Tuesday Night Simplicity

Most days are pretty hectic. When you're a grad student, you don't get to "clock-out" at 5pm. You never get to clock out because there's always more studying to be done. I'll stop the pity party there, but you get the idea. Simple (and nutritious) dinners are best for us. And so, tonight we had pasta with Alfredo sauce and broccoli. Don't worry, we didn't cheat and use the jar of sauce (too much sodium). Classically it should be prepared with fettuccine, but that's too messy and there are so many fun pasta shapes available.

Rotini and Broccoli with Alfredo Sauce

16 oz dry pasta
2 cups broccoli (fresh or frozen)
1 clove garlic
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
3 cups milk (I used almond milk, but today we learned that it doesn't thicken up quite like cow dairy)
1 cup grated Parmesan
1/8 tsp nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to boil; add pasta and cook til "al dente" (7-10 minutes). When the pasta is finished cooking, reserve 1/2 cup of starchy pasta water, before draining the pasta in a colander.

While the pasta is cooking, thaw the broccoli in the microwave or blanch in another pot of boiling water.

To begin the sauce, add the minced garlic and butter to a medium sized sauce pan. Cook until the butter has melted and the garlic is softened slightly (about 2 minutes). Add the flour, stir and cook for 2-3 more minutes. Ta da! You've made a roux (the basic starter to most sauces). Whisk in the milk. Increase to medium-high heat. Whisk until it comes to a light simmer. The milk should thicken so it coats the back of a wooden spoon. Make sure you're scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent the roux from clumping at the bottom. Turn off the heat and whisk in the Parmesan cheese. Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

Return the cooked pasta to the large bot that it was boiled in (no heat at this point). Add the reserved pasta water and toss gently to loosen up the pasta. Add the broccoli and sauce. Stir everything together to evenly coat with sauce.

I like using rotini and broccoli because they "grab" the sauce well. You could substitute your favorite pasta shape and vegetable to the recipe. Perhaps bow ties and squash is more your style.