Artichoke and Beef Fettuccine

This is a great recipe for using up leftover roast beef. In this recipe adapted from “Betty Crocker’s Fix-It-Fast Family,” fettuccine is tossed in a mixture of canned artichokes with its juice combined with half and half cream, onions, and cooked roast beef cut into bite-sized pieces. This is a very quick recipe that can be prepared in just a few minutes as long as you have your cooked roast beef ready. Alternatively, you can also sauté or stir-fry strips of sirloin beef in garlic and onions and use it to make this recipe.

Many people find canned artichokes off-putting because they are a far cry from fresh artichokes cooked in butter. You can’t always get fresh artichokes since they are not always available or are never available in some parts of the world. For some, they only have access to canned artichokes, which turn out to be mushy since they are pickled in a solution of marinade. The canned artichokes are already cooked so you don’t need to clean and process them, which you need to do with fresh artichokes and can be quite tedious. Mixed with cream and beef, canned artichokes can be quite a treat and their natural creamy flavor and silky texture can be best appreciated in this way.

Fettuccine is the best kind of pasta to use for this recipe since its flat surface like a ribbon allows the sauce to adhere to it well and the beef strips complement the size and shape of the pasta. Regular fettuccine works well and you can also try it with flavored fettuccine, particularly spinach fettuccine or corn fettuccine, which will complement the artichokes. You can also use other kinds of pasta to make this recipe like linguini. Spice up the pasta with a bit of red chili pepper for a mouthwatering dish.