Pesto Pasta with Garlic Steamed Broccoli

Pesto Pasta

8 oz rigatoni, cooked
3 c fresh basil leaves, washes and dried
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/4 c pine nuts
1/2 c parmesan cheese, shredded, and divided
3 tbs olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Cook the rigatoni according to the directions on the package. Meanwhile, place the basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, and 1/4 c of cheese into a food processor. Process until the leaves have significantly reduced in size and a chunky paste has formed. Add the oil into the pour spout while the machine is running. Add the salt and pepper. Toss over the cooked pasta, top with more parmesan, and enjoy!

Garlic Steamed Broccoli

2 c broccoli florets
2 cloves garlic, minced

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and place a steamer insert on top of the pot. (If using a multi-cooker for pasta, just place the steamer on top of the pot while the pasta is cooking.) Once the water is boiling, add the broccoli and garlic to the steamer and cover. Steam for about 5 minutes, or until the broccoli has begun to soften.

Tonight's dinner was a CSA and our own garden masterpiece! The basil came from our garden, which is doing amazingly well, and the garlic and broccoli were from our farm share this week. The food was absolutely fresh and delicious. It's incredible how much better really farm-fresh food does taste.

D and I were both commenting on how much we were enjoying this meal, until I spotted something lurking in the very bottom of the bowl with the broccoli...are you ready for this one? There were 2 small maggots!!! EWWWWW. I almost vomited onto my pasta! (Sorry for being so graphic!) Luckily, the pasta was not mixed with the broccoli, and D and I both concluded that if we had in fact eaten one of the "unwelcome guests" we most likely would have noticed. So, we discarded the remaining piece (yup, we had already eaten the rest of it!), and went on with our meal...only slightly disheartened! I guess the moral of this story is that farm-fresh broccoli heads might contain some surprises, and it would be wise to check more carefully during the cleaning process!

Since this meal is a snap to make, it was easily ready for all of us to eat together. J LOVED the pesto, as usual, and he had some broccoli as well. But, his broccoli was from some mashed frozen broccoli I had stored away, thankfully! And he finished his feast with some mango. I'm so proud that he loves his pesto!

Food for Thought: Garlic is a close relative of an onion. It has long been touted for both its culinary and medicinal uses. It is used in just about all types of cuisine imaginable. And, it boasts some pretty well-proven health benefits, such as lowering of cholesterol, reducing heart diseases and atherosclerosis, and even is often used as an antiseptic! It also contains a variety of vitamins and minerals...I guess there's not much not to love!