news
I Love You, Broccoli and Cheese
There are days, right? Days when it’s supposed to be spring outside, but it’s still cold and dreary. And you have to do your taxes, or write exams, or pull out all of your heavy furniture and clean the year’s worth of dust that’s piled up against the wall. This is the cure for those early spring blahs – it’s comforting enough for a howling gale, and green enough to remind you of the warm days to come. And once you learn this quick technique, which can also be done sans vegetables, you’ll never again look back to a certain blue and yellow box.
Level of Difficulty from 1 (I.V Drip) to 10 (Iron Chef): 2
Ingredients:
–1 stalk broccoli (about 1 cup chopped). This is great stuff. Did you know a serving of Broccoli contains more than 100% of your daily requirement of vitamin C? It’s also a good source of calcium, magnesium and fibre, and it’s available year-round.
–2 cups dry macaroni. Whole wheat macaroni is particularly good in this, but regular will do. Penne, tubetti, fusili, or spirals are also good. For the indecisive, try a little of each!
–3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese. The older the tastier. As you may remember from childhood, cheddar cheese has a magical way of transforming ordinary broccoli into something sublime. And by ‘shredded’ I mean grated or, in a pinch, cut into little pieces.
–3 tbsp milk.
–1 tbsp Butter.
–1 tsp flour.
What to Do
1. Cut up the broccoli and boil along with the pasta for about 10 minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Drain and return to the pot.
2. Working quickly, add the butter and stir until melted, then sprinkle over the flour. Stir everything together for a few seconds. Add milk and stir.
3. Turn the heat on low under the pot to keep everything warm. Add the cheese gradually while stirring until everything is coated in a smooth, cheesy sauce. Serve immediately and eat from a bowl on the couch. Serves 2.
Tarting it Up
Adding a good grating of fresh parmesan cheese will enhance the sharp, cheesy flavour of this dish. You can also try half teaspoon of hot sauce or dry mustard powder stirred in at the end. We like a little diced ham, and our mom is a big believer in diced, sauteed onion. This is the sort of basic recipe that can be endlessly tweaked and refined to your taste. Enjoy.