Pasta la vista, baby!

Pasta shows up on my dinner table at least once a week. It’s inexpensive, easy to make, is versatile AND is something all three of my kids will eat without complaining. Works for me!

One of my kids’ favorite variations is also kind of healthy (shhhh!) and asked for a lot at my house. Coined “Old Mom Pasta” by my kids, this simple dish of pasta, broccoli, olive oil and garlic is a quick and easy dinner, even on a busy night.

The “Old Mom” name is the name my kids call their grandmother – my mother – which is where this recipe comes from. She's not exactly thrilled with the moniker but she goes along with it. When my kids were young, they heard me calling my mother “mom.” At the age of 4,  my daughter started calling her “old mom,” to distinguish between my mother and me. I realize that, in the future, this one could come back to bite me, but meanwhile I have enjoyed being simply “mom” and am happy to give kudos to “old mom” for the popularity of “Old Mom Pasta.”

The preparation is simple. Heat a generous amount of olive oil in a large frying pan. The amount to use is up to you. You want to use enough so that when you add a pound of pasta to it, it will not be too dry. Start with 1/3 cup and add more if that doesn’t seem like enough.

Add minced garlic to the olive oil and simmer gently until the garlic just begins to brown slightly. Then add 2-3 cups of broccoli florets. The beauty of this dish is you can use fresh or frozen broccoli. Whatever you have on hand will be work great.

Stir the broccoli as it cooks, for approximately 10-15 minutes or until broccoli is crisp tender.

While the broccoli is cooking, prepare a package of your favorite pasta shape. I use rotini. When the pasta is done, drain and mix with the olive oil and broccoli. Serve with grated Romano cheese on the side and, if you want to spice it up, some crushed red pepper.

Ridiculously simple and insanely delicious!