Broccoli Time!

Broccoli season is upon us, all! Last weekend I found 5 big heads in my “brassica mayhem” garden, just begging to be picked ASAP. So I harvested away! Now there’s a trick to harvesting broccoli in a way that the plant will continue to produce all season long, right up until a hard freeze. Luckily, it’s simple! Just cut off the head of the broccoli, leaving the whole bottom of the plant intact. The broccoli will then start to produce side-shoot florets, many of which can be quite large!

With my harvest, I made a lovely broccoli carbonara for Sunday brunch, then froze the rest for winter. Freezing is by far the easiest—and most delicious—way to preserve broccoli. Here are my steps to broccoli bliss all year:

1. To clean the broccoli, soak it in water that’s been splashed with vinegar or a handful of salt for about 10 to 15 minutes. This helps remove any cabbage worms that may be hiding in here. Then just trim the stem end as desired and cut into evenly sized florets.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then carefully plop in 2 or 3 cups of the florets. Start your timer immediately for 3 minutes. Put the lid back onto the pot and keep the heat blasted until it comes back to a boil. When it does, remove the lid and reduce heat as needed so it doesn’t boil over.
3. While the broccoli is blanching, prepare an ice bath in a large bowl (or the sink, if you’re freezing lots!). Using a slotted spoon or “spider” like this one, transfer the florets to the ice bath. Let cool for a few minutes, then pack the drained florets into freezer bags or containers. And onto the freezer! I just do a batch or two at a time all summer as I have extra on hand. Trust me, it adds up! The kiddos love it in the depths of winter.

Now about the carbonara. I love to elevate veggies to star status and this is a perfect example of how I like to do it in a super simple dish. After blanching the broccoli, I chopped some of it up, patted it dry, and and sautéed it in butter and olive oil until it was lightly caramelized and bursting with flavor. Then I did my usual carbonara thang, but used white cheddar instead of Parm because, let’s face it, broccoli and cheddar will ALWAYS be a match made in heaven. Here’s my recipe:

Broccoli Carbonara

Annie

This vegetarian main is easily adaptable. Use whatever green veggie looks the best in your garden or at the farmer's market. Or you can use thawed frozen broccoli and skip the blanching step!

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Course Breakfast, Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 1 head broccoli, cut into large florets
• 8 oz. dried spaghetti, linguine, or other long strand pasta
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 3 to 5 eggs
• 1 cup shredded aged white cheddar cheese
• Salt and freshly ground back pepper

Instructions

 

• In a large pot blanch broccoli in boiling water 3 minutes. Transfer to an ice bath and let cool. Drain and chop. Using the same pot cook pasta according to package directions in lightly salted boiling water until al dente, reserving about 1 cup pasta water just before draining.
• In a large skillet combine butter and olive oil. Heat over medium-high heat. Pat chopped broccoli dry and add to hot skillet. Cook , covered, about 5 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and 3/4 cup of the cheese. Whisk about 1/3 cup hot pasta water into the eggs and season with salt and pepper.
• Add drained pasta and egg mixture to the skillet with the broccoli. Place over medium heat. Using tongs, toss mixture together until eggs are thickened, creamy, and just starting to set, adding more pasta water as needed. Top servings with remaining cheese and additional salt and pepper to taste.

Keyword Broccoli Main Dishes, Carbonara, easy dinner, Vegetarian Pasta