Pasta with gorgonzola sauce is rich, full of flavour and wonderful comfort food. It is super easy to prepare requiring few ingredients making it perfect for an easy weeknight dinner, date night or last minute get-togethers.
Cheese lovers can’t get enough of this gorgonzola cream sauce whether it’s mixed with pasta, poured over a juicy steak, chicken thighs or roasted vegetables.
This recipe uses spaghetti but you can use any type of fresh or dry pasta such as fettuccine, paccheri, penne or gnocchi.
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Ingredients
Gorgonzola
The star ingredient of this dish is the gorgonzola so make sure it is good quality.
Gorgonzola is a blue mould cheese made from cows’ milk. There are two types of gorgonzola cheese, dolce and piccante.
- Gorgonzola dolce is the young version of the cheese – it is soft and creamy, almost like butter with a mild, slightly sweet flavour and melts easily, making it perfect for sauces.
- Gorgonzola piccante is the mature version – it is tangy and sharper with a slight spiciness, and perfect for a cheeseboard alongside fruit and nuts.
This creamy gorgonzola sauce is made with gorgonzola dolce which is the milder version.
Allow the cheese to sit at room temperature before using, then remove the rind and cut into small cubes or crumble into the sauce using fingers.
Mushrooms
Sauteed mushrooms in butter with fresh sage adds layers of extra flavour to the dish. They can be left out (this will reduce the cooking time by 10 minutes) and the creamy blue cheese sauce will still be delicious.
Use chestnut or portobello mushrooms for this recipe or porcini for a stronger flavour.
Rinse the mushrooms to remove any dirt then pat dry using kitchen paper.
Slice and saute in butter with a couple of fresh leaves (or a pinch of dried sage)
How to use dried porcini
If using dried porcini, place in a small bowl and fill with water till just covered, then soak for around 15 minutes.
The soaking liquid will be full of flavour and should be strained to remove any grit before using.
You could add a couple of tablespoons of the liquid to the sauce for extra flavour, or reserve for another recipe such as a minestrone or chicken and mushroom pie.
How much pasta to use
Typically, 500 grams (1 pound) of pasta will serve:
As a first course – 6 people
As a main course – 4 people
Tips for boiling spaghetti
- To boil spaghetti, ensure the pan is filled with enough water so the spaghetti cooks fully submerged. The pan needs to be large enough so boiling water can move around each piece of pasta. This way the pasta will cook uniformly not stick together.
- Salt the water at the beginning, before it comes to a boil then stir so it becomes salted throughout.
- Add the spaghetti in one go and don’t worry if it protrudes from the top of the pot. As the spaghetti softens, stir with a wooden spoon so it becomes fully submerged and doesn’t stick together.
- Do not add oil as it will rise and float to top affecting the temperature of the water and cooking time.
- There is no standard time for cooking pasta, as cooking times will vary depending on the shape and type of grain used. Cook the pasta one minute less than the time on the packet so that last minute can be used to cook the drained pasta with the sauce. Watch the clock as undercooked pasta will be raw inside and inedible, while overcooked pasta will be soft, starchy and sticky and won’t taste good at all.
- When draining the pasta water away, reserve a small amount (around 120 millilitres, or half a cup) of the starchy pasta water to mix into the sauce as it will help the sauce stick to the pasta ensuring it is fully coated and add creaminess.
Substitutions and variations
Are you missing a few ingredients? Try these substitutions for the following:
Spaghetti – any shape pasta will do, fresh or dry. Follow the cooking instructions on the packet, reducing boiling time by 1 minute, then cook pasta in the sauce for the remaining minute with a little pasta water.
Gorgonzola – use any similar mild flavoured blue cheese with a soft and creamy consistency such as Dolcelatte, St Agur blue cheese, Danish Blue or Roquefort.
Mushrooms – can be omitted entirely and the sauce will still taste delicious. Alternatively, use another vegetable such as wilted spinach, sauteed zucchini, cavolo nero or fennel.
Make ahead
The gorgonzola cheese sauce (with or without mushrooms) can be prepared ahead and kept in a sealed container in the fridge for 2-3 days. Bring to room temperature or warm it up, adding a little pasta water before mixing into the spaghetti.
