Broccoli and Cavatelli Demonstration
This is a fantastic, filling, easy to prepare, nutritious and inexpensive recipe. When I was doing my undergraduate studies at Rutgers University, I worked weekends at a deli in my hometown of Brick, N.J. This dish was one of the highlights on their catering menu. My boss would poke fun at me when I would bastardize the pronunciation of Cavatelli with my Newark, N.J. slang calling it “Gavadeels”.
Recipe:
1 12 ounce bag of fresh broccoli
1 pound of pasta (cavatelli is the pasta of choice but you can use a variety of pastas)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 teaspoon of minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
Bring two separate pots of water to boil, one for the broccoli and one for the pasta.
For the broccoli, salt the water when it comes to a boil and then toss in the broccoli. Cook the broccoli to the point where it has broken down sufficiently, meaning that very little resistance is met when you press a piece of broccoli with a wooden spoon against the side of the pot. Drain the pasta and set aside. In the same pot, sauté the garlic and crushed red pepper in 2 tablespoons of olive oil until fragrant. Once the oil is infused with the garlic, return the broccoli to the pot and mix together. Remove from heat and add the Parmesan cheese, stirring until combined.
Cook the pasta as directed in a pot of boiling salted water until “al dente”. Reserve a 1/2 cup of the pasta water in case the mixture is too dry. Drain pasta. DO NOT RINSE THE PASTA!!!
Combine with the broccoli mixture and serve immediately with additional grated cheese if desired.
Additional Options:
To add a bit of smokiness to the dish, dice 1/4 pound of pancetta (think of it as Italian bacon…but better). Decrease the olive oil by half and render the fat from the pancetta. Once it is cooked, add the garlic and crushed red pepper and continue with the recipe.
In order to make this a heartier meal, add 3-4 links of sweet sausage. This will extend the meal and also add protein. Remove the sausage from the casings. Brown the sausage in olive oil until cooked through and then add the garlic and crushed red pepper and continue with the recipe.
I hope you give it a try. Please give us a like and subscribe to our channel so that you can receive other delicious recipes.
Buon Appetito!