Pantry Cooking, Part 4

When we were on our cruise back on October, I got a chance to not only take a mini cooking class, but also sit down and interview the Executive Chef of the ship, Allan Daly. The sheer numbers involved in putting out the meals on a daily basis are staggering. I wish I could find my notebook, but I think I may have packed in the midst of getting ready for our upcoming move. What I do remember from the notes is that on our ship, there was an astounding 131 cooks from 13 countries. On our next cruise, I’m going to remember to ask for a tour of the kitchen, because I’d love to see how they manage to stay out of everyone’s way. They did offer me a tour, but it was on the last night, and things were crazy enough.

During the cruise, the kitchen staff prepares fifteen thousand meals, and the team is made up of Chef de Cuisines, Sous Chefs, Chef de Parties, Demi Chefs and Commis de Cuisine. The class I took featured two recipes, a Penne Del Goloso and an Apple Strudel. Tonight, the pasta recipe hit our table.

Continuing with our ongoing theme of “pantry meals,” if you have a well-stocked kitchen, you need to only buy the zucchini, gorgonzola, and prosciutto to make tonight’s recipe. It cost me under $5 since I had everything else on hand.

The pasta is very simple to make, and very forgiving. It’s perfect for a quick weeknight meal, and fancy enough that it would work for company as well. If you missed the other posts in this series, you can check them out here: Part One, Part Two, and Part 3.

With the basil and the zucchini in tonight’s recipe, it’s the perfect submission for Kalyn’s Weekend Herb Blogging.

Penne Del Goloso
Recipe courtesy of Executive Chef Allan Daly
Serves 4

12 oz penne pasta
2 oz sliced zucchini
2 oz prosciutto, cut into strips
2 oz gorgonzola cheese
3 oz white wine
6 oz bechamel sauce
1 oz onion, finely diced (I used one small)
1 oz chopped garlic
1 oz chopped basil
3 oz cream
2 oz olive oil
salt, pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in pan and slowly cook onions and garlic without color. Add prosciutto, zucchini and cook until prosciutto is crispy. Add gorgonzola, mix well. Add wine, stir until gorgonzola is dissolved. Add cream and white sauce, bring to a boil and cook until creamy in consistency. Mix in pasta until hot, add basil and season as required.

P.S. If you want to skip the bechamel step (I did), just add in heavy cream and about a half-teaspoon of flour to thicken it a bit. Worked like a charm.

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