So great to be cooking again! I thought I would be missing all the fancy dishes and drinks. But, no! This simple pasta dish was like a balm to my over-doing-it soul.

John and I make some sort of pasta and vegetables every Wednesday. It can be lots of different combinations. I like to include mushrooms because they are meaty. I always use onions, garlic, oregano, and a little red pepper flakes. And, of course, salt. But I have used regular broccoli, asparagus, tomatoes, kale, zucchini, or mixtures of what I have left in the fridge for the main veg. Sauté the vegetables while the water is heating up starting with the mushrooms and adding each veg according to how long it needs cooking. Then add the most delicate ones, in this case the broccolini flowers, right before you toss in the al dente pasta. About 1/2 cup of pasta water and a teaspoon or two of EVOO is all you need for the sauce.

Always, always salt your pasta water so it tastes like the sea! You cannot make corrections to the seasoning level of the pasta after it’s cooked. It just does not work. And taste your components as you are cooking them for doneness and seasoning.