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Broccoli Bean Pasta Salad

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This recipe for Broccoli Bean Pasta Salad makes a hearty, healthy lunch or dinner meal using fresh vegetables from the garden.
broccoli pasta salad

Broccoli Bean Pasta Salad incorporates plenty of fresh broccoli, plus healthy complex carbohydrates and extra virgin olive oil into a tasty salad.  Broccoli is a cool-weather crop, and here in Virginia we can grow two crops of it, one in the spring and another in the fall. It’s usually on sale at the grocery store around this time of year, too, making it economical (as well as tasty!).

I bought a huge head of fresh broccoli at the grocery store last weekend and lightly steamed just the florets. We enjoyed the steamed broccoli with dinner on Sunday, and I refrigerated the leftovers, then incorporated them into the salad on Monday. It was fast and simple.
In honor of the letter “B” (For the A-Z Blogging Challenge) AND in honor of Fresh Food Wednesday, I present:  Broccoli Pasta Bean Salad.

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup of cooked broccoli florets
  • 1 cup of bow-tie pasta, cooked
  • 1/4 cup of canned Great Northern beans or chick peas, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup of rinsed and shredded Romaine lettuce leaves
  • 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • Sprinkle of shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese (optional), coarse salt and pepper to taste

Cook the broccoli and the pasta according to package directions. Rinse and set aside. Rinse the canned beans and refrigerate the unused portion. On a large plate or in a large bowl, arrange the Romaine lettuce leaves on the bottom. Layer the pasta, then the broccoli, then the beans. Sprinkle shredded cheese, salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and enjoy. You can also substitute a squeeze of fresh lemon juice for the olive oil and omit the cheese for a vegan dish. 

broccoli

Cook what you grow!

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  3. Multi-tasking Mama

    Oh Jeanne that looks really yummy. I am always on the lookout for some meatless meals. We aren’t vegetarians or vegans but I do like to have a few meatless meals each week. Thanks so much for sharing.