That oldest kid of mine. Man. She comes up with some super good ideas. Just recently she's come up with the Fred and Ginger thing and then she asked me to make something with Alfredo sauce.
She's smart and stuff.
I took her request and made it a bit more interesting by making a Gouda alfresco something because I LOVE YOU TARGET FOR SELLING BAGS OF SHREDDED GOUDA!
What? You don't get that excited about shredded cheese? Well, I'm sorry for that. Cheese is really very exciting, though.
Cheese is even more exciting when it's covering pasta, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, and chicken. Well, in this case it's fake chicken, but you do with that what you will.
Penne Pasta with Gouda Cheese Sauce
1 box penne pasta, cooked according to box instructions
1 1/2 cups grilled chicken strips (I used Beyond brand)
1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers, drained
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon corn starch
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups shredded Gouda cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Prepare the pasta however the box tells you to prepare the pasta.
2. In a large skillet, prepare the chicken. Meat eaters do your thing however you like. Non-meat eaters, I suggest a few tablespoons of olive oil in the pan, the fake chicken, medium heat, and flipping occasionally until your fake chicken starts to brown.
3. Once the chicken is cooked, add in the roasted red peppers and artichoke hearts. Reduce the heat to low and get started on your gouda sauce while that stays warm.
4. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the corn starch. For the record, you can use flour instead. I prefer corn starch because I prefer a thicker sauce.
5. Whisk in the heavy cream. Again, you can substitute here and use milk instead. I prefer the thicker sauce, which cream delivers really well.
6. Once in the cream is heated to a slow boil, whisk in the cheese. Once the cheese melts, you should have a nice thick sauce.
7. Pour the sauce and pasta into the large skillet that's been holding your chicken.
8. You're done! This looks harder than it is, so feel free to accept everyone's compliments when they think you worked a ton to make this meal happen.