Mammas Broccolini And Ricotta Pasta Recipes

CHARRED BROCCOLINI WITH HOMEMADE RICOTTA

Steps:

• Heat a cast-iron skillet or griddle over high heat until smoking. In a medium bowl, drizzle the broccolini with olive oil and season with salt. Toss to coat. Place the broccolini on the hot pan or griddle but do not crowd (if using a 12-inch cast iron you can do two batches) Allow to sear, undisturbed, for 3 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side for 2 to 3 minutes, until the edges of the florets are a deep brown and the stems are tender and bright green with charring on the edges. Turn off the heat. Return the broccolini to the bowl. Season with a couple turns of black pepper. Add the grated garlic and lemon zest and toss to coat. Season to taste.
• To serve, spoon some Ricotta (recipe follows) in the center of a plate. Arrange the broccolini around the cheese, sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes, if using, flakey salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve with lemon wedges.
• Line a colander or large sieve with 1 layer of very fine cheesecloth (or 2 to 3 layers of more porous cloth) and set over a large bowl.
• To make the cheese, combine the milk and salt in a non-reactive pot over medium heat. Heat the mixture, stirring occasionally until it reaches 175 degrees F, 20 to 25 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the lemon juice. Gently stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until chunks form and separate from the whey (this happens within 30 seconds or so). Don't stir too often or vigorously or the curds will break. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the curds into the prepared cheesecloth-lined sieve. Allow to sit and strain for 20 minutes. Serve immediately at room temperature or transfer the ricotta cheese into an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to serve.

BETTY'S SPINACH, RICOTTA & BROCCOLI PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Firstly, make a white sauce with the first three ingredients (place butter in a saucepan and melt, add the flour and stir and continue to cook briefly. Add the milk and stir over a medium heat until thickened - this will take a few minutes).
• Remove the white sauce from the heat. Add the ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses and stir well to combine. Allow to cool, while cooling cook your pasta as per the packet directions and drain well. Pre-heat your oven to 180oC/375oF.
• Steam your broccoli (I use the microwave) and remove any water. Add the garlic and stir through to let the fragrance release. Add the thawed frozen spinach and stir through.
• In a greased casserole dish pour in the broccoli/spinach mix, pasta, Italian herbs and white cheesy sauce. Stir well to combine.
• Top with extra mozzarella cheese and bread crumbs. Bake in the pre heated oven for 35-40 minutes. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

LINGUINE WITH CHICKPEAS, BROCCOLI AND RICOTTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta cooking water, and drain the pasta.
• Meanwhile, heat the broiler and set a rack roughly 8 inches from the heat source. In a large bowl, toss the broccoli, chickpeas, garlic, red-pepper flakes and 1/3 cup oil until evenly coated. Season with salt and pepper. Spread out evenly on one sheet pan. Add the kale to the same bowl, and toss to coat in any residual oil. Drizzle with more oil as needed and toss to coat evenly. Spread out in an even layer on the second sheet pan.
• Working with 1 sheet pan at a time, broil the broccoli and chickpeas, tossing halfway through cooking, until the chickpeas are toasty and the broccoli is tender and charred, 5 to 7 minutes. Broil the kale until just charred and crisp, about 5 minutes.
• Zest the lemon, halve it, then cut 1 half into 4 wedges. Squeeze the juice from the lemon half over the roasted vegetables and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Return the pasta to the pot. Add the 1/4 cup reserved pasta cooking water, the ricotta, butter and lemon zest and toss until well combined. Add the roasted vegetables and toss, adding more pasta water as needed.
• Divide among four bowls. Season with flaky sea salt and pepper, and serve with lemon wedges for squeezing on top. Drizzle with more oil, if desired.

PASTA WITH RICOTTA AND BROCCOLI RABE

Steps:

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, boil broccoli rabe 1 minute; with a slotted spoon, transfer to a colander to drain. In same pot of water, cook pasta until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain pasta, and return to pot.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add anchovy fillets (if using), garlic, and pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds.
• Add broccoli rabe; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in ricotta and milk; cook just until heated through, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add contents of skillet to pasta; season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

PASTA WITH BROCCOLI AND SAUSAGE WITH A RICOTTA SURPRISE

Steps:

• Place a large pot of water with a tight-fitting lid over high heat and bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, add some salt and the pasta. Cook according to package directions until al dente. Heads up: you will need to use about 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking liquid for the sauce before you drain the pasta.
• In a small mixing bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, lemon zest, salt, and a lot of freshly ground black pepper. Reserve the ricotta mixture on the countertop and let it come to room temp. The flavors of the cheese and lemon will develop as the cheese warms up.
• Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat with the EVOO. Add the sausage and break it up with the back of a wooden spoon into small bite-size pieces. Really go at breaking the meat up; it will make a big difference in the end. Cook the meat until brown, about 4 to 5 minutes. While the sausage is browning, prepare the broccoli. Cut the broccoli tops into small florets. Remove the fibrous outer layer of the stem (just square it off using your knife), then thinly slice the tender center portion of the stem.
• Once the sausage is brown, remove it to a paper-towel-lined plate. Return the skillet to the heat and add all of the broccoli and the chopped onion. Spread the veggies out in an even layer in the pan, season with some salt and pepper, and let the broccoli brown up a bit before stirring, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and continue to cook 2 minutes more. Add the sausage back to the skillet along with the chicken stock. Ladle in some cooking water from the pasta and bring up to a simmer. Cook until the broccoli is tender and the liquids have reduced slightly, about 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice, parsley, and cooked, well-drained pasta. Toss to combine and simmer 1 last minute to allow the pasta to soak in the sauce and flavors. Turn the heat off, add the grated cheese, and toss to combine.
• To serve, place a large dollop of the pepper-lemon-ricotta mixture into each of 4 shallow bowls and bury it with hot pasta. Once you are at the table, mix it up with a fork to distribute the ricotta cheese. Serve with extra grated cheese.