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Cheesy Broccoli Pasta Bake

A versatile pasta bake is a midweek staple and this recipe can even be made ahead and frozen for extra convenience

By bbcgoodfood · From Open Recipes · 11 ingredients
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Cheesy Broccoli Pasta Bake

Why it works: Clove and nutmeg match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,686 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Cheesy Broccoli Pasta Bake

Serves 6 - 8
Prep10 min
Cook30 min

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1339Calories
57 gProtein
50 gFat
166 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 13 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Pasta1 cup cooked (140g)220
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Cheese1 oz (28g) cheddar113
Cheddar Cheese1 oz (28g)113
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Broccoli1 cup chopped (156g)55
Nutmeg1 tsp ground (2.2g)12
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Mustard1 tsp (5g) yellow3
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By bbcgoodfood. Recipe from Open Recipes.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Clove + nutmegtop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together8,686 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Pasta + broccolitop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together286 recipes

    Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).

  3. Garlic + broccolitop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,072 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  4. Garlic + pastatop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,079 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

  5. Pasta + flourtop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together659 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the garlic

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, clove, pasta, broccoli, butter, flour, nutmeg):

  1. Cinnamonfits better
  2. Capersfits better
  3. Cardamomfits better
  4. Garlicthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against milk, clove, pasta, broccoli, butter, flour, nutmeg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.