Really the easiest pasta dish, 15 minute broccoli pasta with basil oil. An indulgent dinner fix, this basil oil pasta will blow your mind. Uses mostly pantry staple ingredients and is ideal for any day of the week.
Why you’ll love this pasta dish
We use a mix of fresh basil and parsley for this delicious pasta-hugging sauce of our dreams. Garlic, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and cracked black pepper bring the flavor. The whole pasta is smoothed out with some reserved pasta cooking water.
We serve this goodness with broccoli, salty capers and toasted sunflower seeds. For a nice crunchy bite, the broccoli is quickly blanched in boiling pasta. Extra drizzles of good olive oil and chili flakes are highly recommended. I served this pasta with a lettuce salad and a simple honey lemon dressing. Because more green is always a good thing. But just a giant bowl of this pasta eaten outside is pretty great on its own.
Recipe Notes
- Use any short pasta shape of your choice.
- Swap broccoli for cauliflower or green beans.
- Serve with a side of grilled chicken.
- Storage: Any leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Looking for other easy pasta dishes? Try these favorites.
- Spicy rigatoni alla vodka with sun dried tomatoes
- Tagliatelle with meat and kale pesto
- Carbonara with mascarpone
15 minute broccoli pasta with basil oil
Ingredients
- 9 ounce rigatoni
- ½ broccoli - cut into small florets
- 2 tbsp capers
- ½ tsp chili flakes
- 4 tbsp toasted sunflower seeds
- grated parmesan - for serving
Basil Oil Sauce
- 1 ounce parsley leaves
- 2 ounce basil leaves
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 garlic clove - minced
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- sea salt - for serving
- cracked black pepper - for serving
Instructions
- Boil the pasta in salted water. 2 minutes before the pasta will be al dente, add the broccoli florets. Drain, reserving ¼ cup of the cooking water.
- While the pasta is boiling. Add basil, parsley, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper to your food processor. Blend the mixture until you have a slightly chunky paste. Don’t over mix. Adjust the seasoning if necessary and set aside.
- Add the drained pasta back to the pot together with the broccoli. Add basil oil sauce, sunflower seeds, capers and a big splash of the reserved cooking water. Season with chili flakes, salt and pepper, and then stir. Serve with grated parmesan. Enjoy!
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