Meatless Monday with Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe Pesto

Welcome (back) to the blog and thank you for joining us for another Meatless Monday. We at Miratel Solutions took the Meatless Monday pledge as part of our CSR business initiatives in support of eliminating meat consumption (at least) one day per week to improve personal health and encourage environmental food choices. You can read more on how this small action can have great impact at www.meatlessmonday.com.

Today’s recipe is perfect if you are looking for something to throw together fast as you can whip it up in 20 minutes. Orecchiette with broccoli rabe pesto is a delicious, fast and easy dish which comes courtesy of Chef Anne Burrell of Food Network . You might know Chef Burrell from such Food Network shows as Chopped All-Stars, Iron Chef America: The Series, and Secrets of a Restaurant Chef just to name a few. Now let’s get cooking.

Meatless Monday with Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe Pesto – Image courtesy of www.foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

• 1 bunch broccoli rabe, tough lower stems removed
• 1/2 cup pistachios, toasted
• 3/4 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese, plus more for garnish
• Kosher sale
• 1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 pound orecchiette pasta
• High-quality extra-virgin olive oil, for finishing (optional)

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Set up a bowl of well-salted ice water. Cook the broccoli rabe in the boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes and then immediately plunge in the salted ice water. This will prevent the broccoli rabe from being overcooked and will set the lovely green color
2. Drain the broccoli rabe and squeeze out any excess water; coarsely chop. Place the broccoli rabe in the bowl of a food processor and puree until it is a coarse paste. Add the pistachios and parmigiano and puree until smooth. Taste and adjust the seasoning; you probably will need more salt. Add the ricotta and pulse until combined. Taste for seasoning once again-it should be full-flavored, slightly bitter and creamy at the same time. Set aside
3. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. (If you are making the pasta right after the pesto, just use the broccoli rabe blanching water.) Cook the pasta 1 minute less than the cooking time on the package
4. While the pasta is cooking, place the pesto in a large skillet and add about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of the pasta cooking water; place over medium-high heat. When the pasta is ready, drain and add to the skillet with the pesto. Stir vigorously to combine and cook until the sauce is creamy and heated through, 1 to 2 minutes; add salt to taste. Remove from the heat, add 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil, if desired, and stir vigorously. Garnish with more parmigiano.

This recipe for orecchiette with broccoli rabe pesto with yield four servings and can be easily adjusted for any number. For those that don’t know orecchiette means little ears in Italian and as such it is an ear shaped pasta that’s known to hold sauce well. Also broccoli rabe is just another name for rapini, which is readily available to most. If you want to make this dish even healthier and add more fiber by using whole-wheat or spelt orecchiette instead of the traditional semolina flour version. Or change it up completely with a gluten-free brown rice penne pasta. Complete this meal with a light balsamic or Italian vinaigrette salad.

If you haven’t already, we encourage you to visit www.meatlessmonday.com to learn more. Join us in taking the pledge and promote going Meatless on Monday to family, friends and even co-workers to build on your CSR business initiatives and make your green call centre, office, factory, shop or salon even greener.

Buon Appetito!