Penne pasta forest
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We're always told not to play with our food, but the ingenious presentation of Josh Eggleton's pasta bake is surely a worthy exception. At it's heart, this recipe is a creamy, cheesy bake of penne pasta cooked in a vibrant broccoli and spinach purée, mixed with a rich white sauce. A forest of purple sprouting broccoli turns this into a something a bit more fun and magical.
First published in 2015
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Broccoli and pasta
- 250g of penne pasta
- 400g of purple sprouting broccoli
Broccoli purée
- 1 head of broccoli
- 500g of baby spinach
- 20g of butter
- 40g of light mascarpone
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 pinch of black pepper
Cheese sauce
- 300ml of skimmed milk
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 small onion, peeled and halved
- 25g of butter
- 25g of flour
- 50g of Parmesan, grated
- 250g of frozen peas
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 pinch of black pepper
SAVE RECIPE
Method
1
For the broccoli purée, bring a large pan of heavily-salted water to a rolling boil. Trim the broccoli away from the stem and cook in the water for 6-8 minutes, until soft and slightly overcooked
2
Transfer the cooked broccoli to a blender, along with 5 tablespoons of the cooking water. Add the spinach, butter and mascarpone and blend until smooth
- 500g of baby spinach
- 40g of light mascarpone
- 20g of butter
3
Transfer the purée to a small pan placed over a very low heat to keep warm. Season with salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 pinch of black pepper
4
Cook the penne in boiling water for 10 minutes, stirring 3 times during the cooking process. Strain and combine with the broccoli purée
- 250g of penne pasta
5
To make the cheese sauce, add the milk, bay leaf and onion to a small pot, bring to the boil
- 300ml of skimmed milk
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 small onion, peeled and halved
6
Once boiling, remove from the heat and set aside to infuse for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6
7
In a separate pan, melt the butter. Once bubbling, stir in the flour and cook for 30 seconds
- 25g of flour
- 25g of butter
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 pinch of black pepper
8
Slowly strain in the infused milk and a little seasoning, whisking until it thickens to the consistency of thin custard
9
Remove from the heat, stir in the cheese and peas, then add to the pasta
- 50g of Parmesan
- 250g of frozen peas
10
Transfer the mixture to a baking dish and place in the oven for 12 minutes
- 400g of purple sprouting broccoli
11
Meanwhile, cut the stems off the purple sprouting broccoli to make little trees approximately 12cm long
12
Drop the broccoli into boiling water for 4 minutes, then drain
13
Remove the pasta bake from the oven. Once the broccoli is cool enough to handle, poke the broccoli stems into the surface of the bake to make the forest. Serve immediately
First published in 2015
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