Pasta With Tomatoes, Greens and Ricotta
Updated June 5, 2018
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
- Total Time
- 40 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup chopped red or yellow onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or 1 serrano pepper, minced (seeded if desired)
1 pound tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
Salt
Pinch of sugar
½ pound (about 5 cups, tightly packed) stemmed and coarsely chopped broccoli leaves, Chinese broccoli leaves or collards
Black pepper
¾ pound farfalle or other pasta
½ cup ricotta
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
77 grams carbs; 15 milligrams cholesterol; 475 calories; 6 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 12 grams fat; 6 grams fiber; 739 milligrams sodium; 16 grams protein; 7 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta.
- Step 2
Heat the oil over medium heat in a wide, heavy skillet and add onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes or serrano. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 seconds to a minute, and add tomatoes and thyme. Add salt to taste and a pinch of sugar. Cook tomatoes over medium heat, stirring often, until they have cooked down to a fragrant purée, about 10 minutes.
- Step 3
Add chopped broccoli leaves or collards, which should still have some water on them from washing. Add salt to taste. Stir greens and tomatoes until greens have collapsed, then turn heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes. Cover and simmer another 5 minutes. Add pepper, taste and adjust seasoning.
- Step 4
Meanwhile, when pasta water comes to a boil, salt generously and add pasta. Cook until al dente, usually 10 to 11 minutes. Have ricotta in a small bowl near pasta pot.
- Step 5
Stir ¼ cup pasta water into ricotta and stir mixture into vegetables. Reserve about ¼ cup pasta water. Drain pasta and toss with vegetable and ricotta mixture; add reserved water if desired. Add parsley, toss again and serve.
Private Notes
Comments
I made this today and it's delicious. I used broccoli rabe cause it has a bitter flavor that blends nicely with the sweet ricotta cheese. I also used a can of fire roasted tomatoes which provided a nice bit of heat thanks to the jalapeno in them. Sometimes you have to improvise a bit if you can't find everything in the market.
I've made a pasta with rapini (broccoli rabe) for years. This is similar. I make the tomato part and then add chopped raw rapini during the last few minutes of the pasta cooking. Mix drained pasta with tomato mixture.
Just get a bag of collards or kale from Trader Joe's, chop it up, and throw it in. A ragout is supposed to be peasant food anyway.
Given this has the greens and tomatoes, I hypothesize this could use a salty cheese at the table, like Pecorino romano.
Can you serve this recipe cold? I am traveling and need to bring this dish but no time to make it at our final destination. Has anyone served this dish cold? Or as a leftover? Thanks!
Used 1 lb. pasta. Swapped the tomato for a 28 oz can of chopped fire-roasted tomatoes. Cut back the olive oil to 1 tbsp and cooked the onions with 1 lb. of ground mild Italian sausage in step 1. Swapped 1 lb. of chopped rapini for the broccoli leaves. Very good!
I used 2 cans of whole tomatoes, crushed lightly by hand, one bunch of chard, and used the whole tub of ricotta for 1lb of pasta. Other than the quantities I followed the instructions as written, plus I threw in a can of chickpeas at the same time as the chard. This was great and the sauce ratio felt right with my modifications.