Allium and Blue Cheese Pasta
When onions, shallots and garlic caramelize it’s perfection—when the oven does all the work even better. This recipe uses all of the alliums—their inherent sweetness comes through when baked low and slow and are the perfect match for the bright funk of blue cheese (if you’re blue cheese adverse use goat cheese, or ricotta can be stirred in at the end when the cooked pasta is added to the onions). While any pasta shape will do, a shorter type such as fusilli or orecchiette that can catch the sauce is best.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
2 to 3 onions, thinly sliced
3 to 4 large shallots, thinly sliced
4 to 5 garlic cloves, sliced
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon chili flakes
¼ pound wedge of blue cheese
1 pound short dry pasta
½ cup chopped flat leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
¼ cup grated Pecorino, plus more for serving
METHOD
Preheat oven to 400F and arrange rack to the middle position.
Thinly slice onions, shallots and garlic. You should have about 4 cups. Add to a 9 x 13 baking dish along with olive oil, salt and pepper and toss to combine. Arrange evenly in the dish, then nestle the blue cheese wedge in the center. Roast for 45 minutes, tossing onions halfway through.
In the meantime, cook pasta in well-salted water according to package instructions to al dente. Reserve ½ cup of pasta water.
Remove baking dish from oven and stir in reserved pasta water. Add pasta, parsley and pecorino and mix until thoroughly combined.
To serve, spoon pasta into bowls, finish with pecorino, garnish with flat leaf parsley and serve.