One thing you notice when visiting Italy is the simplicity that goes into creating delicious pasta dishes; just a few core ingredients can produce a flavoursome meal in no time. A Monday evening favourite for Elldrew is Purple Sprouting Broccoli and Speck Tagliatelle. With just 5 mins prep and 15 mins cooking time, this tasty dish will have you on the sofa in no time, after all, who wants to spend time in the kitchen after your first day in the office of a new week?
INGREDIENTS (SERVES 2):
- 300g purple sprouting broccoli
- 1 garlic clove (crushed and chopped)
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 70g fresh sliced Italian speck
- 250g fresh egg tagliatelle
- 80g fresh Parmessan cheese
Optional:
- Dried chilli’s to taste
- Low fat Philadelphia cream cheese or a nutty olive oil
RECIPE:
- Rinse the broccoli and slice lengthwise, creating equal stems (remove the base of the stork if too thick, it won’t be that tasty). Remember you can eat the leaves so they will add more nutty flavour and colour.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and add the broccoli and blanch for 3 minutes (keep water to cook the pasta in).
- Heat the oil with the crushed garlic and optional chilli (tastes just as great with a hint of spice) in a large deep frying pan, and when hot and fragrant add the blanched broccoli (remove these with a sieve or tongs from the boiling water) and stir-fry for 6-8 minutes, until nicely browned.
- Add the tagliatelle to the salted water a few minutes before serving, you will want this cooked al dente.
- Add the speck to the pan with the broccoli, tearing into chunks with your hands. Sauté for 1 minute.
- Add the cooked tagliatelle to the pan and toss to coat evenly. If a little dry and pasta is sticking, add a few spoonful’s of the salted water. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan on top. Bellissimo!
NB: the pasta can tend to stick to itself hence adding in a few spoonfuls of the stock will help. We also add in a drizzle of nutty olive oil or a couple of tablespoons of Philadelphia cream cheese to loosen it up.
This one is perfect for non-broccoli lovers. We know that sounds odd, but the nuttiness of purple spouting broccoli is a far cry from the standard Calabrese broccoli flavour. If you don’t believe us try it and let us know, we think you will be pleasantly surprised.
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