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Spicy Whole-Wheat Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower, Brown Butter and Garlic

This is the perfect weeknight dish that comes together in under 30 minutes – which is always a winner in my book. While the pasta is cooking, the cauliflower is roasting – both are finished in approximately the same amount of time.

Ingredients

    • 12 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
    • 1 medium head cauliflower cut into florets
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 teaspoon salt + more to taste
    • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes + more to taste
    • 6 tablespoons butter
    • 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
    • 1//2 cup pine nuts

Directions

  1. Turn the oven to broil.
  2. Toss the cauliflower with olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes. Roast until slightly charred, about 15 minutes.
  3. Cook pasta in a large pot of salted water until just under aldente. Reserve 1 cup of starchy water. Drain and set aside.
  4. In the same pot you cooked the pasta in, melt the butter over a medium-high heat. Cook until butter begins to brown, swirling pan as it browns. Once the butter becomes a chestnut brown and smells nutty, turn the heat off and throw in garlic and pine nuts, cook until toasted, about 1 minute. Be sure to not burn. Immediately toss in spaghetti.
  5. Turn the heat back on low. Add in parmesan cheese and toss. Add in cauliflower. Add enough starchy liquid to form a sauce. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.