Chicken & Spinach Agnolotti with Broccoli Pesto
Recipe Inspiration: Seasonal produce: Fresh winter vegetables
Blog: Anita with Renée
Hi there Clubbers!
It has been a while between blogs. I hope that you have all been keeping safe, healthy and happy over the last few months. To me it feels like forever ago that life was ‘normal’ and that we were all going about our day-to-day business; making plans to travel, see family and organising our special occasions. All I can think now is … where has 2020 gone?
Like most come January 1st, I made some New Year’s resolutions – that were perhaps somewhat ambitious. Determined to make it my best year ever, I started the new decade with a pledge to myself that this was the year I was going to achieve my weight loss goal and lose the extra few kilos I gained over the festive season. Yeah okay!!! {insert face palm emoji here}.
Some of you might be nodding your head in unison, or maybe you took on the challenge to smash your health and fitness goals out of the park. I can’t deny that I’m envious of you who did! Instead, I took the opportunity to stop, reassess and reconnect with my immediate family. We home-schooled, worked from home and spent an abundance of time cooking all of our favourite things … hence the covid kilos – ha! I also used this ‘free’ time to experiment in the kitchen and learn new recipes. I had seen similar variations of the recipe we have for you today, a few times in different magazines, and – true to my own style – I did make some adjustments to the ingredients. I just had to wait for the ideal time to trial it.
My inspiration behind our featured recipe came when I received a delivery from my local fruit and veg grocer – Morley Wholesale Fruit and Veg. I absolutely love the concept of supporting a local business and local farmers and the quality of produce is amazing. Planning ahead also means fewer visits to the shops – which is ideal for me. A seasonal fruit and veg box is a great tool to plan an entire week’s meals and a fabulous way to get the whole family involved in nutrition.
Included in this week’s box was some broccoli, which was so incredibly fresh – like it had just been harvested that morning – that I had to cook with it! I used the broccoli to create a twist on both a traditional pesto and pasta dish. Broccoli is great value and in season at the moment, while the other ingredients used in this recipe are also easy to source. In fact it is most likely that you’ll have them in your pantry/fridge already. Another bonus about this recipe, is that pesto keeps for a few weeks in the fridge (if you continue to cover the top with olive oil to keep the herbs fresh) or alternatively it also freezes really well.
Fast and fresh is what I am all about, so this recipe will be on rotation a fair bit in my household. Even the fussiest of eaters loved it. Not only is it cheap and simple to make, but it is also a nutritious meal and the colour is just sensational! I hope you enjoy this spin on a pesto that is super green, super yum, packed full of veg and oh so versatile. Cook it as I did with GR’s Chicken & Spinach Agnolotti or with their Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli for a meat free meal.
It has been lovely blogging again clubbers… I promise it wont be as long between recipes the next time. Enjoy, continue to stay safe and enjoy the return to normality as restrictions start to lift and shift. Don’t forget that good hygiene is in your hands and here’s to the rest of 2020!
Ciao for now and buon appetito,
Anita, Renée and the GR Team
Ingredients
- 450g of GR Half Moon Chicken & Spinach Agnolotti
- 1 small broccoli, cut into small florets
- 1 cup of frozen peas, thawed
- 1 cup of basil leaves
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/2 cup of almond flakes
- 1/3 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup of olive oil
- 60g pkt of Coles Australian baby rocket
Method
- To begin, cook the broccoli in a large saucepan of boiling water for 2 mins or until bright green and tender. Drain well and reserve the cooking water.
- Next, place half of the broccoli in a food processor with the peas, basil, garlic, almond flakes and Parmesan cheese. Process until finely chopped. Add the olive oil and process until almost smooth. Season generously with salt and pepper.
- Using the same water that you cooked the broccoli in, add cooking salt and bring it back up to a rapid boil. Once boiling, cook the pasta until al dente approx. 10-12 minutes.
- While the pasta is cooking, place a large deep frying pan over a high flame with half the pesto mixture and a little olive oil. Sauté for a minute or so. By this stage your pasta should be cooked. Don’t drain the pasta completely as you will need a few ladles of the the water for the next step.
- Add the pasta and some of the water to the pan and vigorously toss to loosen the mixture. Add a little extra olive oil and continue to agitate the pan to create a beautiful velvety and creamy sauce.
- Place the pasta on a large serving platter and scatter though some rocket leaves and the remaining broccoli florets. Garnish with generous dollops of the pesto, some flaked almonds and shaved Parmesan.
