Baked Penne with Spinach & Gorgonzola-Bechamel Sauce

3 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups Bechamel sauce
4 ounces Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (about 2/3 cup)
1 pound flat leaf spinach
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp red chilli pepper flakes
1 red onion, minced
salt
2 tbsp chopped chives
1 pound penne pasta ( substitute: Ziti)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat the oven to 375F

Use 1/2 tablespoon of the butter to grease a 13×9 baking dish and set it aside. Remove and discard the stems from spinach. Wash clean, shake the leaves to remove excess moisture but do not dry them. Set aside.

Bring water to a boil in a large pot for cooking pasta. Add salt and the pasta. Cook until al dente (around 8 minutes).

In the meanwhile, pour the bechamel sauce into a pot large enough to hold the pasta when cooked. Warm it on medium heat, add in the Gorgonzola and stir until the cheese has melted (around 5-7 minutes). Add in the chives, take it off the heat and set aside.

Heat the remaining 2 1/2 tablespoons butter in a pot. Add the onion, garlic, red pepper flakes and sautée over medium heat until translucent, roughly 5 minutes. Add the spinach and stir to coat the leaves evenly with butter. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach has wilted, roughly 5 minutes.

Stir the spinach mixture including any liquid in the pot , into the bowl with the bechamel. Stir in the pasta also into this and toss to coat well. Pour the mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle the Parmigiano-Reggiano over the pasta.

Bake, stirring twice, until the pasta has absorbed most of the sauce in the baking dish and is just beginning to turn golden brown, about 25 minutes. Serve with your favorite bread.