BROCCOLI PESTO PASTA
If you find your self with large head of broccoli in the fridge which you haven't managed to eat, then this recipe comes to your rescue. Make a creamy broccoli pesto sauce to smother your pasta in.
Its perfect mid week or for meatless Mondays - it takes less than 30 minutes to make. Besides your family are getting to eat their greens in a delicious way. Shhh.. I wont tell them its broccoli, if you don't!
Options: You can add bacon or pancetta to this with the onions and garlic to give it a more meaty flavour. Or add leftover cooked chicken from your Sunday roast.
If you don't have basil, use parsley.
You can substitute the pine nuts for walnuts
Take a look at my short you tube video for inspiration:
[embedyt]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gHcgdlYgAw[/embedyt]
- 1 large head of broccoli cut up into florets
- 3/4 tablespoons oil from the sundried tomato and mozzarella mix
- coarse salt and pepper to taste
- handful of basil leaves
- 2 tbs pine nuts ((use a handful ofwalnuts if you dont have pinenuts))
- pasta of choice - I used penne enough for 2
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium red onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 200 gms pack of slow roasted tomato and mozzarella mix from the deli section ((I use Tescos))
- 30 ml single cream
- 1/2 cup of grated parmesan
- zest of half a lemon, plus a little sqeeze of lemonjuice
- 1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts (for garnish)
- a few grinds of black pepper
Steam/Boil the broccoli until tender in a deep pan.
If you want more depth of flavour and you have time, then drain when it still has a little bite, add a little oil, sea salt and pepper and roast for 15 mins in an oven.
The roasted broccoli is such a tasty side dish too to eat with your mains! And if you have leftovers, make broccoli pesto with it for pasta the next day.
But back to the recipe, Drain the cooked broccoli, reserving a couple of tbs of water. Put it in a food processor. Add the basil, pine nuts, 3/4 tbs of oil (from the slow roasted tomatoes) , coarse salt and pepper and make a smooth' ish pesto.
Put the pasta to boil as per instructions (usually 10-12 mins) by which time your sauce will be ready.
Heat 2 tbs of oil in a wide pan, add the onions and garlic and saute for a few minutes.
Add the slow roasted tomatoes first, stir for a minute. Then mix in the mozzarella .
Add the pesto and mix a little, adding a little splash of water from the pasta pot to loosen it.
Now add the cream, and mix.
Add half the parmesan plus the lemon zest and mix again, adding a little water from the pasta pot as needed.
Add the drained pasta,, mix well.
Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan. Give a little squeeze of lemon juice, a few grinds of black pepper and scatter the toasted pine nuts all over before serving.
So delicious!