Broccoli Garlic Pasta

This easy-to-make broccoli garlic pasta is so tasty, your family will beg for seconds. Quick to make so it’s perfect for this busy season.

Broccoli Garlic Pasta: Simple And Delicious

Meals such as this pasta and broccoli mixture are delicious in their simplicity.

This meal is so easy to make, you’ll find it a boon during the holidays when your life is hectic enough without having to plan “involved” dinners.

You’ve go great flavors here–the pungency of the garlic, the crisp earthiness of the broccoli and the salty accent of the cheese. Not only is this a meal unto itself, it also doubles as a side and better yet, you can use leftover pasta!

If This Seems Familiar…

If this recipe looks vaguely familiar to you, it’s a hack of a meal one of the characters in TV’s “Sopranos” used to make.

Now there’s versions of that all over the internet. It was even in The Sopranos Cookbook. However, I found the preparation of the “original” far too time consuming for my lifestyle. I streamlined the prep and the cooking and it loses none of it’s original charm, basically because I use the same or similar ingredients.

Alterations And Additions

I made minor alterations in the amounts of some of the ingredients. Since I LOVE garlic, I always double the amount called for in any recipe.

When it comes to anything vaguely Italian and calls for Parmesan cheese, I usually add some Romano in addition to or instead of the Parmesan. I did that here.

The “original” recipe called for a rather long cooking time for the broccoli and I found that a bit unpleasant. I wanted crunch and bright color. What I didn’t want was overcooked, grey-green and smelly veggies.

I would suggest if you are not as in love with garlic as I am, then halve the amount in this recipe.

The Recipe

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Broccoli Garlic Pasta

This easy-to-make broccoli garlic pasta is so tasty, your family will beg for seconds. Quick to make so it’s perfect for this busy season. If you aren't a big fan of garlic, you may want to use half the amount called for in the recipe.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time10 minutes mins

Total Time20 minutes mins

Course: Main, Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: broccoli, easy pasta dinner, garlic, pasta

Servings: 4

Calories: 433kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• 1 lb fresh broccoli florets cut into bite-size pieces (see NOTES)
• 8 oz penne or any tubular pasta
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbs grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
• 1 cup reserved pasta water
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Cook pasta according to package directions; reserve 1 cup of the pasta water.
• Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet. Add the broccoli and garlic and stir fry until broccoli is bright green.
• Place the cooked pasta in the pan then add the grated cheese; toss to combine.
• Add the reserved pasta water and stir.
• Top with the shredded Parmesan.

Notes

Frozen florets may be substituted, but thaw them first.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 433kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 11mg | Sodium: 284mg | Potassium: 508mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 845IU | Vitamin C: 102.1mg | Calcium: 246mg | Iron: 1.8mg

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