Pasta with Broccoli Pesto

1. Blanch Veg

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, using about a tablespoon of salt per quart of water, add the broccoli and blanch for about 2-3 minutes or until it's tender. Remove with a slotted spoon, reserving the water, and plunge the broccoli into ice water to stop the cooking process. Once cooled, thoroughly drain the broccoli on paper towels before making the pesto.

2. Make Pesto

In a food processor, pulse the cooled, drained broccoli, garlic, Parmesan, Pecorino Romano, lemon zest, toasted pine nuts and a pinch of salt until coarsely chopped. With the food processor running, stream in the olive oil to create a smooth pesto. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.

3. Cook Pasta

In the same pot of boiling water, add the orecchiette and cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute less than the package instructions for al dente. Reserve about a cup of pasta water before draining.

4. Sauce Pasta

Add the drained pasta to a pan with 1/4 cup reserved pasta water and continue to cook and stir. Once the water is about 80% reduced, remove the pan from the heat and add a small amount of the pesto, stirring vigorously to start the emulsion. Stir in the rest of the pesto and keep stirring to maintain the emulsion. Work quickly as this pesto can turn brown if held hot for too long.

5. Serve

Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt if needed. Plate and serve