Description
Savory Olive Pasta is a light, fresh, and perfectly balanced dinner recipe featuring linguine tossed with charred broccolini, zesty lemon, green Castelvetrano olives, and crispy toasted breadcrumbs. Enhanced with garlic, green onions, and parmesan, this dish brings a delightful mix of textures and flavors that is easy to prepare and satisfying for any weeknight meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Bread Crumbs
- ¼ lb fresh whole grain bread, cubed
- Olive oil, as needed
- Kosher salt, pinch
Vegetables & Herbs
- ½ lb broccolini, ends trimmed
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced (white/light green and dark green sections separated)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp chives, minced
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
Other
- ¾ lb linguine
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 (5 oz) jar green Castelvetrano olives, drained and halved
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
- Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- Kosher salt, to taste
Instructions
- Prep Bread Crumbs: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the cubed fresh bread to a food processor and pulse until coarse crumbs form. Set aside.
- Blanch Broccolini: Add broccolini and a big pinch of kosher salt to the boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes until bright and tender. Immediately transfer broccolini to a large bowl of ice water for 1 minute to stop cooking, reserving the pot water. Drain broccolini on paper towels and set aside to dry.
- Toast Bread Crumbs: Heat a 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add enough olive oil to generously coat the bottom. Once hot, add the coarse bread crumbs. Toast, stirring often, until golden brown and crisp. Transfer toasted crumbs to a paper towel-lined plate and season with a pinch of salt.
- Char Broccolini: Wipe out the skillet and add more olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the blanched broccolini and cook a few minutes per side until slightly charred. Transfer broccolini to a cutting board and chop into smaller pieces.
- Cook Pasta: Bring the reserved pot of water back to a boil. Add linguine and cook until 1 minute less than package instructions, stirring often.
- Prepare Sauce Base: Lower skillet heat to medium. Add butter and melt it. Add white and light green sections of green onions plus minced garlic. Cook for a couple minutes until fragrant. Season with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Mix Olive Topping: In a small bowl, combine halved Castelvetrano olives, dark green onion sections, minced chives, lemon zest, and 3 tablespoons olive oil. Mix well and set aside.
- Finish Sauce: Reserve 1 cup pasta water from the pot and add it to the skillet. Let simmer gently for 2 minutes.
- Toss Pasta: Drain linguine and add it to the skillet with the lemon juice. Stir well to combine all ingredients. Gradually sprinkle in grated parmesan while stirring continuously to melt the cheese and create a silky sauce. Fold in chopped broccolini last. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt if needed.
- Serve: Plate the pasta and top with the olive mixture, crispy toasted breadcrumbs, and a final sprinkling of parmesan cheese.
Notes
- When using pasta water as a sauce base, reserve extra pasta water before draining. If the sauce thickens too much or loses silky texture, add a splash of reserved water to loosen it.
- Cast iron skillet adds a nice char and depth to broccolini and breadcrumbs but a heavy skillet or non-stick pan can be substituted.
- Adjust lemon juice and salt to taste for balancing freshness and savoriness.
- Adding freshly cracked black pepper at the end preserves its aroma and flavor.
