Classic pesto pasta gets a major boost in fibre, vitamins & green goodness with a whole heap of broccoli whizzed into the pesto, making the sauce more substantial, nutritious & creamy while still keeping that classic herby cheesy pesto flavour.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 heads broccoli, broken into florets
• 500g fusilli pasta (or any short pasta)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled 
• 1 bunch fresh basil, leaves picked
• 50g toasted pine nuts
• juice of half a lemon
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve
• 1/2 cup olive oil

METHOD

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Blanch the broccoli florets for 3-4 minutes until bright green & just starting to become tender. Remove the broccoli from the water and set in a colander to drain & cool slightly (don’t throw away the water!)
2. Bring the same pot of water back to the boil again & cook the pasta in it until al-denté.
3. Meanwhile, prepare the broccoli pesto: place the garlic cloves into the food processor & pulse until finely chopped (you may need to pause & scrape down the sides a few times).
4. Add the blanched broccoli, basil & toasted pine nuts & process until coarsely ground. Add the cheese & pulse to combine, then with the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil until the paste smoothes out a bit & looks uniformly textured. Have a taste & season with salt & pepper if needed.
5. Drain the pasta, reserving at least 2-3 cups of the cooking water. Return the pasta to the pot (on the lowest heat possible), & add the broccoli pesto, along with 1.5 cups of the pasta cooking liquid to start with. Toss everything together, & keep adding more pasta water until the sauce loosens enough to coat all the pasta evenly, then serve immediately with plenty of extra parmesan cheese!

Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Serves: 4-6

Recipe created by Matters of the Belly.