Broccoli & Cheese Pasta Toss

Submitted by soulmatesforever

"This recipe came from Chatelaine. Its very good with a nice tossed salad!"

 

• Ready In: 17mins
• Ingredients: 7
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 3 cups dried penne or 3 cups fusilli (about 1/2 package)
• 1 broccoli
• 4 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil (optional)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper

directions

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil.
2. Add pasta and cook according to package directions, about 8 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cut stems from broccoli.
4. Peel, then slice into thin rounds.
5. Slice sun-dried tomatoes into thin strips.
6. Mince garlic.
7. Place cheese in a large bowl.
8. Stir in sun-dried tomatoes and garlic.
9. When pasta has cooked 8 minutes, add broccoli stems and florets.
10. Cook until bright green and tender, about 2 minutes.
11. Ladle out about 1/2 cup pasta water and save.
12. Drain pasta and broccoli, then return to saucepan.
13. Place saucepan over medium-high heat.
14. Stir cheese mixture and pasta water until cheese melts and noodles are evenly coated, about 1 minute.
15. Taste, then add salt and pepper if you like.

Reviews

[Three Kids Make Me Crazy]

I love this and so do my kids. We've made it three or four times in the last month. Faster and easier than the packaged noodles and sauce...and it tastes so much better. The one thing I did eventually do was saute the garlic in 1 T. of butter before mixing everything else to cook the raw flavor out of it. Aside from that, spectacular as written. Thanks for a great recipe!

 

[FunWorld123]

We loved this and will definitely have it again. We only had Mexican cheese so we used that. I'll use Cheddar next time.

 

[Studentchef]

I agree the water was a clever thing to do to prevent the cheese from sticking. Totally amazing, and a nice way to enjoy a one dish meal. I love chees and pasta and incorporating them both together was a lot better than making a cheese sauce for the pasta.

 

[Jo_C.]

This was quick and easy to make and I enjoyed it. There was a bit too much raw garlic, so I think the next time I'd cook it a bit first. The idea of mixing the pasta water in at the end was very clever as it stopped the cheese all sticking together in one big lump and it made it seem creamier.

 

[Chippie1]

Well, we are definately pasta lovers here and this dish was great. I cut in 1/2 exactly and it was plenty for a side dish for the 3 of us. I suppose you could use any cheese for this dish, next time and there will be a definate next time, I think I'll try it with Asiago. Thanks for a very tasty and simple dish!