Tenderstem broccoli pasta
Pasta con broccoletti
Tenderstem broccoli pasta is the taste of Puglia in the springtime as the cabbage crossover between asparagus and broccoli is one of the first vegetables to hit the market after a long winter.
When I ask friends and neighbours they will tell me there are two ways of cooking tenderstem broccoli pasta. One with garlic and peperoncini and one with garlic and anchovies. This is the anchovies version which I have enhanced by adding a log of caprino goat cheese to make it more creamy. For an authentic Puglian experience the tenderstem broccoli should be prepared with orecchiette pasta, but any kind of short – preferably homemade – pasta will serve the purpose.
Ingredients
400 g tenderstem broccoli
1 clove of garlic
3 anchovies in olive oil
150 g fresh caprino, goat cheese or chevre log
Olive oil, salt and pepper
350 g short pasta
Preparation
Rinse the tenderstem broccoli and cut it in 1 cm long pieces
Peel and slice the garlic and sauté it in olive oil (make sure it does not brown)
Add the tenderstem broccoli to the garlic and let it fry for a couple of minutes.
Cook the pasta in salted water according to the instructions on the packaging.
Pour a little of the pasta water over the tenderstem broccoli to make sauce.
Drain the pasta and mix it with tenderstem broccoli and diced goat cheese.
Add pepper to taste and your tenderstem broccoli pasta is ready to serve.
Tenderstem broccoli pasta with cream goat cheese and anchovies.
Italian Notes
Love this. I’m sure it tastes like spring.
It’s amazing. Living in Scandinavia you really learn to appreciate the change of the seasons in fruit and veg.