Sunday, May 15, 2011

Baked Camembert Pasta

Imagine a gorgeous little box of Camembert covered in sliced garlic, herbs and a little bit of olive oil.  Now imagine that gorgeous little box of Camembert coming out of the oven all bubbly and melty and gooey and lovely....and then pouring that gorgeous cheese all over a bowl of pasta. 

The best part is, you don't have to imagine.  You can make it too!
Baked Camembert Pasta
Adapted from Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution
Serves 4-6

1 x 8 ounce box of Camembert cheese
2 cloves of garlic
1 sprig of fresh rosemary (I used basil)
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound dried rigatoni (I used shells)
6 cups (approx. 6 ounces) fresh spinach leaves (I omitted since I didn't have any on hand)
4 ounces Parmesan cheese

To prepare your pasta:
Preheat your oven to 350F. Open the box of cheese and unwrap it.  Place it back in the wooden container. Score a circle into the top of the skin, then lift it off and discard.  Peel and finely slice the garlic.  Pick the rosemary leaves off the woody stalk.  Lay the garlic slices on top of the cheese, sprinkle with some pepper and drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil.  Scatter over the rosemary leaves and gently pat with your fingers to coat them in the oil.  Grate the Parmesan.

To cook your pasta:
Place the box of cheese on a cookie sheet and put it into the preheated oven for 25 minutes, until golden and melted.  Meanwhile, bring a large pan of salted water to a boil.  When your cheese has 10 minutes left to cook, add the rigatoni to the pan and cook according to the package instructions.  When the pasta is cooked, add the spinach to the pan - it only needs cooking for 10 seconds or so.  Drain the pasta and spinach in a colander over a large bowl, reserving some of the cooking water.  Return the pasta and spinach to the pan and let it wilt.  Drizzle with a couple of good lugs of extra virgin olive oil and add the grated Parmesan.  If the sauce is too thick for you, add a splash of the reserved cooking water to thin it out a bit.  Season with salt and pepper and give it a good stir.  Remove the cheese from the oven.

To serve your pasta:
Divide the pasta between your serving bowls.  Either drizzle the melted Camembert on top or pop the box of cheese on the table and let everyone help themselves to a lovely, gooey spoonful.
 


19 comments:

  1. Oooh I love how the cheese looks with the garlic, basil and olive oil on top!!! So goood!

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  2. My stomach is totally growling over this right now!! Yummmmm:)

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  3. OMG!!! That's unreal Kim! I ordered this cookbook, can't wait to start cooking from it. I've never heard of anything like this, it's insane, lol! YUM!

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  4. Wow, this has been a huge hit with the IHCC-ers. I have got to try it!

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  5. You just reminded me of how much I love camembert. Pasta is beautifully adored with this cheese.

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  6. Sigh.
    That is all I can say. after that first photo, my eyes are bugging out of my head and my mouth is hanging open.

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  7. I've never had camembert cheese before, but now I definitely want to try it!

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  8. I almost can't breathe this looks so good.

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  9. I am totally feeling the cheese love!
    *kisses* HH

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  10. Another recipe I'd adore. I love camembert. Leave it to Jamie!

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  11. This does look ooey-gooey and really good. ;-) Such a popular choice with everyone who has made it too.

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  12. oh my gosh, this looks insanely good, look at that gooey cheese! this would be great for company, so impressive, but without need to spend all day in the kitchen.

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  13. I must confess I'd never in a million years have thought of doing this, but I sure am going to try it. I can almost imagine the taste. WOW.

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  14. This is an amazing recipe, I love your idea of using basil instead of rosemary!

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  15. Wow! So simple, and yet so flavorful. I have all the ingredients on hand. I LOVE Jamie Oliver.

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  16. I love simple delicious pasta dishes like this one. That Camembert is calling my name! :)

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  17. Oh my, oh my! I think this recipe converted a bunch of cooks :-) I will be trying it for sure.

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  18. I have some brie that I need to use. I think it would work will with this recipe? Yum!

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