Broccoli and Pasta

This is for people who are willing to eat broccoli soft (rather than the firmer stir-fried type) since it sort of breaks down a little and becomes a part of the sauce that sticks to the pasta. It only takes about 20 minutes from when the water begins to boil the first time.

Fill an 8-quart stock pot with cold water up to around 4 inches from the top. Add salt to the water according to your taste. (I taste a small spoon of the water once it comes to a boil just to make sure it has enough salt; be careful and blow on it first so you don’t get burned.) Cover and bring to a boil. While waiting for the water to boil, if you don’t have a garlic press, chop the garlic finely and set aside. Once the water comes to a boil, add the pasta and 1 1/2 bags of frozen broccoli. (You could add the entire second bag, if you like a lot of broccoli, but try it the first time using only half of the second bag.)

Cover and watch carefully so it doesn’t boil over. Once it starts boiling again, set the lid on to cover only halfway. This will keep the water boiling, but will also help keep it from boiling over. You could also add an extra tablespoon of olive oil to the water if you like. Set the timer for the pasta according to the package directions once it comes back to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a smaller saucepan, add the olive oil, chopped garlic (or if you have a garlic press, press the garlic into the olive oil), and red pepper flakes, to taste. Turn on low heat and gently saute the garlic and pepper until garlic starts to turn light golden brown. Take off heat immediately or it will burn. Set aside on a cold burner.

Once the pasta is done to your liking, drain the pasta and broccoli, leaving just a little water (around 1/4 to 1/2 cup). Pour the olive oil with the garlic and pepper flakes over the pasta. Stir gently and taste to see if you need more salt. If you like more pepper, add fresh ground pepper just before serving. Spoon into individual dishes and offer the cheese to sprinkle on top.

I usually double the recipe, using my largest stock pot, and take leftovers to work or eat another night when I don’t want to cook. This doesn’t freeze well though, so you would be eating it for a few nights in a row. The leftover pasta swells and drinks away the sauce, so you will have to add a little more water and olive oil to heat it up the next day.

(The freshly grated cheese is an important component here but only AFTER the pasta is cooked. So if you microwave this at work the next day, add the cheese after it comes out of the microwave).

You can substitute fresh broccoli, but you should cook it separately from the pasta (more time to cut up and another pot to clean) to make sure it gets cooked enough before draining it and combining it with the pasta and oil. Broccoli should be cooked until fairly soft to work in this dish.

My grandmother made this with fresh broccoli and also added anchovies to the oil last, after sauteing the garlic and pepper flakes. If you think you would like to try that, stir until the anchovies break up into a brown paste in the oil (a small flat can is what I remember her using, but for this recipe, I would only use half a can). Or instead, you could add a little anchovy paste according to your taste. I don’t, because the flavor of anchovies becomes too strong in the leftovers for my taste.