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Home » Recipes » Main Entrées

Italian Pasta with Broccoli

Published: Aug 10, 2022 by AmyG Modified On: Feb 3, 2025. This post may contain affiliate links. 1 Comment.

Whether it's broccoli & pasta or Pasta with Broccoli, it's a great dish that combines your favorite pasta with a hearty vegetable. The best part is that this pasta dish will be on the dinner table in no time at all.

Like pasta dishes with vegetables? Try my Pasta with Creamy Garlic and Mushroom, Pasta with Ricotta and Peas, my Pasta alla Norma, or Baked Feta and Tomato.

Pasta with Broccoli and Cherry Tomatoes in a white plate
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Jump to:
  • Why You'll Love Making This Dish
  • How to Add Fresh Broccoli to Pasta?
  • What to Cook with Pasta Broccoli
  • Is Pasta Broccoli Healthy?
  • Ingredients
  • Instructions on How to Make Pasta & Broccoli
  • Storage
  • Top tip
  • Substitutions and Variations
  • Equipment
  • Side Dishes to Try
  • Recipe Details
  • Top tip
  • PIN It Here
  • Food Safety
  • Comments

Italian Pasta with Broccoli is a great option to put on your weekly rotation for dinner or as a great take to work lunch.

Made with simple ingredients, broccoli & pasta easily converts to a meal for the whole family. You can even add cheese and tomato to make this a cheesy pasta recipe with broccoli.

Why You'll Love Making This Dish

  • quick and easy dinner that's on the table in less than 30 minutes
  • inexpensive ingredients make this meal and option for times when you need to eat but don't want to break the bank
  • great taste that all will love, kids included
  • customizable ingredients mean that you can add any vegetable you want

This page contains affiliate links, which means I may receive commissions if you choose to purchase through links I provide (at no extra cost to you). Thank you for supporting the work I put into this site! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

How to Add Fresh Broccoli to Pasta?

Adding fresh broccoli to pasta is simple really. But before you add your broccoli pasta, you should cook it. Cook your broccoli by boiling broccoli, roasting broccoli, sauteing broccoli, etc. Then add cooked broccoli to your pasta with any other ingredients such as cheese, tomato and red pepper flakes.

You will want to reserve some pasta water to combine your pasta with broccoli, grated cheese, olive oil and any other ingredients.

What to Cook with Pasta Broccoli

Pasta & broccoli is a hearty dish on its own. If you want to serve something with it, you can serve a chicken marsala, or salad like a tomato salad or a spinach with a strawberry vinaigrette.

Is Pasta Broccoli Healthy?

Broccoli is a healthy vegetable. One cup of broccoli contains 2.5 grams of protein, 6 grams of carbs, 1.5 grams of sugar, 2.3 grams of fiber and 31 calories.

Depending on what pasta you pair the broccoli with it can be healthy. If we look at the nutritional content of traditional white pasta, one cup of pasta has 8 grams of protein, 42 grams of carbs, 3 grams of fiber and about 200 calories.

Pairing the broccoli with a whole grain pasta is definitely a lot more healthier for you, if you can fancy the taste. For example 1 cup of whole grain pasta contains 8 grams of protein, 39 grams of carbs, 7 grams of fiber and about 180 calories.

For the above comparison, I used Barilla Pasta.

Ingredients

  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Ziti or Rigatoni Pasta
  • Grated Parmesan Cheese
  • Pasta Cooking Water
  • Fresh Broccoli
  • Cherry Tomatoes (optional)
  • Butter
  • Garlic
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Fresh Basil

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions on How to Make Pasta & Broccoli

Adding cherry tomatoes is 100% optional. If you decide to include them, prepare them as follows.

roasted tomatoes in a grey bowl

Lightly season cherry tomatoes with salt and pepper and a splash of olive oil. Bake in oven or toaster over for 25 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Set aside.

broccoli florets in a small grey bowl

Wash and cut the stems off the broccoli.

In a large skillet, sauté garlic in olive oil and butter. Add broccoli to skillet and cook covered. Boil pasta until it is al dente.

broccoli boiling in a large saucepan

Cut broccoli and boil until tender and wilted.

rigatoni pasta in a skillet with cherry tomatoes and broccoli

In a large skillet, sauté garlic in olive oil and butter. Add broccoli to skillet and cook covered. Boil pasta until it is al dente.

Scoop pasta using a spider strainer and drop into into skillet with broccoli and continue cooking. Add a couple of scoops of pasta water to the skillet so that the contents don't dry up.

Cook covered until it is tender enough to eat. Add grated parmesan cheese and roasted tomatoes. Toss and serve with fresh cut basil.

Hint: A spider strainer comes in handy to scoop up the pasta from the pot and transfer it into the skillet.

Storage

This pasta dish stores quite nicely, warmed up the next day. Remember to use an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for not more than 2 to 3 days.

To warm up, place in a skillet with a little bit of olive oil or warm up in the microwave.

These ingredients don't stand up well to freezing and would not recommend freezing pasta.

Top tip

Reserve some pasta cooking water to combine the final ingredients with the pasta. Use the pasta water to prevent the broccoli sauce from thickening and drying out.

