Al Forno's Penne With Tomato, Cream & 5 Cheeses

Wonderful. Easy. Thank you.

This dish was a major hit BUT I had to spice it up. And I did that by adding anchovy paste, a little at a time. By the end, I had added close to half a tube, not needing any salt. My 2 anchovy dislikers had NO idea it had been used. Anchovies added a nice depth of flavor. We all absolutely enjoyed our big second helpings!

From my internet research: http://food.hoggardwagner.org/2017/04/23/the-magic-meal-25-years-on-conchiglie-al-forno/

Al Forno is my favorite restaurant ever...I lived in Providence in the late 80s-early 90s and have had the book for a long time as well. Their baked pasta dishes and especially, the grilled pizza are all wonderful; favorite baked pasta dish from the book is "Conchiglie Al Forno with Mushrooms and Radicchio". This recipe was written up in the NY Times Mag on 09/16/1990, before the book was published. Sad that George is no longer on this earth; the restaurant is still in Providence. Do miss their attempt at a French Country restaurant on the first floor of the "new" building. Great timbales however I have found some recipes online.

When a recipe says "combine all ingredients except pasta" this means include the butter. Perhaps you meant all ingredients except pasta and butter. Think the instructions should be more accurate.

Alright so my husband hates tomatoes. I do not know what terrible suffering he endured to make it so, but that’s what I’m working with.
He loves lobster bisque though.

Y’all. Y’all hear me out.

Lobster bisque instead of cream and tomatoes. Throw in some asparagus for filling it out. Switch out the gorgonzola for something a little milder and lobster-friendly. Have y’self a glass of champagne cuz y’fancy and no one has to know that Costco lobster bisque is actually real good.

Y’all.
It’s amazing.

If you tried this and felt it was lacking, I highly recommend trying a good cream-based soup in place of just the cream.

Maybe it's because I wasn't very hungry when I ate this, but I wasn't as blown away as I expected to be. For me it turned out to be an alright dish but it wasn't something I'd want to serve to dinner guests - I think this was because I subbed more bland cheeses in place of the Gorgonzola and Fontina. Those must be what make the dish! I added some lightly sweated eggplant and fresh spinach which was very yummy, but if I make this dish again I'm going to be sure to use more flavorful cheeses than I did this round. I also found that my pasta took about 25 min in the oven (using a friends old oven, though) and I had to turn the pasta over every few minutes to make sure it all cooked through. It baked well in the end!

I thought this was a great base pasta. It takes longer to preheat the oven than it does to prep and bake. I added leftover sausage and Swiss chard from my garden. It's very satisfying and a genius way to use up what's in your fridge!

I made this today and all I can say is ...WOW! So delicious and we just loved the texture of the pasta and the creaminess of the sauce. I can imagine switching this up by adding some veggies or meat but for now, I'm sticking with the original. Why mess with success?

Maybe 20 years ago (or so) I had a similar dish at Il Fornaio in San Jose. The meal was memorable for not just the pasta dish, but for the fact that Janet Reno and three hunky Secret Service guys were at the next table. ;) That version used scamorza as one of the cheeses and layered in eggplant sliced and precooked as you might for eggplant parm, only without the coating. It was fantastic -- the eggplant was meltingly tender and the smoked mozz really made the rest of the dish sing. I'm going to try this recipe with those changes when I next make it.

Wonderful dish! I tried the recipe for the first time last night. I added in leftover chicken, pancetta and wilted spinach. I used half a can of diced tomato and one whole fresh tomato, I think next time I'll use all fresh tomatoes and more blue cheese!
Love the flexibility of this dish, a great one for cleaning out the fridge.

I made a great lasagna last night and I wish I would have added a little cream. I really prefer cottage cheese over ricotta. Ricotta is too gummy and never quite marries with the rest of the ingredients. : )

Wow - 2 cups heavy cream, 2 cups cheese and 2 oz butter, just for 4 people? I'm sure it tastes good, but heart attack city, here we come!

I don't really like putting my oven that high...has anyone tried making this recipe in a 350 or 400 degree oven? If so, how did it turn out? How long did you cook it for?

Thx

I really hated this. So heavy and goupy and bland. This liquids didn't cook all of the pasta so in was uneven.

Can you give a few brand names/examples of 'chopped canned tomatoes in heavy puree'? I stand and stare at all of the types of cannes/jarred ton a ties and I only ever see 'tomato puree,' which is really pureed (ie doesn't have chunks or bits of skin)...

I agree with just about everyone -- delicious! The one change I made ingredient-wise was to add the whole 14 oz can of diced tomatoes. I baked it in one 9x13 pan, and mine took about 12 minutes to bake. Finally, I did prepare mine in the morning and then refrigerated it - I took it out of the fridge about an hour before baking it.

Has anyone prepared this in the morning to serve for dinner? Can you do it in advance and just bake when company arrives?

