2010-03-18

Gorgonzola Sauce

I found some reasonably priced Gorgonzola cheese, more expensive than my regular cheese threshold, but fine for a rare treat at $6/lb.  I've had good Gorgonzola sauce in a restaurant, so I decided to try to make my own.  My default source for recipes is allrecipes.com.  This means I tend to end up with a half dozen highly reviewed and widely different recipes.  Which is best?  I won't know because I am not going to try them all.  I just take a loose average adjusted to my taste.  I ended up with a good (and rich) dinner for two for about $3.50.

Gorgonzola cheese, 1/4 lb @ $6/lb = $1.50 (~400 calories)
Milk, skim, 1 cup @ $3.45/gal = $0.22 (80 cal)
Butter, 3 tbsp @ $2/lb = $0.19 (300 cal)
Flour, 1/2 cup = $0.08 (200 cal)
White wine, 1/4 cup, optional = $0.20-0.50 (45 cal)
Nutmeg, pinch, optional = ~$0.05
Spaghetti, whole wheat, 1/4 lb dry @ $1.29/lb = $0.32 (420 cal)

Served with 1/2 lb frozen green vegetables on the side @ ~$1.50/lb = $0.75 (50 cal)

Start boiling your water for the pasta.  Melt the butter in a quart pot on low.  Stir in the flour until it's foamy.  Add the pasta to the water when it starts boiling.  Stir in the milk to the butter-flour mixture (like a roux) and turn the heat up to low-medium.  Keep stirring the sauce as it gets warmer and thicker.  Add the wine if you are using it.  Crumble up your Gorgonzola and stir it gradually into the sauce the minute before your pasta is done.  Drain your pasta, put it on plates, and pour the sauce on top.

The Gorgonzola should melt quickly, and also thicken quickly as it cools, so be ready to eat when the pasta is done.  I honestly did not notice the nutmeg flavor, nor the bottom shelf chardonnay that I used, but recipe comments suggested that the wine is added to keep the Gorgonzola from forming a bad texture, and lemon juice (something acidic) would also work.

About $1.75 and 750 calories for each person.  Takes less than 15 minutes start to finish.  Serves two Americans.

1 comment:

  1. Half as much flour (so, 1/4 cup) worked much better, IMHO.

    Also, prodigious amounts of basil (~1 tsp.)

    ReplyDelete