Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower Pasta

• servings: Yields 14.5 cups
• active time: 10 minutes
• total time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

8 cups broccoli florets (see note)

1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) extra virgin olive oil, divided

1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided

8 cups cauliflower florets (see note)

12 ounces whole wheat penne pasta

1 cup reserved pasta cooking water

1 cup shredded parmesan cheese (see note)

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Directions

Preheat oven to 475ºF, and bring a large pot of water to a boil on the stove.

On a parchment-lined baking sheet, toss the broccoli florets with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper, making sure the oil and seasonings are evenly distributed. (If you prefer, you can toss the ingredients together in a bowl and then dump the broccoli mixture out onto the baking sheet.) On a second parchment-lined baking sheet, repeat the process with the cauliflower florets, tossing them with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3/4 teaspoons salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Make sure the vegetables are spread out evenly on the baking sheets, and not heaped on top of each other, so they roast properly rather than steaming.

Place cauliflower in the oven and roast for 5 minutes; then add broccoli to the oven. Roast for 5 minutes more, and then stir both cauliflower and broccoli and rotate sheet pans to promote even roasting. Continue roasting for about 10 more minutes (20 minutes total for cauliflower and 15 minutes total for broccoli), until the vegetables have developed some gorgeous roasted brown spots. Remove from oven and set briefly aside, keeping warm.

Meanwhile, as vegetables roast, cook pasta according to package directions. Before draining the pasta, carefully reserve about 1 cup of pasta cooking water.

In a large serving bowl, toss the roasted vegetables with the cooked pasta. Sprinkle the parmesan, lemon juice, garlic, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt evenly over the pasta mixture, stirring as you do so to make sure they are evenly distributed throughout the pasta and not concentrated in one spot. Loosen as desired with reserved pasta cooking water (we usually use about 1/2 - 3/4 cup). Taste and adjust the pasta water, lemon juice, and salt as needed. Serve immediately.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: about 1 3/4 cups
• Calories: 275
• Total Fat: 12 g
• Saturated Fat: 3 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 7 mg
• Sodium: 718 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 35 g
• Dietary Fiber: 10 g
• Total Sugars: 5 g
• Protein: 13 g