Spaghetti con Broccoli

 Just 30 minutes to make the most delicious Spaghetti con Broccoli.

My absolute favorite restaurant is Cunetto’s (Cunetto House of Pasta).  It’s a family owned restaurant in the awesome city St. Louis, MO.  It’s located on “The Hill” which is a historical Italian area in St. Louis with lots of other yummy food.  This place has The BEST pasta.  My favorite things to order there are toasted ravioli (created in St. Louis!), Tortellini alla Bolognese, and Spaghetti con Broccoli.  If you ever visit St. Louis, dining at Cunnetto’s is a must! …and then follow it up with dessert at Ted Drewes Frozen Custard.  

Gosh, I wish I still lived in St. Louis so I could have some pasta and custard right now!  Maybe I can use my “pregnancy cravings” as an excuse to get my husband to drive me 6+ hours for a weekend get away!  Oh yeah, if you missed my instagram post, Surprise! Baby #2 is on it’s way!  Due July 13th.  We are so excited to have another little one join the fam… especially to give Carly a playmate.  I think she’s getting quite bored of being home with me all day, especially after spending Christmas with her cousins who she started to love even more than Nick and I.  Seriously!  When we would pick her up she would reach to our nieces wanting them to hold her.  Honestly, I was a little hurt… but it was also a nice break.

So yeah, I blame my pregnancy symptoms for my lack of posting more the last two months.  The “morning sickness” that really lasts the whole day has made developing recipes and cooking less desirable.  Luckily the symptoms are starting to subside as I enter my second trimester so hopefully I can crank out a lot of recipes and get the blog rolling for 2015.  Oh and speaking of the new year, if you missed my recap of the 14 Most Popular Recipes of 2014, you should totally check it out! 😉  Such yummy food (4 of the 14 are cupcakes!).

This pasta is so delish!  Probably because of all the cream!  But also because of the flavorful sauteed mushrooms.  I LOVE mushrooms.  Even when I was a kid I would snatch up a few mushrooms as my mom washed them.  She would get a little frustrated with me and tell me to stopped eating them or she wouldn’t have enough for what she was making.  So yeah, raw mushrooms are good, but saute them in butter and that is where it’s at people!  Mmmm!

Another great thing about this dish is that it only takes 30 minutes!  Hallelujah!  Annnnnd even though it’s vegetarian it still has quite a bit of protein (16 grams) thanks to the cheese, noodles, and cream.  But if you have a family member, ahem, like my husband, who needs to have meat you can toss in some grilled chicken.

I hope you enjoy this deliciously creamy and flavorful Spaghetti con Broccoli!

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4.5 from 2 votes

Spaghetti Con Broccoli

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings 8

Author Garnish & Glaze

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti noodles
• 1/2 pound broccoli florets chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 8 ounce container sliced mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 3 cups half-and-half cream
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano or parmesan cheese, divided

Instructions

• Boil 4-6 quarts water with 1 tablespoon salt. Cook pasta for 7 minutes and then add broccoli and cook another 2-3 minutes until pasta is al dente and broccoli is crisp-tender. Reserve 1 cup pasta water and then drain pasta and broccoli.
• While pasta cooks, melt butter in a large deep skillet and saute mushrooms over medium heat for 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook anther 30 seconds. Add the cream, salt, and pepper and bring to a simmer. Let cream simmer over medium heat for 4 minutes until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.
• Add the pasta, broccoli, and 1/4 cup reserved pasta water. Cook 1 minute, stirring to coat all the pasta in the sauce. Stir in 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and then remove from heat. Serve immediately topped with remaining cheese. (Sauce thickens as pasta cools. Add a little starchy pasta water as needed to moisten back up. You'll definitely want to add some if reheating leftovers.)

Recipe source: Adapted from Food.com (more mushrooms, less salt, different cooking methods)