Broccoli Parmesan Pasta

It was definitely a pasta night.  It was pretty much the perfect day, and I couldn’t wait to make the perfect dinner to follow it up.  We had some beautiful organic broccoli, and colored veggie spiral pasta.  No sauce to speak of, but that’s no trouble at all...

I had gotten on a big afternoon song kick, remembering and playing some really old tunes, and by the time Will got home I was excited and just kept on playing, even managing a few he’d never heard before.  After almost two years with someone with whom your first dates consisted almost entirely of song swapping, that’s an impressive feat!  Dinner was cooked largely between songs with a guitar strung over my shoulder.  Fun :)

I put the pasta water on to boil, and sauteed half an onion in the large pan.  I chopped up a couple cups worth of broccoli and placed it in the colander on top of the pasta water.  (Probably not as clever as I think it is, but I get a small thrill from my resourcefulness ;)  After 7-10 minutes of steaming I transferred the broccoli into the pan with the onions.

I drained the pasta and added butter, garlic, olive oil, soy sauce, nutritional yeast (to help the liquids actually stick to the noodles), and flaxseed (for texture and color), spooning only what I needed to properly fill out the broccoli and onions.  (Sometimes I get overzealous and add too many noodles to not enough “good stuff,” which is always a bit of a shame.)

I like to cook noodles in a pan for a few minutes with their toppings, so they can soak up  more of the flavor, and if I’m patient enough they’ll get a bit of a flavor crust around the edges....me = total pasta junkie.

A little parmesan cheese and a side salad (I’ve grown to accept the “lazy salad” and can get away with organic salad mix and Mama’s Miracle Dressing with no one missing anything) and we had a rather delicious meal!  I commented to Will just how much like my mother I am when I exclaimed excitedly from the kitchen, “Oh this is gonna be goooooood...”   love, love, love my mama :)

Broccoli Parmesan Pasta

Approximate price: $3