Penne and Asparagus with Tomato Cream Sauce

The Saturday Morning Market in downtown St. Petersburg has recently become a favorite outing for Puppy Daddy and me. I can't believe it has been in existence for ten years and we have just now discovered it. The market has several fresh produce stands, baked goods, gourmet foods, arts, crafts and prepared foods. We love buying our fresh produce for the week and fresh bread. This week we bought Tomato-Basil Penne from Pappardelle's. They make over 100 flavors of dried pasta and fresh-frozen ravioli, sauces and pestos, each handcrafted in small batches using every facet of traditional Italian pasta making techniques. It is sold only in a few gourmet shops and farmers markets across the country. We bought the very last of the Tomato-Basil Penne on Saturday. The poor customer right after us had to make an alternate choice. This recipe uses the pasta and fresh asparagus from the market. I served this pasta with delicious rosemary rolls, also from the market. If you haven't been, I encourage you to check it out soon!

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
4 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup milk
4 TB prepared marinara sauce
1/2 lb asparagus, sliced into 2 inch pieces
1 lb penne pasta
salt

Directions
Fill a large pot with water add a generous amount of salt and bring to a boil. When water is boiling add pasta and cook according to directions on the package.Add asparagus to the pot for the last 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile make the sauce. In a medium sized sauce pan melt butter over medium heat. When melted add cream cheese. Stir until melted. Add milk and marinara sauce. Continue to stir until sauce is melted. Drain pasta and asparagus, and add to tomato cream sauce. Stir to coat pasta.