So I finally caved into my craving for cavatelli and broccoli.

After many failed attempts at finding my frozen Celentano cavatelli, I took it upon myself to find a recipe. After much searching I found one that worked rather well. Here is a link to it for those interested.

It was much easier that I had anticipated. Part of the ease is that you aren't trying to make a think spaghetti or something more delicate. Just one or two ingredients away from gnocchi, this was a nice and hearty pasta.

I think the key to making these is ensuring you use only as much water as is needed for the pasta dough to be workable. Too much water and you'll have sloppy play-doh, too little and you'll be working with paste.



Once the pasta is completed, you can start steaming the broccoli as well as sauting the garlic and anchovie "sauce." Once the water is boiling you can drop your cavatelli into the water and cook until they float.



Toss everything together with a healthy amount of pasta cheese and you've got a yummy garlicy dish.



A word about the pronunciation of the name of this dish. It's pronounced "gav-ah-deals" not "cav-e-telli." A bit of Internet searching explains why.

I have fond memories of cavatelli and broccoli. I remember my great grandmother making these from scratch. I remember my grandmother making huge trays of cavatelli and broccoli for family gatherings. I don't think I will ever be able to exactly duplicate their efforts, but I hope to honor and remember them in my attempts.