Penne with Gorgonzola Tomato Sauce

I was very scared to make this.  The original recipe comes for Bon Appetit, so I had had some faith in the idea.  But blue cheese sauces sound mega nasty to me.  And they CAN be nasty, trust me.

However, since this was a gorgonzola tomato sauce.  I thought it might work  And it really did.  The blue cheese flavor is subtle, just the way I like it.  And, btw, I chose this recipe because Scot loves blue cheese.  And he was a big fan of this pasta.  

I put onions in everything.  And garlic in most things.  But dare I say that this pasta could do without both?  Never thought I would. For me, I thought the texture of the onion and garlic was awkward.  But it was fine.  I might even recommend grating garlic in and leaving out the onion all together.  

And lastly, I definitely did not stick an entire stick of butter in this otherwise pretty healthy pasta dish (as the recipe states).  I'm not afraid of butter but it really wasn't necessary.  I used half a stick.  I also used a 28 ounce can of tomatoes and used the juice.  And you only need a little parm to sprinkle on the top (not a whole cup).  Maybe I should write a new recipe?  Nah.  Just do what you like.  

Penne with Gorgonzola Tomato Sauce

from FRAMED

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1 14 1/2-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes, drained, chopped

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried, crumbled

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

6 ounce Gorgonzola cheese

1 pound penne pasta

1 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and garlic and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in chopped tomatoes and basil. Cook until mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, using fork, beat butter with Gorgonzola until blended.

Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain well. Return pasta to pot.

Whisk Gorgonzola mixture into tomato sauce. Add sauce to pasta and stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with Romano and serve.

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 15 min., Cook time: 15 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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