Broccoli & Gorgonzola Penne

How can two people accumulate so much leftovers? Well, I’m no stranger to leftovers and I aim to make use of all the curious bits that sneakily tuck themselves into my fridge. Waste not, want not I say. Especially now that I can’t blow all my grocery money on a block of foie, which I was perfectly capable of before. And which I still think is perfectly reasonable now. Anyway…

Leftover case in point, some marvelously creamy gorgonzola we had bought for a cheese platter when we had some guests over. The little chunk that was left over eyed me beguilingly from it’s nook in the fridge, tempting me to find some delicious way to use it (although I must say, I did feel like just popping some in my mouth!). I also had some broccoli in the crisper…broccoli being right up there (but not quite as adorable) with brussel sprouts. Hmmm…the wheels in my head were turning…especially since I actually love broccoli in pasta.

This is a quick and yummy dish that I whipped up in seconds! Ok, not seconds. But I’m sure you get the gist of the speed in which it was whipped. The recipe is very simple, and most of the measurements are by feel and by taste. But I’ll jot it down here anyway…

Broccoli & Gorgonzola Penne

– 1 head broccoli, cut into little florets
– 1 onion, minced
– 1-2 tablespoon butter
– small block of gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (sorry for the wild approximation…I just used whatever i had left over…I would say put around 1/2 cup crumbled gorgonzola, then keep tasting the sauce and add as needed)
– 1 250 ml brick all purpose cream
– grated parmesan cheese
– freshly ground pepper (I used black papper, but you can use white for aethetics)

Here’s what you do:

– Steam the broccoli until just tender.
– Cook penne as per package directions.
– Heat the butter in any old skillet. Once it’s melted and a bit bubbly, add the onions.
– Sauté onions until soft and translucent.
– Add broccoli, toss a bit, then add cream and gorgonzola. Stir until everything is nice and incorporated and gorgonzola is melted.
– Taste it at this point and add gorgonzola if needed. If you thinks it needs a bit of salt, try adding some grated parmesan cheese instead (I put parmesan instead of salt). Add pepper.
– Toss cooked penne in the skillet and stir to coat with sauce. If sauce has become a bit too thick for your liking just add some of the pasta water to thin it a bit.
– Sprinkle with grated parmesan before serving.

This is perfect to whipped up for a quick lunch…and a great way to use some leftover cheese (and vegetables). I’m sure it will work wonderfully with other cheese/veggie combinations…like say, tomato and fresh white cheese (and maybe some vodka), or peas tossed with a simple olive oil pasta and some flaked parmesan and chili flakes….