Mafaldine Limone with Broccoli (Printable)
Curly mafaldine meets zesty lemon and tender broccoli in a silky Parmesan butter sauce.
# What goes in:
→ Pasta
01 - 14 oz mafaldine pasta
→ Vegetables
02 - 10.5 oz broccoli florets
03 - 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
04 - Zest of 1 lemon
05 - Juice of 1 lemon
→ Dairy
06 - 1.75 oz grated Parmesan cheese
07 - 1.4 oz unsalted butter
08 - ¼ cup heavy cream (optional, for a silkier sauce)
→ Basics & Seasoning
09 - 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
10 - Salt and pepper, to taste
11 - Fresh basil or parsley, finely chopped (for garnish)
# Directions:
01 - Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a rolling boil. Add the mafaldine and cook until al dente according to package directions.
02 - Three minutes before the pasta finishes cooking, add the broccoli florets directly into the boiling pasta water to blanch them until tender-crisp.
03 - Scoop out and reserve roughly ⅓ cup of the starchy pasta water, then drain the mafaldine and broccoli together in a colander.
04 - While the pasta drains, warm the olive oil and butter together in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook gently for about 1 minute, stirring frequently, until fragrant but not browned.
05 - Transfer the drained mafaldine and broccoli into the skillet. Toss everything thoroughly to coat in the garlic butter.
06 - Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, and heavy cream if using. Splash in the reserved pasta water as needed to bring the sauce together into a silky, glossy consistency.
07 - Scatter the grated Parmesan over the pasta and toss continuously until the cheese melts and the sauce clings evenly. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
08 - Divide among warm plates immediately. Finish with a scattering of fresh herbs and an extra shower of Parmesan if desired.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- Mafaldine is one of those pastas people rarely buy and it grabs onto sauce like nothing else, making every forkful a small miracle.
- The broccoli cooks in the same pot as the pasta, so you get perfectly tender florets without dirtying a single extra pan.
02 -
- Garlic goes from golden to burnt in seconds, so pull the skillet off the heat the moment you see the first hint of color at the edges.
- Adding the cheese off direct heat or tossing it very quickly prevents it from clumping into stringy ropes that refuse to melt.
03 -
- Warm your serving plates in a low oven while you cook, because this pasta cools fast and warm plates keep the sauce from seizing up before you finish eating.
- Always zest your lemon before juicing it, because trying to zest a squeezed lemon half is a frustrating and slightly dangerous task you only attempt once.