Recipe on page 117
Recipe on page 121
Pasta with broccoli pesto
The bright green pesto can also be served as a dipping sauce with bread or veggie sticks; it's also the perfect sauce to go with roast chicken and baked potatoes.
Serves 6 • Preparation: 25 minutes • Cooking time: 10 minutes
• 500g spaghetti
• 1 medium-sized broccoli, stem removed, florets finely chopped
• 125ml grated Parmesan
• 125ml roasted almonds or cashews
• zest of 1 lemon
• a large handful fresh basil
• 1 small garlic clove
• a pinch of chilli flakes
• about 60ml olive oil
• 100g green olives stuffed with anchovies, chopped
Boil the pasta in salted water until al dente. While the pasta is cooking, place the finely chopped broccoli in a large mixing bowl and pour boiling water over it; leave for 5 minutes. Drain, then place the blanched broccoli in the bowl of a food processor. Add the cheese, nuts, lemon juice, basil, garlic, chilli flakes and olive oil and process until smooth. If the processor is battling to chop the nuts, add a little pasta water to get the blade spinning – this will also dilute the sauce a little bit. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Drain the pasta and immediately mix in half of the pesto. Dish into deep bowls, top with an extra dollop of pesto, a few drops of olive oil and a sprinkling of olives. Serve I like to use peri-peri nuts; they give the broccoli a bit of bite and then I don't need to add as much salt and chilli flakes. >>
