I bought a great-tasting Bavarian herb and rye pasta from the Pappardelle’s Pasta booth at the Willits Winter Market this January and took it home with a hunk of Midnight Blue from Wendy Mitchell’s Avalanche Cheese Company. These ingredients, combined with local winter squash, parsnips, potatoes, beets and onions, which will usually last into March, make this a very satisfying pasta that I know you will fall in love with. It is best eaten with a really good friend or lover, so you can compete with each other on who makes the best sound effects of gastronomic approval!

1 potato, scrubbed and cut into 1⁄2-inch cubes
2 parsnips, scrubbed and cut into 3⁄4-inch circles
2 small or 1 large Delicata squash, scrubbed, halved lengthwise,
seeded and cut into 1⁄2-inch half moons (don’t worry about the skin—it is edible when cooked well)
1 large or 2 small yellow beets, scrubbed and cut into 1⁄2-inch chunks
1 red onion, cut into 1⁄4-inch half moons
4 cloves garlic, with skin left on
A few sprigs of rosemary
3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little extra for the pasta
Pinch each of sea salt, black pepper and nutmeg
1 pound Bavarian herb and rye fusilli, or other hearty wholegrain pasta
3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
2-3 ounces Avalanche Midnight Blue or other favorite blue cheese
3 tablespoons chopped Kalamata olives, if desired

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine the vegetables with garlic, rosemary, olive oil, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Roast on a sheet pan or in a glass casserole dish for 30 to 40 minutes, until lightly browned and soft.

While the vegetables are roasting, boil water for the pasta and add a generous amount of salt and a little olive oil. When water comes to a boil, add the pasta and cook until done. Drain and add a little more oil to coat the pasta and keep it from sticking. Set it aside for final assembly.

After removing the roasted vegetables from the oven, combine everything in a bowl so that the cheese melts and serve. If the pasta has grown cold, heat it all up together again in a sauté pan. Bon appétit, and see you this summer!