Ingredients
The following ingredients have 4 Servings
- 3/4 lb pasta (a curly or corkscrew shape works well for holding the sauce)
- 1 head of broccoli (cut into small florets (at least 2 heaping cups))
- 1 or 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2-3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 -- 1 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1/3 cup pesto (make it fresh or buy the freshest you can)
- 1/2 cup pine nuts (toasted)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated aged Italian cheese
- a squeeze of lemon
- salt and freshly cracked pepper
Instruction
- Cook the pasta until barely al dente. Drain and set aside.
- Microwave the broccoli with a couple of tablespoons of water for 3 minutes, or steam briefly so it is just no longer crunchy, and is bright green.
- Drizzle the oil in the same pot you cooked the pasta in. Saute the garlic for a minute and then add the broccoli. Stir and cook just a minute to infuse the garlic flavor.
- Put the pasta back in the pan, and add in the ricotta. If you are using store-bought ricotta it will melt down a bit in the hot pan. For a creamier sauce you can add in a little milk, cream, or pasta water to thin the cheese. If you are using fresh ricotta it won't melt, but that's ok.
- Take the pan off the heat and add the pesto, salt, pepper, grated cheese and lemon. Mix well and check the seasoning, it takes a fair amount of salt. Top with the toasted pine nuts.
