Friday, October 9, 2009

A jug of wine, a loaf of bread and...


The Rubaiyat of Persian poet Omar Kayyam coined and completes the phrase with "thou" but the photograph is what happens when your very own thou forgets the cheese.

Stilton, double Gloucester, camembert, gorgonzola, and on and on and on. Simple, little muss, deeply satisfying.

Need something cheesy and hot, but bored with macaroni and Velveeta? Here's a bit of heaven from Marcella Hazan. Pasta with gorgonzola sauce.

For every pound of boiling pasta (fettucini, elbow macaroni if you prefer, but use gnocchi and die happy) place three tablespoons of butter in a skillet. Add four ounces creamy gorgonzola (Roma deli's great for this) and 1/3 cup milk. Place heat on low, add two teaspoons of salt (be fearless!) and mush the cheese as everything melts together. Drain the pasta, add to skillet, along with 1/4 cup heavy cream and 1/3 cup grated Parmesan. Toss. Serve. Devour.

No wine glasses or hearts will be broken over abandonment issues with this dish...

8 comments:

  1. It's a wonderful post, but don't get me started on Roma. I know Everyone else loves the owner, Kelly calls him "applecheeks," but he's the fly in my gorgonzola. The man hates me. But his cheese has crack in it, I'm addicted, so must return again and again. I was there the other day -- no one was in line -- I asked for a carton of shredded cheese, and you know what he did? He disappeared into the backroom, came back with an armload of rolls and said, "First I have to make sandwiches." I flounced out, though he knew I'd be back another day.

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  2. Velveeta?? What's that? Lovely recipe - will try it as soon as I can. Mmm.

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  3. Hey hiker, sounds like you're dealing with a CheeseNazi there!

    This recipe is lovely, but for my lactose-intolerant better half it would be lethal!

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  4. Nice recipe, with a cup of wine (maybe two) can be a perfect dinner. I do it often. Ciao Desiree, have a nice week end :D

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  5. Don't think the same thought hasn't occurred to me, Karen. Another time there was a line and he shaved off a slice of cheese for everyone but me. The man to my left said, "Here, you can have mine." I felt like the poor little matchgirl.

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  6. That's a hell of a photo.

    I wish I had more of a taste for cheese varieties. I'm a cretin when it comes to dairy.

    Hiker, was there a precipitating incident?

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  7. M-it IS divine! Sorry about the carb component;
    Matchgirl, I mean, AH--hmmm, maybe this is the one man in a million who prefers brunettes? Go in cognito next time; and I guess I shouldn't mention the olive oil he gets from his brother in Sicily...
    K-Velveeta is a bright orange processed cheese food, that you can nuke and spread. They also add red and green bits to use in Mexican recipes. (!)
    Karen: I think the appropriate terminology would be Facheeseta...
    I--Does your mom enjoy your cooking?
    P-okay--onto less dairy...

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