Blue cheese and sage pasta

Hello everyone, I hope you had a happy and peaceful Christmas. On Christmas Eve I went to Melbourne for the day with one of my sisters so that we could take out our aunt to lunch. I anticipated it as the day from hell. I was quite sure that the flights would be massively delayed, the traffic to and from the airport would be horrendous and the time spent with my aunt consequently telescoped into about twenty minutes. I armed myself with a good breakfast and plenty of reading material.

Well, to my surprise, the flights were running pretty close to time (and in fact we made up time on the way down and landed ahead of schedule) and the traffic was extremely light. We were astounded at how polite Melbourne drivers are - there we were, driving along, being VERY mindful of sticking to the speed limit on an unfamiliar route, with a great big map spread out and visible to everyone who drove past, vigorously pointing and waving our arms around every time we stopped at traffic lights and had a minute to consider how to proceed. And to top off it all, the restaurant we visited in Yarraville was lovely! Very Melbourne (my code for dark and enclosed) with a nice fit out and great food. Sadly I was unable to squeeze in dessert, not having a lot of time to sit around and let my main settle before we took off back to the airport again.

So, with all that rushing around in the lead up to Christmas and of course a busy day on the 25th, I am put in mind of this soothing pasta dish that is the easiest thing in the world to whip up - perfect for lazy summer evenings. Now I know that lots of people think they don't like blue cheese, but really there are so many different varieties and you can get some really nice creamy ones. There is a very nice King Island blue you can buy at the supermarket which comes in a roll, and Milawa Blue is also one of my favourites. I also love the flavour of sage but find it's best used carefully as it can be a little overpowering if you use too much. This recipe comes from my SOS Spring/Summer book.

Have a happy new year! Love from Jane xx

Blue cheese and sage pasta

Serves any number of people - the quantities are flexible

Toss any pasta (gnocchi works well) with some cultured butter, grated parmesan or pecorino, crumbled blue cheese and chopped sage. Let the heat from the pasta melt the butter and cheese. It's divine.