I love broccolini and I’m always looking for new ways to incorporate this veggie into creative dishes. Broccolini has a more refined taste and look that I prefer over regular broccoli. The florettes are a lot prettier and in my opinion the stems are yummier.
Since you can never eat enough veggies, I decided to make a vegetarian pasta using my favorite pasta noodle brand, DaVinci. I’m a sucker for bowtie and really all bite size noodles but you can make this recipe with just about any DaVinci noodle, even angel hair pasta!
My recipe is really easy, quick to make once you’ve got your veggies chopped and incredibly delicious! Keep reading as I walk you through everything you’ll need and your instructions for this flavorful masterpiece.
Your ingredient list: (Serves 2)
- ½ bag of DaVinci Signature Bowtie Pasta
- ¼ cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Kosher Salt (you'll be the judge of how much you use)
- 1 stock of Broccolini, also called Broccoli Rabe at many grocers
- 12-14 mix of Red Grape Tomatoes and Yellow Sunburst Tomatores
- ½ teaspoon of Red Pepper flakes
- ½ cup of Freshly Grated Parmesan
- 1 Shallot chopped
- 3 large Garlic Cloves chopped
- 1 Lemon, cut into wedges or thin circles
- 5 large fresh Basil Leaves, sliced into thin long strips
Let’s begin by boiling the water that you’re going to submerge the DaVinci Bowtie pasta in. Add a dizzle of olive oil to the water along with 2-3 dashes of kosher salt. Bring to a boil, then add about half the bag of bowtie pasta. Perhaps a little more if you and your food cohort are extra hungry. Once boiling, add pasta and set a times for 13 minutes. At 11 minutes, test to see if the pasta is al dente. If you’re happy with it, remove it from the stove at that point and drain. Reserve ¾ cup of the boiling water for later in our recipes. Cover the drained pasta to keep warm and set aside.
Continue on to your chopping board. Get the lemon out of the way and slice half into wedges and the other half into thin circles that you will use to garnish your final dish.
Chop the florettes of the broccolini off into bite size pieces. Chop the stems into ½ inch pieces. Place into a cooking bowl as you will be adding these into the boiling water with the paste around 10 minutes into the boiling stage.
Slice 5 large basil leaves into lengthwise into long, skinny pieces. Tear them in half if you must. Separate some of them for final garnishing. The rest will be thrown into the sauce you’re about to make.
Chop the shallow into small pieces as well as the 3 large garlic cloves. Set aside together.
If you thought it wasn’t possible to halve and quarter baby tomatoes, well it is! Cut up those red and yellow tomatoes preferably into quarters but halves are perfectly fine as well.
At this point you’re now ready to grab a pan for the fun part! Heat ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium. Add the chopped shallots, garlic, and ½ tsp. red pepper flakes and season lightly with salt. Keep your eye on this and stir frequently until you see that the shallots are translucent. It will take about 4 minutes.
If your broccolini florettes and stems are ready (remember, all they need is about 1 minute in the boiling water) remove them with a slotted spoon and add them to the skillet. This recipe will definitely move faster if you time everything just right. Let that all cook while you drain the bowtie pasta, reserve ¾ cup of the water to pour into the skillet with the bowties.
Once you’ve added everything to the skillet (don’t forget the ¾ cup of water from the pot), mix it all together making sure the sauce gets nice and thick.
As you’re mixing it all together, add the Parmesan, a squeeze of lemon and salt to taste. Plate in bowls finishing with a sprinkle of your leftover basil leaves and garnish with a side of lemon. BON APETIT!
Grab your favorite DaVinci pasta noodle at Tops Markets and make sure to visit the DaVinci Facebook page for more unique pasta recipes like this one. View all pasta noodles including organic varieties HERE >> on the DaVinci website.
Disclosure: I partnered with DaVinci® on this sponsored post to make a delicious recipe of my own design and share my authentic feelings about cooking with DaVinci products. All opinions, imagery and cooking suggestions are my own.