Fettuccine Alfredo with Green Beans and Tapenade
on Jun 01, 2024, Updated May 07, 2025
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No one will ever think this beautiful, sophisticated, delicious pasta costs about $3 per serving.
I was on a quest to find some new pasta dishes that looked good, tasted delicious, and were a nice change of pace from the tomato sauce lexicon. And I wanted a pasta that was easy on the wallet and that was a one-dish meal, no sides needed.
I love tapenade (read: olives; read: salt) and often have some in my fridge, sometimes black tapenade, sometimes green tapenade. It made total sense to think about combining it with some hot pasta. I imagined that pairing something creamy with the tapenade would be a nice way to temper the brininess. And when thoughts of creamy pasta float through the mind, the word Alfredo is never far behind. And then we needed a vegetable. A cheap and cheerful and substantial vegetable. Green beans! One of the biggest bargains at the store, especially when they are in season and it feels like you are getting them for almost nothing. And so, the Green Bean Fettuccine Alfredo with Tapenade recipe was born.
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I like the way the long and skinny green beans and the fettuccine look all twirled up, but of course, you can try this with other pasta shapes.
Table of Contents
In the immortal words of Matthew McConaughey, alright, alright, alright…look at this meal — this is pretty terrific looking, no? This is best served right away, though you can, of course, reheat leftovers in the microwave.
Fettuccine Alfredo with Green Beans and Tapenade: This beautiful, sophisticated, delicious pasta only costs a few dollars per serving – amazing!
The Parmesan and the olives are the priciest of all the ingredients, but you really don’t need all that much of each. And yes, you can buy the best-aged authentic DOP Parmesan at the store and spend more, but if you go with one of the less expensive versions (even domestic *gasp*), you can get off pretty cheaply. Just promise me that you will never reach for grated cheese in a can…that’s all I ask.
Fettuccine Alfredo with Green Beans and Tapenade Ingredients
- Unsalted butter – Use unsalted butter so you can control the salt in the dish. Especially important if you’re adding the tapenade.
- Garlic – Finely mince the garlic so it blends well into the sauce.
- Heavy cream – The base for a creamy Alfredo sauce.
- Parmesan cheese – Finely grated Parmesan is added to both the sauce and the finished pasta dish.
- Fettucine – Or use another long, thin, flat pasta. Linguine or pappardelle would be great.
- Green beans – Pick the freshest green beans, trim them, then cut them in half crosswise into 2-inch pieces.
- Green Olive Tapenade – You’ll need about half of that recipe to finish off the dish. You can also use Black Olive Tapenade. If tapenade isn’t your thing, skip it for a simpler pasta meal.
- Fresh parsley
How to Make Fettuccine Alfredo with Green Beans and Tapenade
- Make the sauce: Melt the butter and give the garlic a quick sauté. Whisk in the cream, simmer until slightly thickened, then whisk in some Parmesan.
- Cook the pasta and green beans: While that’s happening, cook the pasta according to the package directions, adding the green beans to the pot for the last few minutes of cooking (a little bean cooking shortcut). Drain well.
- Toss and serve: Return the pasta and green beans to the pot, add the Alfredo sauce, toss, and plate it up with the tapenade.
How to Serve Green Bean Fettuccine Alfredo
You can serve this in one large bowl or individual bowls. Then start dolloping that tapenade on top. A little parsley, a little more Parmesan, and toss (or let your guests toss their own — the presentation of the tapenade mounded on top with a shower of Parm is a pretty one).
You don’t need a side with this dish, but if you want to make the pasta part of a larger spread, think about a colorful salad, such as:
- Baby Romaine, Chickpea, and Root Vegetable Salad with Slightly Spicy Dressing
- Romaine and Slivered Kale Salad with Lemon Dressing
- Fennel and Endive Salad
- Zucchini Ribbon Salad
- Endive, Arugula, and Orange Salad
More Pasta Recipes
- Simple Vegetarian Spring Pasta Salad
- Pasta with Creamy Sundried Tomato and Scallion Sauce
- Campanelle with Chicken Sausage, Kale, and Olives
- Pasta with Sautéed Kale and Toasted Breadcrumbs
- Pasta with Edamame, Mint, and Basil Pesto
- Simple Ramp Pasta
- Thin Spaghetti with Fennel, Bacon, and Parmesan
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Fettuccine Alfredo with Green Beans and Tapenade
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- ¾ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (divided)
- 1 pound dried fettucine
- ¾ pound green beans (trimmed and cut in half crosswise; about 2-inch pieces)
- ½ cup Green Olive Tapenade (1/2 recipe)
- ½ cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute until it just turns golden. Whisk in the cream and bring to a simmer. Season with salt (go lightly because of the salty tapenade) and pepper, then simmer for about 8 minutes until reduced and thickened. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the grated Parmesan.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine according to package directions, adding the cut green beans during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Drain the pasta and green beans.
- Return the cooked pasta and the beans to the same pot, and pour in the hot alfredo sauce. Toss to coat the pasta and beans well.
- Immediately turn the pasta and beans into a shallow serving dish or plate it up in individual bowls. Give a final grind of black pepper, dollop over the tapenade, sprinkle over the remaining Parmesan, and either toss yourself or let each diner toss their serving. Sprinkle with parsley as desired and serve hot.
