips. What do you think?