Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

More About This Recipe

• I'm normally not a huge creamy sauce fan. I find that they are sometimes bland, and then they get all gunky and sticky and kind of detract from the dish. (Not to mention they'll bust any diet you were hoping to maintain.) But sometimes it's worth it to get a bit luxurious. If I'm going to make a cream sauce, I want to make sure that it has some great flavor. And the texture should be just right, not at all gloopy or too thick. It should be a SAUCE, not a BINDER. This Gorgonzola Cream Sauce recipe is one of my favorites at the moment for all of these reasons. It's deceptively simple to make and the flavor is deep, but not too intense. Because it uses milk instead of cream, it's also a bit less rich. There are really only a few ingredients for this dish and the mushrooms are optional. I like it paired with mushrooms but it's perfectly fine on its own, over pasta! If you've never made a roux before, have no fear. It's really easy to do and is pretty much required for any thick sauce that you'll make in the kitchen. It's simply a mixture of butter and flour, cooked together, that thickens anything it touches. Start by melting the butter in a heavy medium-sized pot over medium heat. Once it's melted, whisk in the flour and cook it until the flour turns a light brown color. It should smell slightly nutty. It'll probably take 5 minutes to get there.
• For different recipes, you might need a roux that's darker or lighter. For this cream sauce, we want to keep the color of the roux pretty light. Next, slowly whisk your milk into the pan. Be careful not to pour the milk in all at once or the flour will form dumplings instead of melt into the sauce. So work slowly and whisk as you go. It should take a minute or so to get all the milk incorporated. The sauce will probably be pretty thin after you add all the milk, but just turn the heat down to low and simmer the sauce for a few minutes. It'll thicken up like a charm. If the sauce turns too thick at any point, you can always add more milk to lighten it up a bit. When it's to the consistency that you want, which should be like a light gravy, go ahead and stir in all your gorgonzola. Stir this together and season with salt and pepper. You can keep this simmering on low until you need it. Just give it a stir occasionally. If you're using mushrooms, sauté them in a tablespoon or two of oil until they are soft. Season them also with some salt and pepper. Once you have all the components ready (just cook pasta according to package), I like to pour the sauce straight over the pasta and then top it with mushrooms. (One thing I learned on my second serving of this delicious stuff: it's also fantastic with a few dashes of hot sauce.) So if you're looking for a way to get out of the alfredo sauce rut, give this sauce a shot. I'll think you'll be happy with it.