Cavatappi with Artichoke Hearts and Parmesan Cream

I've been debating starting a food/cooking blog for over a year so I am really excited to make my first post. I think it will be so much fun to share with others what is cooking in my kitchen and participate in food blogging events. I made this dish last week and it was delicious, and the above picture has to be one of my favorite food pictures that I have taken. I figured I'd start my blog with this dish. It's a delicious combination of my a few of my favorites -- pasta, artichokes, and cream sauces, endulgent but totally worth is.

Here is the original recipe from foodandwine.com ...

Fusilli with Artichoke Hearts and Parmesan Cream

2 tablespoons butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup heavy cream

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

2 1/2 cups canned, drained artichoke hearts, rinsed and cut into halves or quarters
3/4 pound fusilli

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons chopped chives, scallion tops, or parsley

directions

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over moderately low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in the cream, salt, pepper, and artichoke hearts. Cook until just heated through, about 3 minutes.In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the fusilli until just done, about 13 minutes. Drain the pasta and toss with the cream sauce, Parmesan, and chives.

My changes: I went to the store for fussili, couldn't find any, and decided cavatappi would make a fine substitute. My only other changes were omitting the peper (I have never cared for black peper and leave it off most recipes) and sauteeing the quartered artichoke hearts in the butter garlic mixture for a minute or two to help them absorb the flavor before adding the cream. Also I almost always make a whole box of pasta, and then just plate it first and then add the sauce, I know some dishes taste better if you mix the pasta and sauce first, but I prefer it served this way.

This was an amazing dish. At first I thought it sounded almost too simple, and I thought the end result would be a little boring to the palate. I could not have been more wrong. I am an artichoke heart fan and this is a new favorite recipe featuring them.