Pasta with Broccoli Rabe, My Style
Garofalo
Recipes developed by Mark Bittman
I’ve turned the way I cook pasta upside down: Instead of making 1 pound of pasta
with 1 or 2 cups of sauce, I double the sauce and cut the noodles in half. The benefit?
More vegetables, maybe a little meat or seafood for flavor and fewer refined
carbohydrates. This may go against everything you’ve learned about cooking pasta,
but it tastes wonderful, and it works with just about any recipe, except those with
heavy cheese or meat sauces.
Salt
1 pound broccoli rabe,
trimmed and cut
into pieces
1/4 cup olive oil, or more
as needed
1/4-1/2 pound sweet or spicy
Italian sausage (if using
link sausage, squeeze it
from the casing or cut it
up a bit)
1 tablespoon chopped garlic,
or more to taste
1/4 teaspoon red pepper
flakes, or to taste
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
(optional)
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup white wine or water
1/2 pound Garofalo*
organic penne ziti rigate
pasta,
or any pasta from
Garofalo’s variety pack
1/2 cup freshly grated
Parmesan cheese
(optional)
Organic
Chef’s Choice
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Add
broccoli rabe and boil until it’s crisp-tender, 3-5 minutes,
depending on the size of your pieces. Scoop the broccoli
rabe out of the water with a slotted spoon or small
strainer and set it aside.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Crumble
sausage into the pan and cook, stirring occasionally to
break the meat into relatively small bits and brown it,
about 5 minutes. Add garlic, red pepper flakes and
fennel seeds if you’re using them, and sprinkle with
salt and pepper.
Continue cooking and stirring for another minute or so.
Add broccoli rabe and wine and cook, mashing and
stirring, until the broccoli rabe is quite soft, 2-3 minutes
more. Turn the heat to low to keep the sauce warm.
Cook pasta in the boiling water for about 5 minutes
before checking the first time. When the pasta is just
tender but not quite done, drain it, reserving about a
cup of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the sauce,
along with some of the pasta water to keep the mixture
from drying out. Taste and adjust the seasoning and
serve immediately, with Parmesan if you like.
Makes 4 servings.
Tip: For a pure vegetarian version, skip the sausage and
add about 2 cups of chickpeas to the garlic along with
the red pepper flakes. Or if you’d like to add a bright
flavor and a bit more moisture, replace the wine with a
couple of fresh chopped tomatoes.
Brands may vary by region; substitute a similar product.
Spaghetti with Butter and Parmesan
Garofalo
Salt
4-6 tablespoons
(1/2-3/4 stick) butter
1 pound Garofalo*
organic whole wheat
spaghetti,
or any other pasta
1 cup freshly grated
Parmesan cheese,
or more to taste
Freshly ground
black pepper
Organic
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it.
Bring butter to room temperature. (You can soften it in
a microwave, but don’t melt it.) Put it in a warm bowl.
Cook pasta until tender but not mushy; drain it, reserving
some of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the
butter, adding a little of the cooking water if necessary
to thin the sauce.
Toss with Parmesan, sprinkle with salt and pepper,
and serve immediately, passing additional Parmesan
at the table. Makes 4 servings.
Tip: For a twist, try Pasta with Butter, Sage and
Parmesan. Heat butter with 20-30 fresh sage leaves
over medium heat for about 3 minutes; the butter
should brown and the sage sizzle. Toss the cooked
pasta with the butter, sage and Parmesan, thinning
the sauce with pasta-cooking liquid if necessary.
Brands may vary by region; substitute a similar product.
