Penne with Gorgonzola Sauce

Since all the kitchen cabinet doors are still with the painter, I decided to do a serious cleanout and inventory of the cabinets. Some items were easy to let go of. Eight miniature muffin tins, each holding twelve muffins is a bit excessive. I don't even have a recipe that makes 96 muffins. Four tins will serve us nicely, four tins-out. One badly warped cookie sheet--out. Three disposable aluminum pie plates--out. The charlotte mold that I use once a year--in. There's lots more that I won't bore you with. If, however, you live anywhere near Goodwill in my area, you might want to head over tomorrow afternoon.

We're enjoying cooler temperatures and low humidity of late. I gave thought to a tasty and long-cooking stew but settled for a dish that allowed for a bit of a refrigerator clean out. Andrew was unable to resist a great hunk of gorgonzola cheese at Costco a few days ago. While the texture was a bit drier than I like in this deeply veined Italian blue cheese, I thought it would work nicely in this dish and I wasn't disappointed.

PENNE AL GORGONZOLA

6 oz gorgonzola

1/3 cup whole milk

3 tbsp butter

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/2 pound penne pasta

In a fairly shallow pan, large enough to eventually hold all the pasta, put in the cheese, milk, and butter. Turn on the heat to low. Mash the gorgonzola with a spoon and stir to incorporate it into the milk and butter. Cook for about 1 minute until of a dense, creamy consistency. Turn off the heat and set aside.

Prepare the pasta according to package directions. Drain.

While the pasta is draining, turn the heat on low under the sauce and stir in the heavy cream. Add the parmesan. Add the drained pasta and toss about until well mixed with the sauce. Serve immediately, passing a bowl of grated parmesan.

Serves six.

NOTE: You can substitute half and half for the milk and heavy cream. The sauce will not be as creamy but will still be delicious.

Serve with a green salad.