My alterations/substitutions for a lighter version: Organic spelt penne pasta, greek yogurt (instead of heavy cream), and extra basil. It came out just right! Next time, I may try to add some hand-chopped tomatoes (evened out with a few extra pinches of salt), pinches of cayenne pepper, and shredded chicken :)

FIVE CHEESES?!?! Sounds too good to be true, right? This dish was out of this world amazing! You can also mix and match the cheeses, for instance: I used parmigiano reggiano instead of romano, for i think that romano can tend to be a little to bitter for me. But none the less this was BOMBSHELL, I totally recommend. http://babetteandbuttons.wordpress.com

This was ridiculously good. I used Parmesan instead of Romano and had to bake it for more like 15-20 minutes to get it bubbly and browned, but otherwise followed the recipe as written. It would easily serve 6 as a main course, with a salad. I might try some of the suggestions to lighten it up a bit next time, but it's so good as is that I'm perfectly happy to take the calorie hit as an occasional treat.

Anyone have experience putting it together (including parboiling the pasta), taking it to someone's else's house, and baking it there? Does the pasta absorb a lot of liquid during transit?

I tried this recipe years ago - Ina Garten offers the exact same one ("Penne with Five Cheeses"), though the Al Forno cookbook was published long before hers. I never have been able to understand the copyright rules for cookbooks!

I can't wait to try this with Trader Joes roasted pepper as a substitute for tomatoes! My son is sensitive to tomatoes so this is my go to sauce. thanks!

I made this today with whole wheat penne. I just parboiled the pasta for a 5 minutes longer since it was whole wheat. It was great, but I live in Providence and I think I would rather eat their pasta than make my own! For some reason, it tastes better in their restaurant!

I love to read the comments on how many ways to twist it up. I did my own twisting starting with Gluten free pasta. I had lots of shredded Trader Joe's cheese combo's so in they went. The really delicious twist was a Trader Joe's Red Pepper, eggplant and garlic spread that I tossed about 1\2 a cup of in. Also used yogurt instead of Ricotta and skipped the butter in exchange for shredded cheddar on top. I also made gluten free tiny croutons for the topping along with the shredded cheddar blend. Thank you for all the insights and of course for the original recipe. Amazing outcome. :)

500 degrees? celcius?don't think that normal owen can make this temp?

I often make this but use less heavy cream than called for and it's just fine. Typically I will add more tomato sauce as I can tomatoes. Also, I don't make this in individual gratin dishes but a large Le Creuset pot. And I cook the pasta a bit longer than the 4 minute parboil indicated; that never seems sufficient to me. Still, it's a superb dish.

This recipe is completely amazing. My parents bought this cookbook 20 years ago, and it's a family favorite. This is definitely the most requested recipe!

I also threw in some goat cheese that I had in the fridge, and used low-fat cottage cheese, and buttermilk. I added cayenne, and topped it w/ some panko. It was a great dish, with a big salad on the side.

I made this last night for a neighborhood potluck and it was a big hit. As if 5 cheeses was not enough, I had a little goat cheese in the fridge and threw that in as well. The only other change, I added some red pepper flakes. Great recipe!

I agree on following the recipe exactly (something I NEVER do)--it's completely flawless, and the gorgonzola just adds depth, no distinct flavor. My non-professional oven never truly reaches 500, so a more realistic baking time for us common folk is about 20 minutes--you want it to be brown and bubbling on top. For those of you who hate messing with last minute prep when you have company over, this largely can be prepared ahead. I put together all the ingredients (EXCEPT the fresh basil and pasta) in a sealed container and refrigerate, about 3 hours before dinner. While par-boiling the pasta, chop the fresh basil. When pasta is ready (again, follow the instructions, 3-4 minutes is plenty), mix it all together and immediately put in oven. This is one of those dishes that's best when you serve within 5 minutes of pulling it out of the oven, so consider that in your timing.

I followed the recipe exactly (very unusual for me!) as I was bringing it to a small dinner party. I prepared it at home and put it in friends oven for 10 min and was a big hit. parboiling pasta for 4 min then baking for 10 was just right.

Everyone at my house swore up and down this was the best mac and cheese type dish they have ever eaten. People kept going in for more long after they said they were full! The blue cheese mellows and adds wonderful depth...even picky kids will love it.

I have had that book for years. Why haven't I made this before? Silly me!

I made this original way and was enchanted. The second time, I used half and half instead of cream, whole wheat rotini, and a jar of red pepper spread/relish (from Trader Joe's) instead of the tomatoes. It worked so well! It is nice to know it can be lightened and a little whole grain action can be added with delicious and consistent results.

Wow! Delicious! I can't find the right words to describe how tasty this was.

The only changes I made was I used fresh tomatoes from the garden and I didn't quite have 1/4 lb of mozzarella. I did cook mine a little longer than what was noted in the recipe. I can't wait to make it again!

