This rustic pasta sauce consists of mainly one ingredient: broccoli. The broccoli is boiled until very tender and then mashed with a fork. Simply toss the mashed broccoli with pasta water and some cheese to make a delicious and nutritious sauce.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 35 min |
| Active: | 35 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- Kosher salt
- 3 1/2 cups broccoli florets (about 10 ounces)
- 12 ounces cavatappi
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup grated Pecorino-Romano cheese, plus more for topping
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli and cook until very tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove the broccoli to a paper towel–lined plate using a slotted spoon, reserving the water in the pot. Add the pasta to the boiling water, stir and cook as the label directs for al dente. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain.
- Meanwhile, pat the broccoli dry and transfer to a bowl. Using a fork or potato masher, mash the broccoli until mostly smooth but still slightly chunky.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until starting to sizzle and the garlic is just browning, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the broccoli and combine with a rubber spatula, lightly mashing it with the oil and cooking down the broccoli a bit further, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the pasta and 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water to the skillet. Stir to combine and add the cheese. Continue to fold the broccoli and pasta together until the sauce coats the pasta, adding more cooking water as needed to loosen, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat and stir in the lemon juice.
- Divide the pasta among bowls. Top with more cheese and drizzle with olive oil.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 500 |
| Total Fat | 17 grams |
| Saturated Fat | 6 grams |
| Cholesterol | 25 milligrams |
| Sodium | 654 milligrams |
| Carbohydrates | 67 grams |
| Dietary Fiber | 5 grams |
| Protein | 20 grams |
| Sugar | 4 grams |
Reviews
Right up to almost mediocre, family liked it, but they were hungry! Needs a lot of tweaking.
absolutely delicious ! Any leftovers add cooked chicken and a little Alfredo sauce!
This is good and easy for a weeknight. I left out the red pepper flakes because I had two leftover andouille sausages that I wanted to use up. So I chopped the sausage and browned it in the skillet before adding the garlic and broccoli. I also precooked, shocked, and mashed the broccoli and froze it as part of food shopping day prep. I took Anni’s advice and added cherry tomatoes to the pasta, which was a good addition.
Decent base recipe, loved being able to use veggies as a sauce. I think overall it would benefit from an additional ingredient or two… as another reviewer suggested, maybe some cherry tomatoes to brighten it up a bit? I’ll be making it again and experimenting for sure!
This dish was really disappointing and bland. Wondering if roasting the broccoli would help. Was hoping this dish could be a good way to incorporate more veggies into the little one’s diet, but it fell flat for this family.
Pretty good and easy to make. I added mushrooms.. I think next time I will add cherry tomatoes.!!