Linda loves cheese. Granted, so does almost everyone. But Linda realllllyyyy loves cheese. So much so that she created her famous dish, Linda’s Five-Cheese Pasta, to ensure she fits all the cheese she can into her dinner! Pecorino Romano, ricotta, Gorgonzola, fontina, and mozzarella — melty, sharp, tangy, funky, creamy — all the cheese you can imagine getting scooped up by tender penne pasta, in a luscious sauce with rich sun-dried tomatoes. Linda’s Five-Cheese Pasta is for cheese lovers, pure and simple.
Ingredients
- 1 (8.5-ounce) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup crushed tomatoes in thick tomato purée
- 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, freshly grated, plus more, to taste, for topping
- 1/2 cup fontina cheese, shredded
- 1/3 cup Gorgonzola, crumbled
- 3 tablespoons ricotta cheese
- 1/4 pound fresh mozzarella, cubed
- 6 leaves fresh basil, chopped
- 1 (16-ounce) box penne pasta
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
Directions
Step 1 –Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Step 2 –Drain the sun-dried tomatoes and pat them dry with a paper towel.
Step 3 –In a large bowl, add the sun-dried tomatoes, the heavy cream, the crushed tomatoes, 1/2 cup of the Pecorino Romano, the fontina, the Gorgonzola, the ricotta, the mozzarella, and the basil and stir to combine.
Step 4 –In a large pot of salted, boiling water, add the pasta and boil for 5 minutes.
Step 5 –Drain the pasta well in a colander.
Step 6 –Add the parcooked pasta, the salt, and the pepper to the tomato mixture and toss to combine.
Step 7 –In a large oven-safe pan with a lid, add the pasta mixture and spread it out evenly.
Step 8 –Dot the pasta mixture with the butter.
Step 9 –Sprinkle the top of the casserole with the extra Pecorino Romano cheese.
Step 10 –Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
Step 11 –Remove the lid and bake until the top is browned and bubbly, about 15-20 minutes.
Step 12 –Serve.