I must have mis-judged my cheese quantities because I found this a little soupy, so I think I'll back off on the cream next time... I also used fresh tomatoes because I've got lots from the garden right now. Ran one large brandywine through the food mill to get puree and finely chopped another. Also added chunks of natural, uncured deli ham, which totally rocked! Should have added some garlic, but I'll remember that next time. I don't know how they think this only feeds four people. I baked this in a 9x13 casserole and it could easily feed 8-10 people with a salad. Mine also took more than 25 minutes to cook, but again, I think I must have misjudged the amount of cheese.

There have been a number of comments referring to the "unhealthy" aspect of this dish. While the 5 cheeses may mean that it will always be rather "calorie dense", I have lightened it considerably in each of two versions: (1) I ditched the butter, used part-skim mozzarella for one of the cheeses, and substituted 1 cup 2% evaporated milk and 1 cup 2% milk plus a beaten egg for the heavy cream; (2) same as above, but substituted 1 cup no-fat "cream" (which we are now able to buy here) and 1 cup 0% Greek yogurt for the heavy cream. Both were good, but the second was better.

This was extremely heavy but of course delicious. I substituted Gruyere for fontina. Yum!

I made this exactly as written last night and it was divine. Hats of to Al Forno--they never disappoint. We also love their roasted sausage and grapes!!

That was absurdly good. I just used cheese on hand--fresh ricotta, provolone, mozzarella, even cheddar--and only had 1 cup of heavy cream. added a bit of 2% milk and also left out butter. This was so wonderful, so easy.

P.S. I will also leave the butter out next time. I see no benefit from it - only extra calories.

Oh, wow. I'm SO full. Was that ever rich and tasty. Okay, I made alterations, too. I used whatever bits of cheese I had in the cheese drawer, plus smoked mozarella, romano & ricotta. I used the full 14.5 oz. can of Muir Glen diced tomatoes, added crushed garlic (I just couldn't resist), added grape tomatoes (to pretend there's a healthy factor to this recipe). The garlic in it was excellent. Oh, I also used 1/2 whole wheat penne & 1/2 regular. I started the whole wheat about 1 minute before the regular. I kept wanting to squeeze a lemon in it, but I didn't. I think my intuition was right. Next time, I will. I'll also add quite a bit more basil next time and skip the smoked mozzarella (a bit over powering) but I'd use the Muir Glen roasted tomatoes. It turned out WAY too good. I think it should be served with an exercise routine next to the plate. ;)

This recipe seems to welcome modifications and, as usual, I took full advantage of just what I had on hand. Of course, I changed the cheese to just what I had chunks of (including some low fat swiss) but also used greek yogurt in place of ricotta, fresh, chopped tomatoes for the canned, and lastly left off the extra butter on top. It was still amazingly delicious, comforting, and insanely easy. I am usually a more health-conscious cook but this recipe will be a definite keeper.

This was terrific. I threw caution and calorie-counting to the wind and used quite a bit more cheese than called for because, well, I had a bunch left over from other cooking (used ricotta freshly made from Jennifer Perillo's recipe here on Food 52, provolone, Pecorino, mozzarella, and Swiss). I baked it in 2 largish dishes for more like 15 minutes and it came out beautifully.

I just made this with major modifications. Used 1-28 oz can of plum tomatoes whizzed up in blender. Maybe 1 cu whipping cream. Feta, havarti, mozz, parm. 1 bag frozen spinach, thawed & drained. Turned out well for a 20 min dish. I would not sprinkle parm on top again, it just lays there.
Has anyone made this w/ whole wheat pasta?

This was great. I had some leftover Boursin cheese and threw that in too! I did use
regular 1/2 & 1/2 and it was fine.
Cheers
irina

Ok, well this is freaking delicious. I didn't have all the right kind of cheeses, so I played around with it, successfully, I might add. I see that people are freaking out a bit about the fat. I will say, neither myself nor my husband have shy appetites, and the full dish made 8 servings for us. I just served it with a plain arugula salad, which complimented it well. I did double the tomatoes (used fire-roasted) and used a bit less cream. Totally worth it. And so easy! Oh, and I put maybe half the butter on top. I bet this would also be great with spinach.

Made this on Sunday and didn't change a thing. I think my heart almost stopped from all the cream, cheese and butter but it was well worth the coronary. I will definitely make this again, maybe just not so soon. ;)

Hi

What brand of canned tomatoes with heavy puree did you use in this recipe. I've never seen tomatoes in a can with heavy puree. Thanks

This sounds beyond fabulous. But, yeah, all that fat gives me pause. Any of 52's testers tried using fat-free half & half?? Think I could live with that!

I found this recipe about 10 years ago on Martha Stewart's website and have made it many times, everyone loves it!