Broccoli pesto pasta…sounds healthy! Well, not exactly. If you are looking for a hearty pasta dish that sneaks in some veggies, this may be for you. This pasta is made with Italian sausage, two kinds of cheese, and just a little bit of butter. Oh yeah, there’s broccoli pesto too.
I like to pre-chop my ingredients when making pesto. This reduces the amount of heat created in the food processor and helps to keep the pesto from turning brown. I also add the oil after all other ingredients have been processed. The friction from the blades can make the olive oil bitter.
The sausage and pasta will take about the same amount of time to cook. The pasta water should be salted and at a rolling boil before the pasta is added. I use 5 quarts of water and 1/8 cup of salt for the pasta water. Once the pasta is in the water, start frying the sausage. For presentation purposes, I made little sausage balls. This is unnecessary. The dish will have better flavor if the sausage is ground and mixed with the pasta and pesto. Plus you will get sausage in every bite!
The addition of the pasta water cools down and deglazes the pan. Deglazing helps to release all the yummy brown bits of sausage that are stuck on the bottom. Normally most of the water gets cooked out in this process. A little bit of water left in the pan is fine and will help create the sauce. But you don’t want soupy pasta! If there is a lot of water left, continue to boil out the water before adding the other ingredients.
You might think that will all the cheese, olive oil, sausage dripping, and more cheese you may not need to add butter. The butter mixed with the cheese and water gives the pasta some creaminess. For creaminess without the butter, add whipped feta into the pasta as the last ingredient. Or better yet add both!
Looking for a few extra carbs on your plate? Serve this pasta with homemade Rosemary Garlic Focaccia.
Broccoli Pesto Pasta with Whipped Feta
Ingredients
Roasted Broccoli Pesto
- 1/2 lb Broccoli and Broccolini
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- pinch chili flake
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1/4 cup almonds
- 1 tsp garlic
- 1/4 cup basil chopped
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Pasta
- 1 lb pasta
- 1 lb fresh ground Italian sausage
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese shredded plus more for garnish
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup pasta water
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 8 slices focaccia
Whipped Feta
- 1/2 lb feta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp garlic minced
- 1 tbsp whey from the feta package
- 1 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
Roasted Broccoli Pesto
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment. Cut broccoli into long spears and toss with olive oil, chili flake, salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes. Broccoli will still have a little crunch. Cool and chop.
- Place almonds in a food processor and chop. Add Broccoli, basil, garlic, salt, pepper, and lemon zest and process until very fine. Add olive oil at the very end. Refrigerate until ready for use.
Whipped Feta
- Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth.
Pasta
- Bring salted water to a boil and add pasta. Cook until al dente. Heat a skillet, cook Italian sausage. Add the pasta water, then the cooked pasta. Turn off heat and add pesto, lemon juice, parmesan, pepper and butter. (Add whipped feta for a creamy sauce)
- Smear 1-2 tablespoons of feta into the bottom of the bowl. Add pasta to the bowl and top with parmesan and basil. Serve with focaccia.
