Goat Cheese Mac & Cheese

Goat Cheese Mac & Cheese

1 cup pitted Mediterranean olives
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6 oz goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 tsp thyme
12 oz penne pasta

1. Chop olives in food processor until finely chopped.
2. Place in large bowl and add garlic, olive oil, goat cheese and thyme.
3. Cook pasta until al dente, saving some of the cooking water.
4. Toss pasta with cheese mixture, adding pasta water for desired consistency.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Notes: I don't care for olives, so I made half with and half without. It's still good without the olives. The recipe can easily be split in half to feed 2 people, too.

Recipe Origination: Shannon Downey sent this one from a Mac and Cheese book.