Macaroni with Roasted Pepper Sauce and Goat Cheese Recipe

We are using fresh baby spinach and parsley for this recipe. If you want, you can use defrosted frozen spinach, about 1 cup, and skip the blanching in step 1.

Yield: Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

8 ounces baby spinach
1 bunch parsley, tough stems removed, about 1 cup packed of leaves
1/2 pound (2 cups) dry elbow macaroni pasta
Salt for pasta water
1 Tbsp cream
3 Tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, minced
3 Tbsp flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups shredded white sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon herbs de provence (or dry tarragon or Italian herb mix)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce and/or 2 finely chopped anchovies
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt to taste

Method

1. Blanch spinach and parsley: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the spinach and parsley and blanch for 1 minute. Use a slotted spoon to remove the wilted spinach and parsley to a bowl of ice water. (Do not discard the blanching water, you will use it to cook the macaroni.)
2. Strain the spinach and parsley. Wrap in paper towels and squeeze out excess moisture.
3. Use blanching water to cook macaroni: Return blanching water to a boil. Add salt to the pasta water, 1 Tbsp salt for every 2 quarts of water. Add the macaroni pasta and cook until very al dente. (If the box of macaroni says to cook it 7 minutes, cook it 5. It will continue to cook and absorb moisture once you mix it with the sauce.)
4. Drain the macaroni, rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, and set aside.
5. Visit simplyrecipes.com for full method.

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