In my opinion, broccoli is the king of the vegetables. It’s, however, unfortunately and unfairly disliked by quite some people. Broccoli looks so beautiful with its nice florets and deep green color. But the beauty doesn’t stop at the surface, because broccoli has such an excellent nutritional profile, being a great source of multiple vitamines and minerals, makes it a strong anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant and detox agent, also helps to protect our heart and to prevent cancer.

The best way to eat broccoli is to either steam it or eat it raw. Even though I like broccoli, I don’t eat it raw often. It has a strong flavor that I haven’t gotten used to. If you choose to eat it raw, remember to chew it thoroughly, which helps activate the enzyme in it. What I often do is to lightly steam it for 3 minutes, then let it cool a bit and add it to salad. It’s easier on palate and still retains a lot of its nutrients, and the color looks great. When prepared this way, I can totally eat 1 big head of broccoli in one meal!

Kitchen Gadgets: Pot, steamer

Ingredients

• 1 big head of broccoli
• ¼ yellow bell pepper
• 1 green pepper
• ½ red pepper
• 15 cherry tomatoes
• 100g three color spiral pasta
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp dill
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp sea salt
• freshly grounded black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cut broccoli to small florets, shred the peppers, slice the tomatoes.
2. Boil pasta for 10 mins, set aside to cool.
3. Steam broccoli for 3 minutes, set aside to cool.You can use bamboo steamer or metal steamer, if you don't have either of those, place them in a bowl, then place the bowl in the pot, fill in the water which should be below the bowl edge.
4. Add all the vegetables and pasta together in a big mixing bowl, toss to mix well.
5. Mix olive oil, vinegar, dill, crushed garlic, and salt together, evenly sprinkle over the salad and toss to mix well. Add freshly grounded black pepper. Serve!