A spider strainer comes in handy to scoop up the pasta from the pot and transfer it into the skillet.

Substitutions and Variations

Here are some great ideas on how to make this broccoli pasta fit certain diets or variations to make it different:

  • Gluten Free - make it gluten free by using gluten free pasta
  • Cream - add heavy cream to make it a creamy pasta with broccoli
  • Heat - bring the heat by adding hot pepper oil or red pepper flakes
  • Vegan - make it vegan by using vegan cheese or using nutritional yeast
  • Protein - add a protein like chicken or use high protein pasta

If you know how to make this recipe unique or suit your diet - go for it! Let me know what you did and how it turned out by leaving me a comment. I'd love to hear from you.

Equipment

For this recipe you will need some sort of strainer for your pasta. I prefer a spider strainer. You'll also need a stock-pot and a skillet.

Side Dishes to Try

  • burrata salad with grape tomatoes in a white plate
    Burrata Salad with Grape Tomatoes: Fresh and Easy
  • peas and mushrooms in a white plate
    Italian Peas and Mushrooms
  • Sauteed Kale and Potatoes in a white plate
    Sautéed Kale and Potatoes Recipe
  • Polpette di Riso in a white plate
    Polpette di Riso (Balls of Rice)

Recipe Details

Pasta with Broccoli and Cherry Tomatoes in a white plate

Pasta With Broccoli

https://easyhomemaderecipes.ca
AmyG
Whether it's broccoli & pasta or Pasta with Broccoli, it's a great dish that combines your favorite pasta with a hearty vegetable. The best part is that this pasta dish will be on the dinner table in no time at all.
Like pasta dishes with vegetables? Try my Pasta with Creamy Garlic and Mushroom, Pasta with Ricotta and Peas, my Pasta alla Norma, or Baked Feta and Tomato.
5 from 3 votes
Prevent your screen from going dark
Print Recipe Pin Recipe SaveSaved!
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 40 minutes mins
Course Main Entrées
Cuisine American
Servings 4
Calories 624 kcal

Equipment

  • spider strainer
  • Pots and Pans
  • wooden cutting board

Ingredients
  

  • ¼ cup Olive Oil
  • 1 head Broccoli chopped
  • 1 tbsp Butter
  • 1 ½ cups Cherry Tomatoes
  • 1 clove Garlic
  • salt and pepper
  • 14 oz pasta rigatoni or short pasta
  • ½ cup parmesan cheese
  • 1 cup Pasta Water reserved
  • 3 leaves basil chopped

Instructions
 

  • (Optional) Lightly season cherry tomatoes with salt and pepper and a splash of olive oil. Bake in oven or toaster over for 25 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Set aside.
    1 ½ cups Cherry Tomatoes
  • Wash and cut the stems off the broccoli. Cut broccoli and boil until tender and wilted.
    1 head Broccoli
  • In a large skillet, sauté garlic in olive oil and butter.
    ¼ cup Olive Oil, 1 clove Garlic, 1 tbsp Butter
  • Add broccoli to skillet and cook covered.
  • Boil pasta until it is al dente. Remember to salt water
    14 oz pasta
  • Scoop pasta using a spider strainer and drop into into skillet with broccoli and continue cooking. Add a couple of scoops of pasta water to the skillet. Cook covered until it is tender enough to eat.
    1 cup Pasta Water
  • Add grated parmesan cheese and roasted tomatoes.
    salt and pepper, ½ cup parmesan cheese
  • Toss and serve with fresh cut basil.
    3 leaves basil

Notes

Top tip

Reserve some pasta cooking water to combine the final ingredients with the pasta. Use the pasta water to prevent the broccoli sauce from thickening and drying out.
A spider strainer comes in handy to scoop up the pasta from the pot and transfer it into the skillet.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Calories: 624kcalCarbohydrates: 87gProtein: 22gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 288mgPotassium: 840mgFiber: 8gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 1425IUVitamin C: 149mgCalcium: 251mgIron: 3mg
Keyword broccoli pasta, italian pasta, rigatoni, roasted tomato pasta
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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Pasta with Broccoli Pinterest PIN

Food Safety

Note that the storage guidelines provided on this page and site are estimates from personal experiences. We are all adults and as an adult you are responsible to ensure that the food you eat is safe to eat. Since, I'm not a food safety expert, you are responsible to review your local guidelines on food storage prior to storing any food left-overs.

Remember to:

  • Not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
  • Wash hands after touching raw meat
  • Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
  • Never leave cooking food unattended
  • Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
  • Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove

For Canadian Guidelines check the Government of Canada Food Safety Guidelines or see more guidelines at USDA.gov.

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Comments

    5 from 3 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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  1. AmyG says

    October 08, 2022 at 2:23 pm

    5 stars
    This is a great recipe to try!

    Reply

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About Me

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Hey, I'm Amy! And I'm so happy you're here!! So many of my favorite memories in life seem to take place around the table, especially when surrounded by the people I love. And of course, all the better when nourished by some seriously delicious food.

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*This page may have affiliate links, which means I may receive commissions if you choose to purchase through links I provide (at no extra cost to you). Thank you for supporting the work I put into this site!

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