A delicious creamy hidden veggie pasta recipe made with broccoli stalk. All cooked in one pan in 15 minutes.
Broccoli is one of those veggies that might kids still struggle to eat, even after years of serving it up to them and using all the exposure tricks I talk about on here!
And that's ok. Children are allowed to have food preferences the same way us adults do.
However, broccoli is so nutritious and so I still find ways to sneak it into their diet.
This Hidden Broccoli Pasta is a new favourite in our house.
It uses the stalk of the broccoli which is just as nutritious as the florets but much more palatable to picky eaters.
When cooked, it has a surprisingly mild taste and melts into the creamy pasta sauce.
The first step is to remove the stalk from the head of the broccoli and cut away any gnarly ends.
Weigh the stalk - you need 100g but this doesn't have to be exact. A bit more or less is fine.
Then grate the stalk.
Add it to a large pan on the hob with oil.
Fry for a couple of minutes until it starts to soften.
Add garlic, pasta, hot vegetable stock and milk.
Bring to the boil and then simmer for 12 minutes until the pasta is cooked.
Once cooked, remove from the heat and stir in creme fraiche and grated parmesan.
Mix well and it's ready to serve up.
You can serve it up on it's own or if you'd like to still work on getting your kids to enjoy broccoli it's whole form, serve it up with a small portion of the cooked florets on the side.
Some cracked black pepper on top also completes it perfectly!
If you liked this recipe you may also enjoy my Hidden Veg Chicken Satay with five different veggies all blended into the sauce. I also have lots of practical Tips For Fussy Eaters here if you would like some more information about this.
🥕Struggling with a fussy eater?
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Broccoli Stalk Pasta - Hidden Veg Recipe
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 17 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Hidden Veg
- Cuisine: Pasta
Description
A delicious creamy hidden veggie pasta recipe made with broccoli stalk. All cooked in one pan in 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 100g broccoli stalk
- ½ tbsp oil
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 350g pasta
- 600ml hot vegetable stock
- 600ml milk
- 80g creme fraiche
- 30g grated parmesan
Instructions
- Grate the broccoli stalk and add it to a large pan with the oil.
- Fry gently for 2 minutes.
- Add the garlic, pasta, veg stock and milk and bring to the boil.
- Simmer for 12 minutes until the pasta has cooked, stirring every couple of minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the creme fraiche and grated parmesan.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
One pot pastas are always best served up immediately after cooking. However it will keep up to two days in the fridge and can be reheated on the hob or in the microwave.
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Lucia says
I didnt think my picky eater would go for this at first because there were somewhat visible pieces in the pasta (and she's very picky about being able to see anything), but it worked! she scarfed it down and the whole family loved it. Next time, I might blend it with vegetable stock first because she really doesn't like seeing any "lumps" in her food.
Vicky says
This is fantastic to read Lucia, thanks for the great feedback.
Julie Dodds says
kids didn't suspect a thing.
Vicky says
Shhhh 🤩
Caroline says
Fantastic recipe, absolutely delicious. Thank you. And it's great to not throw the stalk away. Brilliant, thank you x
Vicky says
Thank you Caroline. x
Dorothy Smith says
Kids didn't even question what was in this, thought it was just cheese. Great idea!
Clementine says
Another great recipe.
And a great way to make sure nothing goes to waste, I have your app which also has lots of great stuff on it.
Thank you My Fussy Eater xx
Vicky says
Thank you! x
Ken says
Great use of the stalk!