Sunday, December 19, 2010

Pasta Twists With Beer-Cheese Sauce

8 oz pkg tricolor corkscrew macaroni or rope macaroni (gemelli)
2 medium carrots, bias-sliced
1 small zucchini, coarsely chopped
1 cup mushrooms, quartered
2 Tbs margarine or butter
2 Tbs all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1/4 cup beer
3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1) Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; keep warm.
2) Meanwhile, for sauce, in a medium saucepan cook carrots, zucchini, and mushrooms in margarine or butter until vegetables are tender. Stir in flour. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more. Add beer and heat through. Remove pan from heat. Gradually add cheddar cheese, stirring just until melted. If desired, season to taste with salt and pepper.
3) Arrange pasta on individual plates or a large platter. Spoon the sauce over pasta. Makes 4 main-dish servings.

Review: This was quite an interesting dish.  I used New Castle Brown Ale, as Mike said that would be the best fit to go with the cheese flavor.  As it was cooking, we both marveled at the smell - it smelled like baking bread (though Mike said it smelled like popcorn).  Unfortunately, this sauce is more yeasty than cheesy.  I was hoping for cheesy.  :(

2 comments:

  1. I got a "not really." He claims it's edible, but there are many other things he prefers. :)

    ReplyDelete