Photo: Tenderloin Steaks with Gorgonzola and Herbs and Roasted Garlic and Grape Tomato Pasta with Basil and Arugula Recipe
I made garlic-centric meal for my in-laws, not normally fans of garlic, and they cleaned their plates! My husband was so happy to see his parents FINALLY embrace garlic (his first love - I'm number 3 behind Scotch) that he literally cried about it later that night!
Ingredients
- Salt
- 1 pound penne rigate
- 2 pints grape tomatoes
- 8 to 10 cloves garlic, cracked but left in skins, plus 1 clove peeled and halved
- 3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus some, for drizzling
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 4 tenderloin steaks about 1 1/4-inch thick
- 2 scallions, whites and greens
- 8 to 10 fresh sage leaves
- A handful flat-leaf parsley
- 1 cup Gorgonzola crumbles
- 1 cup grated Parmigianino-Reggiano, a few generous handfuls
- 1 cup basil leaves, about 20, torn or shredded
- 2 cups coarsely chopped arugula
Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Place a pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil for the pasta. Salt water, add pasta and cook to just-shy of al dente. It needs to have a real bite left to it because it will sit in the sauce for 2 minutes later on and continue to cook. Heads up: you will need 2 ladles of starchy cooking water just before draining, about 1 1/2 cups.
Place the grape tomatoes on a cookie sheet with the garlic. Coat the tomatoes and cracked garlic with 3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil and season with lots of salt and pepper. Roast 20 minutes.
Season the steaks with salt and pepper. Rub with a clove of cut garlic. Coat the steaks lightly in extra-virgin olive oil.
Chop the scallions, whites and greens. Thinly slice the sage and finely chop the parsley. Combine the scallions and herbs with the Gorgonzola crumbles.
When you are a few minutes away from taking the tomatoes out of the oven, heat a skillet over high heat. Add the steaks and caramelize the meat on both sides, a minute and a half per side should do it.
Take the tomatoes and garlic out of the oven. Turn the oven off. Top the meat with the gorgonzola and transfer the skillet to the oven. Let the meat sit in the hot oven 4 to 5 minutes. The Gorgonzola will melt down over the meat and the steaks will be tender and pale pink inside.
Remove the roasted garlic from the skins and mash into a paste with the side of your knife. Transfer the garlic paste to the bottom of a pasta bowl. Using a fork, mix the garlic into 2 ladles of starchy pasta cooking water, about 1 1/2 cups. Add the tomatoes to the bowl and mash them with a potato masher until a sauce forms and tomatoes are well combined with garlic broth. Add penne, grated cheese, arugula and basil and toss a minute or 2 to allow the pasta to soak up flavors.
Serve meat with pasta alongside.
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By A Colorful Plate
New York, NY
on April 13, 2012
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This pasta recipe is one of my staples! Rachel's amazing concept of garlic tea is so transferable. The roasted tomatoes and garlic give it just a rustic quality, feels so organic and homey but the addition of arugula makes it so chic! Check out other great meals on my food blog A Colorful Plate!
By novicedeltacook
on February 21, 2012
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I made this tonight and it was AMAZING. My pasta was not a super love, but the tenderloin with the Gorgonzola and Herbs was delicious. My husband couldn't stop raving about it. I did enjoy roasting the garlic and the tomatoes, but the pasta wasn't something I would write home about. I did everything according to the recipe...however.... the best part of the meal was the steak. I will try this again, I have read a few of the reviews... so I will look at how they did the pasta to see how I can improve that aspect of the meal.
By Mary Bernier-So...
Raleigh, NC
on February 19, 2012
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This is one of Rachel's best recipes. I’ve now made this with steak, chicken and with spaghetti garnished with sauteed shrimp. I had a slow day and roasted my grape tomatoes for 4 hours on 250 degrees F. I used multi grain spaghetti and took the pasta water directly from the pot a few minutes before the end of cooking and put it into a large skillet with a little olive oil to combine it with the garlic paste making Rachel's "garlic tea". I mixed in the mashed tomatoes. I added the spaghetti directly from the pot the Italian way without draining. This way the spaghetti does not stick together and there is no need to add additional olive oil. I mixed in the cheese, basil and arugula. I turned it immediately into the pasta bowl, added my sautéed shrimp to the top, and garnished with cheese and chopped basil. Fabulous! I think the secret really is the garlic "tea". Make sure you don't skimp on the pasta water or the garlic. I used two full heads of roasted garlic.
Read all 102 reviews