Our First Broccoli of the Year (and our favourite ways to cook it)

The humble broccoli –  #1 most hated vegetable for kids, #1 tastiest re-discovery as a grown up (obviously excluding Brussels sprouts here).

Things we love about broccoli:

– It looks like a great tree to sit under if you suddenly shrunk and needed to find some shade in your kitchen.

– It doesn’t matter how old a broccoli gets, there is always a recipe you can use it in (anybody else having flashback to Mum’s electric pan fried rice?)

– Its taste is so dependant on how you cook it – so many flavours from the one glorious green stalk.

– It’s full of good things – we’re talking fibre, protein, iron and vitamins A, C, E, K and some of the B’s.

– If you try to grow it at home you can practice badminton on the approx. 50 million white moths that will appear.

– IT IS GROWN RIGHT HERE IN VICTORIA!

Jokes aside, broccoli is rightfully having a renaissance and was one of the first veggies to experience an unprecedented increase in demand when COVID-19 restrictions hit Australia. Turns out the ‘eat your greens’ message stuck when we were all focussing on staying well in the face of a pandemic.

This week we are so excited to include broccoli from Remi’s Patch in Willomavin to our Grow / Source / Eat parcels and share some of our favourite ways to cook it (check out the full Creamy Lemon Orzo with Broccoli + Chickpea delight below).  Our go-to broccoli recipes:  Quinoa + Broccoli Slaw with Honey Mustard Dressing Actually good Broccoli Soup Bang Bang Broccoli (as fun to eat as it sounds) Nordic Charred Broccoli    We’d love to see what you’ve cooked with the fresh, local produce you receive too – just tag us on Instagram @melb_food_hub or Facebook @grow.source.eat. Below are some of the creative ways our Grow / Source / Eat subscribers made use of their green tomatoes from last week’s parcel!

Creamy Lemon Orzo, Broccoli + Chickpea Serves 4  Ingredients: 

• 1 small-medium broccoli, roughly diced / cut into small florets (use the stem – it’s fine!)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small onion or 3 shallots, diced
• 250g orzo or risoni pasta (can be found at most supermarkets or any specialty Greek or Italian shop)
• 2 cups of stock (chicken or vegetable will do nicely)
• 2 tablespoons sour cream, cream or creme fraiche
• 1 can of chickpeas, drained 
• 3 sprigs of thyme, stems removed
• Chilli flakes (you know how hot you like it)
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Juice of 1 lemon

Method:  – Heat a deep pan or pot to medium with a splash of olive oil. Add broccoli and fry until just cooked and bright green. Remove from pan and set aside.  – Add a touch more oil and fry onion until translucent (5 minutes or so), then add garlic, thyme and chilli and fry for another 2 minutes.  – Add orzo and coat with oil until they are all lovely and glossy (think risotto here folks).  – Add stock and cook for around 5 minutes, then add broccoli and chickpeas and cook for a further 3-5 minutes, or until pasta is cooked all the way through.  – Add sour cream and stir to combine. Remove from heat and stir through lemon juice and season you like it.  Notes: – If you have wine, add wine. Ditto butter and parmesan.  – I added some old kale I had lying around when frying the broccoli.  – Use the chickpea water to make vegan mayonnaise or meringues.  Recipe adapted from The First Mess.