EDF Cooking Contest--Cranberry Challenge

[Ron Burgundy]

<font color="brown"> Prosciutto-wrapped Roasted Fennel Bulb with Cranberry Penne &amp; Cheese </font>

Start by making a cranberry paste by processing some dried sweetened cranberries and a little water. Cut out the core of a fennel bulb. The cores are a little tough and you also want some steam to be able to get into the fennel. Take some foil and form it into a shallow bowl shape on a baking sheet. Spoon the cranberry paste into the hollowed fennel core and on the foil. Put the fennel in the foil bowl, core side down. Make sure it's stable and won't fall over. Wrap a few slices of prosciutto around the fennel. Cover with foil, and poke some holes around to let some steam escape. Put it in a 375 oven for about 40 minutes. This doesn't cook the fennel all the way, which is the way I like it. If you want a softer, more cooked fennel, then keep it in for closer to an hour. When it's done, cut it in half, and cut out the little pieces of stalk that are usually in the middle of the fennel. That part is usually tough and fibrous. Fill the centers with the cranberry paste, which should have some rendered fat in it.

Cook some pasta in cranberry juice with a pinch of salt and sugar. When it's cooked, pour out the juice and add some evoo, s&amp;p, and cheese. I used provolone here. It tasted really good. The only problem is it turns the cheese red, so I added some extra cheese on top for plating.

There's also a piece of garlic toast on the bottom.