My first savory post. It had to be pasta. Made with butter, cheese and cream, this pasta sauce is laden with calories. Diet conscious readers, turn away now :-)
Among the two basic pasta sauces, white and red, which is your favorite? Mine is red but it's always nice to make a white one as well sometimes, just for a change. But since it's rich in calories, I make it less frequently, mostly on special occasions. The first time that I had made this pasta, was on our wedding anniversary. I had teamed it up with Orange Caramel Custard. The rich, salty peppery taste of pasta in white sauce and the finalé of a sweet, tangy and caramely orange custard dessert, best anniversary dinner ever!
The texture of this white sauce is very smooth, silky and absolutely luscious.It has to be, after all it's made with delicious ingredients: butter, cheese and cream! and is topped with broccoli and baby corn. Feel free to substitute any other cheese of your liking. Also, you can use more veggies like peas, carrots if you want to. It's a pretty adjusting dish.
Do you know more than 400 types of pasta exist? Wow! With so many types of dry pasta very easily available now, it can be quite confusing to choose one. I always prefer to buy Penne or Penne Rigate or any type of pasta that is tubular in shape since it holds the sauce quite well. When you bite into it, the sauce oozes out and the flavors burst in your mouth. Yumm..heaven!
Serves 2
Recipe Source: Bakingyummies
Ingredients
200 grams / 7 ounces dry pasta of your choice
6 to 7 florets of broccoli
4 to 5 baby corns
4 tablespoons salted or unsalted butter
2 medium cloves garlic
1+1/4 cup semi skimmed milk
6 tablespoons unsweetened heavy or double cream (or even whipping cream)
about 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
salt to taste
crushed black or white pepper (I use black)
Method
In a small pan, bring water to a boil. Add salt. Once it starts boiling again, add the broccoli and cook till it is tender, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Using a strainer, remove the cooked broccoli and refresh in cold water to stop it from cooking further. Keep aside.
In the same pan and boiling water, cook the baby corns till they are soft. Drain and refresh in cold water. Keep aside.
For the pasta, in a large pan, bring water to a rolling boil. Add salt. Once it starts boiling again, add the dry pasta and cook stirring frequently, until al dente (when there's a slight bite left to it). Drain and keep aside. If the pasta sticks to each other, add 1 teaspoon of oil and toss the pasta.
Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. Heat butter in a pan. Add a little oil to prevent it from burning. On medium heat, sauté the garlic till it turns light golden. Add milk and mix well. Bring the milk to a boil. Reduce the heat and add cream. Stir well and cook stirring constantly for about 5 mins or until the mixture thickens.
Turn off the heat and mix in the cheese. If the sauce is not thick enough, put the pan on the flame again and cook on low heat till it thickens to your desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. This gravy can be prepared up to a day ahead and kept in the refrigerator covered. Reheat the sauce when serving.
Add the pasta and the veggies to the sauce and mix well but gently. If the sauce is too thick, add a little warm milk. Tastes best when hot!
Enjoy your home made Creamy and Cheesy Pasta.
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