Broccoli and Mozzarella Pasta Sauce

From Marcella Cucina - p. 146 (Sauces)

Broccoli and Mozzarella Pasta Sauce

1/2 lb. broccoli
salt
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. chopped garlic

1/4 lb. mozzarella, chopped fine
2 tbsp. coursely chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley
1/4 c. fresly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

This recipe makes less of a "sauce," at least by my definition, and more of a "coating." The mixture is not watery -- it clings perfectly to the pasta and leaves nothing behind. What I loved about the recipe is its simplicity, the harmony of ingredients. None stand out above the others. The garlic is not overpowering. The flavor of the broccoli is evened out by the butter and the cheese, etc.

In her introduction to this book, Marcella Hazan has a few things to say about this quality of Italian cooking:

"The universal quality that Italy's regions can claim from their cooking is that it is kind to the palate. It is food that charms the palate with flavors that are fresh, clear, plain-spoken, direct often to the point of artlessness, and even bold, but not overbearing... On pasta, sauce is used with restraint, to coat, not to blanket. What you can expect of careful Italain cooking... is a mannerly approach to garlic: It is never employed with intemperate profusion nor so overbrowned that its presence becomes obtrusive, oafishly shouldering aside that of other ingredients in the dish."

She encourages cooks to "think taste" and "make music."