During this time it has been increasingly hard to get to the grocery store and to find a delivery time for online food orders. If you are like me, you have a household of hungry children who eat constantly which means your kitchen is in constant use.
This pasta dish is one of those staple recipes that feeds and fills up a family or can be adjusted for small portions easily. As always substitute as needed. If you don’t have broccoli, substitute zucchini or yellow squash or even frozen peas. No bread crumbs, no problem, just smash up some crackers or grate a stale piece of bread. If you don’t have much milk, you can use chicken stock and wine or even a nut milk of your choice. If you need any help or aren’t sure as always reach out with questions.
KEEP CALM AND COOK ON
Pasta with Broccoli
serves 4
1- (8 x 13) casserole or
6 individual cup ramekins
Ingredients
1 pound pasta
2-3 broccoli crowns trimmed and rough chopped
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 cup Butter
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
3/4 Milk or Cream
2 Tablespoons White Wine
Salt and Pepper
3 Tablespoons Butter
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
3 Tablespoon Parmesan or Romano Cheese
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°
Salt a large pot of water and bring it to a boil
Par-boil the broccoli until they turn bright green and are just tender.
Strain in a colander and run cold water over to stop the cooking. Transfer the broccoli to a large bowl.
Add the pasta to the pot of water and cook “al dente” or until just tender.
Drain in the colander and then place into the large bowl with the broccoli.
Butter the casserole dish and sprinkle half of the bread crumbs on the bottom of it. Set aside.
Sauce:
In a sauce pan, melt the butter until it just begins to bubble and is brown around the edges.
Add the flour to the butter and stir with a wooden spoon over medium heat. Continue to cook until the mixture bubbles and starts to smell nutty and starts to turn brown slightly. You are making a roux and is a classic way of making a thickener for sauces.
Add the wine, chicken stock, milk or cream to the pan. Cook stirring occasionally over medium heat until the sauce begins to thicken.
Pour the cream sauce into the pasta and broccoli and toss well so the sauce is well incorporated.
Season with salt and pepper.
Spoon the pasta into the casserole dish and sprinkle with more bread crumbs and the grated cheese.
Bake uncovered for 25 minutes or until heated through and browned on-top.
Notes
This is another example of a recipe that uses building blocks in cooking. Sauces are an integral part of cooking and can be used in so many ways to make an average dish tastier and more complex. Here we made a classic cream sauce but not everyone has cream or milk so chicken broth & wine or any nut milk can be substituted instead. If you are low on butter or flour you can make your sauce thick by using corn starch.
2 Tablespoons of corn starch softened with 2 Tablespoons of water is added to your liquid. Stir over medium low heat until thick.
You can use this cream sauce over a chicken or fish dish add more cheese to it and make macaroni and cheese or use it as a base for a creamy soup.