When I first moved to Texas and was figuring out how to cook for my stepdaughter, I decided to go back to basics and cook something easy and delicious that combined ingredients she loved. It turned out to be a favorite of the adults in the house, too, and has a surprising amount of flavor, with the ingredients treated perfectly simply. Four years later and counting, we have this by request almost every time she comes over. I love to make it and see her finish her whole plate (she even puts it in the dishwasher now).
Ingredients:
1/2 LB curly Pasta like cavatappi, cavatelli, campanelle, or farfalle
1 TBS Olive Oil
1 LB Ground Beef
2-3 cups broccoli florets, chopped to small bite size pieces
3-4 TBS butter
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
Salt
1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese
Directions:
Boil water, add a pinch of salt & cook pasta according to al dente package directions
While the pasta cooks, in a skillet large enough to hold the finished dish, heat the Olive Oil and brown the Ground Beef. Season with a pinch of salt as it cooks
When the pasta has about 2 mins left to cook, add the Broccoli to the pasta water
Drain cooked pasta and broccoli together, and add to pan with cooked Ground Beef. Toss to mix
Return the pasta pot to the stove over medium-low heat and melt the Butter
Add the Garlic and Red Pepper Flakes, and cook until fragrant, but no longer pungent, about 1 min. Be careful not to brown the garlic
Slowly pour garlic butter over beef-pasta-broccoli mixture, tossing often to coat all parts of the dish
Salt to taste & sprinkle Parmesan Cheese over the mixture and toss to coat
Serve with more Parmesan to top it off & enjoy!
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