Green Goodness — Blending Spinach, Broccoli and Bechamel into Creamy Pasta Perfection

I love spinach, especially in Palak Paneer, Aloo Palak, and Palak Pakoras. And it goes wonderfully well with garlic. Garlic and spinach is a match made in heaven.

But there’s one problem with spinach. It leaves a typical, earthy aftertaste because of the oxalic acid in its leaves. I tried making pasta in garlicky spinach sauce long ago. But it was meh — the earthy flavor was overpowering.

Do you know what else pairs brilliantly with garlic? Broccoli. Burnt garlic and broccoli soup is just too good! You can probably see where this is going, right!

Spinach + garlic + broccoli

I had some spinach lying in my fridge. Mom bought some broccoli to make its subzi in the morning. And I had got some red and yellow bell peppers with a plan to make that salad I usually make.

And because it’s only me and my mom at home, usually we have plenty vegetables in our fridge.

So, I decided to create a spinach sauce with broccoli, hoping it’d dial down the earthy undertone and make it more palatable. And I took it a notch further and added bechamel to the mix.

AND IT TURNED OUT SOOO GOOODD!

Rich, creamy, just the right amount of spinach and broccoli flavors — neither overpowering nor subdued. This pasta ranks right up there in the top three kinds of pasta I’ve ever made.

Let’s make it then!

I’ve divided it into three parts…

I’ll tell you straightaway, this is a little more elaborate than the usual pasta recipes. Here are the three key cooking steps.

1. Bechamel
2. Spinach broccoli sauce
3. Putting it all together

1. Bechamel

Bechamel is one of the mother sauces of French cuisine. It’s the quintessential white sauce with a bit of seasoning and herbs.

I added it to this recipe to balance the flavors of spinach and broccoli. It’ll also add a new creamy dimension to the dish. Let’s start by listing out everything you’ll need.

1. Milk — 150–200 ml
2. All-purpose flour — a spoon
3. Butter — 15–20 grams
4. Black pepper
5. Salt

You can add herbs of your choice — basil, oregano, thyme, etc. I didn’t. I am anyway gonna add some herbs later.

How do you make bechamel?

In a small pan, heat some butter till it melts. As it melts, add the all-purpose flour, stir continuously, and cook till it slightly changes color to light brown. This is the time when you add milk. Keep stirring, and the milk will thicken slowly.

Once it starts boiling, season it with salt and pepper. If you fancy adding more herbs, go ahead. After a while, the bechamel will thicken rapidly. So, pay attention and cut off the heat slightly before it hits the right thickness and consistency.

Why am I telling you to do so? Because it’ll sit for a while and cool down. And as it cools down, it’ll get thicker. If you make it too thick from the get-go, the sauce will look less like a sauce and more like a cheese spread.

Apart from this caution, it’s straightforward. And quick.

2. Spinach broccoli puree

It’s a puree. But we don’t just go ahead and blend broccoli and spinach. There’s a little more work to do than that.

Here’s everything you’ll need.

1. Spinach — around 100 grams. It depends on how spinachy you want your pasta.
2. Broccoli — 15 to 18 florets
3. Water — 400–500 ml
4. Salt
5. Baking soda — this is a cheat that I learned from Chef Ranveer

Blanch the greens

Heat the water in a saucepot and add a pinch of salt. Once it starts boiling, add a tiny amount of baking soda. That’ll preserve the bright green color of the vegetables we’re blanching.

When the water comes to a roaring boil, add your spinach and broccoli.

Let it cook for around 5 minutes. That should be enough. Once done, cut off the heat, drain the excess water, and run the vegetables under cold, icy water. That’ll stop the cooking process and keep the greens green.

Blend them into a puree

Add them to a food processor and blend them at high till you get a smooth, consistent puree. Add water if needed, but don’t add too much. Transfer it to a bowl and keep it aside for later.

3. Putting it all together

We’ve already made the two pillars of this pasta beforehand — bechamel and spinach broccoli puree. Now, let’s put it all together.

But first, let’s look at everything else you’ll need.

The rest of the ingredients

From here on, it’s quick and simple.

• Penne pasta — 150–200 grams
• Red and yellow bell peppers — half each
• Tomato — half
• 3–4 cloves of garlic
• Olive oil
• Black pepper
• Salt
• Oregano
• Chilli flakes
• Herb-infused extra-virgin olive oil

Something I didn’t use here is Cheddar and Parmesan cheese. It’s optional — if you want, have it. If you don’t, you won’t feel like you’re missing out on anything.

I made a version of this recipe a few days back without broccoli and with the cheese. It tasted just as good, if not better.

If you’re a cheese connoisseur, you’ll prefer it with cheese. So, knock yourself out!

Prep?

There’s not much, just cutting the vegetables.

• Bell peppers — long slices, but not too thin.
• Garlic — finely chopped
• Tomato — long, thin slices

Done. We move.

Light the stove!

First, the pasta.

Let’s start by cooking the pasta. By the time pasta is cooked, your sauce will also be ready. Simultaneously cooking pasta and the sauce will save you time.

Get a saucepot, add around 700–900 ml of water, and season it with salt. Heat it till it comes to a roaring boil. Add the pasta and start the countdown timer. If your pasta packet tells you to cook it for 10 minutes for al-dente, cook it for 10 minutes.

Follow it, and your pasta will be perfectly cooked every single time.

I started with the pasta and waited for the timer to reach 8 minutes. Only then do I start cooking the sauce. It only takes about 8–9 minutes.

Now, the sauce.

In a pan, heat some olive oil for a while. Once hot enough, add the garlic and let it cook for a while. Don’t let it burn though. Next, the bell peppers go in. Season them with salt and pepper and toss them on high heat.

Saute them for a minute or two, but not more than that. We want their texture and crunch intact.

Next, we add the spinach and broccoli puree and cook it for a couple of minutes. That way, it’ll be cooked thoroughly and won’t feel or taste raw. Some might prefer that slightly raw taste and feel, but not me.

As the puree cooks and reduces, add the bechamel. Till now, we were cooking on high heat. After you add bechamel, lower the heat to medium-high and let the flavors mingle and mature. Now is the time to spice it up with chili flakes, black pepper, and oregano.

Go light on the oregano. Too much oregano overpowers the rest of the flavors. It also feels like a cheap hack that mediocre restaurants use to compensate for average-quality ingredients.

Check for salt levels.

The sauce is now of the right consistency and thickness. Even if it feels a little too thick, don’t worry. When you strain the pasta and add it directly to the sauce, it’ll dilute it with some of that pasta water.

The sauce is ready, and so is pasta. Add the pasta to the sauce and mix it well. Let it cook for a minute, not more than that. The penne will get mushy if you overcook it.

Finish it with the thin tomato slices for that tang, and drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil. Your pasta is done.

Toast a few slices of sourdough bread in some garlic butter, and enjoy!

I didn’t. It’s hard to get sourdough bread where I live. Sad.

A few things…

I know the recipe sounds elaborate, with three different things and too many utensils used. And if you don’t manage time, it’ll feel tedious and time-consuming.

But try it. It’s 100% worth it. Clear your evening one day and get into the kitchen. Work at your pace. For reference, it took me 40–45 minutes from the beginning to the end. And I was recording all of it as well.

If you wanna watch that reel, check it out here!

It’s one of the creamiest, well-balanced, and tastiest pasta I’ve ever had. It’s not spicy, spinachy or bland. The flavors are just right. And that’s why I said it earlier, it’s easily one of the top three pastas I have ever made.

Coming up next week?

Nothing is more Indian than what’s coming in the next blog.

Did you get it? Let me know in the responses!

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Merci.