Cavatelli and Broccoli Serves 4
Cavatelli and Broccoli is a quick pasta recipe that comes together in under 30 minutes. This was a dinner staple for us when we were children. Honestly, even though I love vegetables, broccoli is not my favorite. But in this dish, it is incredible. Trust me: you are going to want to try this one. You can even get your kids to eat it.
An interesting fact about cavatelli. It originates in southern Italy and is one of Italy’s oldest pasta shapes. Some say the shape resembles a little shell, others say a miniature hot dog bun. What do you think?
Ingredients
¾ Cup Olive Oil
6 Garlic Cloves, Whole
¼ Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
8 Cups Fresh Broccoli (about 1½ Pounds), Just the Florets Cut Small
1 Teaspoon Salt
½ Teaspoon Black Pepper
1 Pound of Cavatelli (But you can use a different pasta shape if you wish.)
Grated Pecorino Romano to Top the Pasta
Method
In a large frying pan, heat up your garlic and red pepper flakes in olive oil on a low flame and cook until fork tender.
In the meantime, in a pasta pot, boil water and add a generous amount of salt. Boil the broccoli for about 4 minutes.
Next, smash the garlic into the olive oil using a fork.
Using a slotted spoon, drain the broccoli and add it to the oil.
Season with salt and pepper then cover. Raise the heat to low/medium.
Boil the cavatelli.
After about 5 minutes remove the lid from the broccoli. Using a potato masher, roughly mash the broccoli. Please be careful to roughly mash. You do not want it to be pasty.
Remove some pasta water for later use and drain your pasta.
Add the cavatelli to the sautéd broccoli. Mix and slowly add in about two tablespoons (more if necessary) of the pasta water until you have the desired consistency.
Combine well and sauté for 2 more minutes.
Serve topped with a sprinkle of grated Pecorino cheese.