Kitchen Cadets: Mean, green bruschetta

Name: Kitchen Cadets: Mean, green bruschetta
Cook time: 30 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: ; 1 large head broccoli, cut into large chunks; 2 cups frozen peas; ½ bunch parsley, roughly chopped; 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped; ¼ cup toasted almonds, roughly chopped (optional); 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling; 4 slices wholegrain bread; 1 clove garlic

Kate Gibbs

October 19, 2011

Kitchen Cadets: Mean, green bruschettaMarco Del Grande

Time:< 30 mins

Three-year-old Lulu's immediate reaction to the concept of mean, green bruschetta was "yuck". But we steadfastly continued with our cooking plan. She was less interested during the cutting and blanching, somewhat distracted by the fridge magnets instead. Her interest heightened during the whirring and blending, keen to hold the noisy machine, and she was positively engaged by the idea of "grating" garlic on toast. And the final verdict⁄ "Not yuck at all, actually."

Ingredients

1 large head broccoli, cut into large chunks
2 cups frozen peas
½ bunch parsley, roughly chopped
2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
¼ cup toasted almonds, roughly chopped (optional)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
4 slices wholegrain bread
1 clove garlic

Method

WHEN the sneaky "little trees" metaphor no longer flies and broccoli is just not finding its way into dinner, mushing it up beyond recognition with other green vegetables may be the answer. The great thing about this mean, green bruschetta is its versatility. It can be spread on garlic-scratched toast, stirred through cooked pasta or made into a perfect dip for tortilla chips. Make double quantities and store in an airtight container in the fridge for three to four days.
Add the broccoli to boiling, salted water and blanch for four to six minutes, until it turns a bright-green colour. Remove with a slotted spoon and refresh under cold running water for 10 seconds.
In the same boiling water, blanch peas for three minutes, until just cooked, then drain and refresh.
In a food processor, blend together the broccoli, peas, parsley, spinach, toasted almonds (if using) and olive oil.
Meanwhile, toast the bread and "grate" the garlic clove by rubbing it into the toast, a bit like colouring with a crayon. Spread the broccoli mixture over the toast and cut into quarters.
Season with salt and pepper, drizzle with a little more olive oil and serve.

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