The spaghetti should be cooked just before serving then served straight away.
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📋 Recipe
Pasta Al Gorgonzola
Ingredients
Mushrooms
- 30 grams butter 2 tablespoons
- 200 grams chestnut, portobello or porcini mushrooms 7 ounces, cleaned and dried then sliced thinly (see notes below for porcini)
- 2 leaves fresh sage or a pinch or dried sage
Pasta
- 500 grams spaghetti 1 pound, or any type of pasta
- water for boiling pasta
- salt for boiling pasta
Cheese Sauce
- 200 grams gorgonzola dolce 7 ounces, rind removed
- 300 millilitres double cream 1¼ cup, heavy cream (US)
- 120 millilitres reserved pasta water ½ cup
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 50 grams parmesan cheese freshly grated, for garnish
Instructions
Mushrooms
- In a large skillet, melt the butter and saute mushrooms, sage and salt on medium low heat for around 10 minutes till softened (just a couple of minutes if using rehydrated porcini). Set aside, leaving the mushrooms in the pan.200 grams chestnut, portobello or porcini mushrooms, 30 grams butter, ½ teaspoon salt
Cook pasta
- Fill ¾ of a large saucepan with water, add salt and bring to a rolling boil.water, salt
- Add the pasta and cook to 1 minute less than the time indicated on the packet. Drain the pasta reserving 120 millilitres or ½ cup of the pasta water in a small bowl and set aside.500 grams spaghetti
Sauce
- Replace the skillet containing mushrooms on a medium low heat and stir in the cream. As tiny bubbles begin to form, crumble in the gorgonzola then stir with a wooden spoon till the cheese has melted. Taste and add more seasoning if required.200 grams gorgonzola dolce, 300 millilitres double cream
Combine pasta and sauce
- Pour the pasta into the sauce and mix till the pasta is fully coated. Cook for another minute on a medium heat, stirring constantly, adding the pasta water. Remove from the heat and serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper.120 millilitres reserved pasta water, 50 grams parmesan cheese, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Notes
Mushrooms
- Adding mushrooms is entirely optional and this step can be omitted. Use chestnut, portobello mushrooms or porcini for a stronger flavour.
- If using dried porcini, place in a small bowl and fill with water till just covered, the soak for around 15 minutes.
- The soaking liquid will be full of flavour and should be strained to remove any grit before using. You could add a couple of tablespoons of the liquid to the sauce for extra flavour, or reserve for another recipe.
Tips for boiling pasta
- To boil spaghetti, ensure the pan is filled with enough water so the spaghetti cooks fully submerged. The pan needs to be large enough so boiling water can move around each piece of pasta. This way the pasta will cook uniformly not stick together.
- Salt the water at the beginning, before it comes to a boil then stir so it becomes salted throughout.
- Add the spaghetti in one go and don’t worry if it protrudes from the top of the pot. As the spaghetti softens, stir with a wooden spoon so it becomes fully submerged and doesn’t stick together.
- Do not add oil as it will rise and float to top affecting the temperature of the water and cooking time.
- There is no standard time for cooking pasta, as cooking times will vary depending on the shape and type of grain used. Cook the pasta one minute less than the time on the packet so that last minute can be used to cook the drained pasta with the sauce. Watch the clock as undercooked pasta will be raw inside and inedible, while overcooked pasta will be soft, starchy and sticky and won’t taste good at all.
- When draining the pasta water away, reserve a small amount (around 120 millilitres, or half a cup) of the starchy pasta water to mix into the sauce as it will help the sauce stick to the pasta ensuring it is fully coated and add creaminess.
Substitutions & variations
- Spaghetti – any shape pasta will do, fresh or dry. Follow the cooking instructions on the packet, reducing boiling time by 1 minute, then cook pasta in the sauce for the remaining minute with a little pasta water.
- Gorgonzola – use any similar mild flavoured blue cheese with a soft and creamy consistency such as Dolcelatte, St Agur blue cheese, Danish Blue or Roquefort.
- Mushrooms – can be omitted entirely and the sauce will still taste delicious. Alternatively, use another vegetable such as wilted spinach, sauteed zucchini, cavolo nero or fennel.
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