There once was a time where I did not know how to cook. At all. The Hubs and I sustained in our early days of marriage on Pasta Roni, frozen chicken patties on a George Foreman grill, and Hamburger Helper. Happy times, sad menu. God bless the man, he never complained. To this day, though, he can't eat Pasta Roni. And thankfully he doesn't have to.

This was the very first gourmet dish that I learned how to make. After months of enduring dinner-from-a-box, I think the Hubs was ready to marry me all over again after he tasted this. I found it in a random cook book that I no longer have, because the second dish I made from the book was so horrendous that I got rid of the book (and the food) immediately.

I've improved upon it over the last ten (OMG...TEN!) years to what it is today. Which is pure lick-the-pan-until-it's-gone deliciousness.

Gorgonzola pasta is one of my go-to dishes when we're having people over and I want to make something that seems really fancy but that I don't have to fuss over too much. Luxurious creamy cheese sauce is usually pretty popular in my circles. Unless you hate blue cheese. If that's the case, don't touch this recipe with a ten foot pole.

If you don't know much about it, Gorgonzola is just a fancy type of blue cheese. They taste really similar, so you can always substitute good o'l blue if you can't find Gorgonzola.

the goods:

2 tbsp unsalted butter
5-6 oz Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup dry white wine (or use more cream)
1.5 tsp corn starch
Fresh black pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh herbs (oregano and sage work really well)
8 oz Fettuccine (or other long pasta)

how to:

STEP ONE: Get your pasta water boiling and cook per package directions. Fresh pasta is truly amazing with this dish; I would highly recommend it.

Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted, add your crumbled Gorgonzola cheese to the melted butter, reserving just a bit for garnish later. Stir this as it melts so it doesn't burn.

STEP TWO: In a separate cup, whisk together the cream, wine, pepper, and corn starch until there are no lumps. If you don't want to use wine, you can just use a full cup of cream. But half the fun of cooking is drinking wine while you do it, in my humble opinion. You do not need to add any salt; the cheese has plenty of salt in it. Add this to the cheese mixture and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low. The mixture should thicken to the consistency of Alfredo sauce over the next couple of minutes. Once it's thick, turn off the heat. Add your herbs now.

STEP THREE: Drain your noodles, return to the pot, and add your amazing sauce (if you haven't eaten it all with a spoon already). Garnish with remaining Gorgonzola cheese.

Friends, I'm telling you, if you like blue cheese, you will DEVOUR this dish. This recipe should serve 4 normal adults, but many, MANY times the two of us have eaten it all. And licked the bowls clean. I'm not ashamed.