One of my least favorite things to make is pasta for dinner, because I can’t seem to really think beyond the traditional tomato and meat sauce. In my home growing up, we didn’t eat THAT much pasta that I am full of ideas. Plus, it’s very filling and I didn’t actually want to make something that sits in your tummy like cement.
As always, I take my searches to the great internet, which is how I end up with ALL the recipes that I review.
This one, guys, I am going to be making again, and again, and again. Why? Pasta is still rather easy to get (thank goodness), and everything else you either already have at home, or may just need to make a quick trip to the store for. Minimal ingredients for something absolutely delicious on a weeknight.
Say hello to your new favorite pasta dish: Orecchiette Pasta with Broccoli Sauce courtesy of Feasting At Home.
You can find the link right-> here!
What If I Don’t Have Fresh Broccoli?
No problem! I ended up using frozen myself, and per the recommendations of some lovely comments on the recipe–I ended up cooking the broccoli (frozen) directly with the pasta. I highly recommend a slotted spoon to take the broccoli out, so you’re not juggling too much with the evading florets.
The Perfect Sauce Takes…Time
In this case it takes about 15 minutes. That’s what the recipe said and that’s what I put on my kitchen timer. To the minute, I cooked the broccoli sauce, florets all broken up, and a beautiful sauce was formed. Keep in mind there will be some little bumps as this isn’t meant to be a very smooth sauce. You can get it ABSOLUTELY smooth if you keep breaking down the broccoli with your spoon. If you’d like to go the extra step, you could always use an immersion blender. I’ll be honest, seeing the little bits of broccoli broken up, mixed in with the spices, looks really appealing with the final dish.
But as mentioned, don’t rush the cooking time, Let everything blend nicely and break down.
Once ready, the dish really begins to wow you. When the pasta is added, make sure each piece is coated in that wonderful sauce.
Have Fun With It!
I say this because that’s really the joy of cooking and trying out recipes. You become familiar with flavors and jazz them up in ways that work for you. This dish is originally vegetarian dish, but we decided to use up some of our frozen Italian Sausage!
We all know that these times are a little bit uncertain, and sometimes even grocery shopping gets stressful because you can’t find what you’re looking for. This dish was the complete opposite. Many of these items are generally in your pantry or are readily available. Luckily.
If you don’t have orecchiette pasta, I’m sure other kinds would work just fine. However, I’ll say that you’d prefer the orecchiette with how well it fits in with the sauce.
The real magic is when the parmesan is added at serving time. Oh my goodness. It’s at that first bite that I decided this will need to be made again and again and again. You think I’m joking? Almost every grocery purchase since then as included frozen broccoli. You never know when you’d like some pasta with broccoli sauce paired with perfectly melty cheese that strings as you grab a forkful.
Grey’s Grade: 5/5
There was certainly no doubt about that grade, huh? But in all seriousness, for someone who doesn’t really care for pasta—this is fantastic. It switches up the flavor palette and just really allows you to serve up a bowl (or plate) of something so incredibly comforting. And yeah, I think your kids will enjoy this too!
Thank you for reading my review! I hope that you enjoyed what I wrote and hopefully will try out this recipe for yourself! These reviews are not endorsed and are simply the result of an amateur home cook trying to figure out what to make for dinner. If you have any recommendations, feel free to let me know in the comments section, or by email on my Contact Me page.
Till next time!
Happy nomming and Happy Easter!
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