Spinach and Broccoli Pasta Bake

Created for Little Forest Folk Life by Two Teaspoons

Serves 6, generously

Ingredients:  

·       250g fresh spinach, shredded

·       1 head broccoli, cut into small florets

·       50g butter

• extra virgin olive oil, enough to cover the base of the pan

·       2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or crushed

·       2 large leeks, thicky sliced

·       50g plain flour

·       500ml whole milk

·       500ml vegetable stock

·       300g mature Cheddar, grated (200g for sauce/100g for topping)

·       250g frozen petit pois

·       1 tablespoon English, Dijon or wholegrain mustard

·       generous pinch of grated nutmeg

·       300g pasta shapes, like penne or farfalle

·       pinch of sea salt

·       few grinds of black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (fan oven)

1. Prepare the vegetables. Put the spinach and the broccoli in a saucepan and cover with water, turn the heat to high. Once the water starts to let off steam turn down the heat and cover with a lid. Steam the vegetables for about 4-5 minutes until cooked through. Remove from the heat and drain thoroughly.

2. Put a large pan of salted water on to boil for the pasta.

3. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed pan on a gentle heat and add the olive oil, garlic and leeks followed by the salt and pepper. Stir, cover with a lid and let cook until the leeks have softened. This takes about 10 minutes.

4. Stir the flour into the leeks and cook for a 1 minute. Keep stirring throughout.

5. Slowly stir in the milk followed by the vegetable stock and continue to stir to create a smooth sauce. Bring to a simmer and once bubbling, cook for 1 minute. Keep stirring while the sauce thickens. Turn off the heat.

6. Add 200g of the cheese, all the spinach, broccoli, peas (from frozen), mustard and nutmeg into the sauce.

7. When the pasta water is boiling add the pasta and cook according to packet instructions or until al dente. Do not overcook the pasta as it will cook more in the oven. Drain and combine with the sauce in a large baking dish. Scatter the remaining cheese over the top.

8. Bake for 15 minutes until the top is golden and the sauce is bubbling. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes, then serve hot from the baking dish.

Get your little ones involved by chopping the spinach with kitchen scissors or tearing it up. They can also help with grating or crumbling the cheese.

If you don’t have mature Cheddar use another hard cheese or even try a mixture of cheeses if you want to use up leftovers.