Spelt Pasta with Tomato and Broccoli

Looking out at the ocean I feel peaceful and at home. The waves go on for miles and miles. Brown pelicans swoop down in a formation close to the water looking for food. There are times during the day that you can hear the waves pounding against the rocks. The rocks are basalt, an extension of the ocean floor. So quiet and so busy all at the same time.

The garden is coming along and I am harvesting lettuce leaves off the plants one and two at a time. It is still too early for most of greens so I am having to pick up them up at the farmer’s market. Last week I picked up some beautiful tomatoes and broccoli from a farm in central Oregon. The tomatoes tasted like a real tomato, you know……. the summer kind, and that is how this dinner came about, spelt pasta with tomato and broccoli.

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh spelt pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 red onion (chopped)
½ cup white wine
1 ½ cups heavy cream
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
3 to 4 large tomatoes ( seeded and chopped into pieces)
2 large heads broccoli (trimmed to florets)

To prepare:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add pasta and cook until tender but firm to the bite about 2 to 4 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water, then scoop out pasta and set aside. Bring water back up to a boil; add broccoli and cook until just tender about 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Next the red onion is sautéed until softened about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook another minute; stirring constantly. Add tomatoes and saute another 5 minutes or so, add wine and cook down until almost evaporated. Add broccoli, lemon zest and juice and stir to combine. Then add cream, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper and continue cooking over medium heat for 5 minutes. The sauce should begin to thicken.

Add pasta and combine, if necessary add the pasta water (a half a cup at a time) until you get the right consistency. (I only added 1/2 cup) Enjoy!