Bowtie pasta with cherry tomatoes, broccoli and goat's cheese

May 8, 2008

This is one of those extremely easy dishes to put together. While the pasta is cooking the other ingredients can be prepared then the whole lot pulled together at the end with minimum fuss.

You can buy roasted peppers by the jar or can, or pick up a couple of loose ones from the deli cabinet where you should also find the semi-dried tomatoes in oil.

A tangy fresh goat’s cheese is best for this dish. It will melt down and help form a sauce. If you’re not a broccoli fan, you can substitute some asparagus or double-shelled broad beans.

Pasta with broccoli, cherry tomatoes and goat’s cheese

250g bowtie pasta
2 cups broccoli florets
2 tablespoons chopped semi-dried tomatoes
2 tablespoons pitted olives
1 small goat’s cheese, broken into small pieces
2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
2 preserved roasted peppers, slices into strips
a good fruity olive oil
basil leaves (optional)

Cook the pasta in boiling salted water according to the instructions on the pack. Three minutes before it is ready, add the broccoli florets, finish cooking and drain, saving a little of the pasta water.

Place the a little oil in a deep pan and toss the semidried tomatoes, olives, cherry tomatoes and roasted pepper gently till heated through. Tip in the pasta and  broccoli and the goat’s cheese and toss through till well mixed and the cheese is melting, adding a little of the cooking water if necessary.

Place in a large serving bowl and drizzle with the olive oil. A few basil leaves strewn over the top will contribute to the flavour.

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