This Italian comfort food is probably one of my favorite recipes. It combines simple ingredients, like pasta noodles, Fontina and vegetables, but the outcome is so delicious that it's hard to beat.
Set a large pot of salted water over medium heat and bring to a boil.
Sauté the garlic in the butter in a saucepan on low heat for about 5 minutes (or until soft).
Boil the cubed potatoes in the pot of boiling water for about 5 minutes.
Without removing the potatoes, add the cabbage to the same pot in which you are boiling the potatoes, and allow it to cook for an additional 5 minutes.
Now add the pizzoccheri buckwheat pasta into that same boiling water with the vegetables, lower the heat just a little, and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes, or until al dente.
While your pasta is cooking, go ahead and coat a baking dish with butter, and preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Now drain the potatoes, pasta and cabbage. Fold the cubed Valtellina Casera cheese, Fontina cheese or Gruyere cheese and the sauteed garlic butter into the mixture, adding more butter as needed to ease the mixing process.
Pour the entire mixture into the oven-safe dish and top it off with the grated Grana Padana or Parmesan cheese.
Put the baking dish in the oven and bake for 10-20 minutes, or until you see that the cheese melts on the top.
Remove the dish from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.