I think (hope) it would be an overstatement to characterize myself as a hypochondriac, but I’ll admit that I am one of those people who, every once in a while, will obsess over a “symptom” and then do exactly what everyone knows you’re not supposed to do and google it. Most recently, I worried about the fact that I hadn’t seemed that hungry lately, which is weird for me because I pretty much always wish I were eating. Of course, googling any symptom (like “loss of appetite”) returns countless medical conditions, ranging from nothing to worry about to definitely dying. Usually by the end of my search, in an effort to prepare for the worst, I’ll find an article titled something like “Top Ten Health-Boosting Superfoods.” And do you know what food consistently appears on these lists? Broccoli. In fact, I’ve read so much about how good broccoli is for humans that after eating a giant portion I automatically feel healthier, kind of like Popeye after he eagerly swallows (notably, in one gulp, so he doesn’t have to taste) his green mushy canned spinach. Luckily, I love broccoli, especially when it’s roasted, and so I try to make it as often as I can. In the below recipe, broccoli is roasted with garlic and tossed into fusilli pasta with walnuts (said to be good for brain health!), basil, turkey bacon, and parmesan cheese. Oh, and in case you were worrying about it, my appetite miraculously returned a few hours later, just in time for dinner.

Continue Reading…