You’re not sure whether to take a ninja sword and chop it up so it doesn’t spontaneously reproduce and take over your living room with its spiky cones, or so that you can boil it and smother it in olive oil. I have a personal recommendation: do the second, but use the ninja sword in either case.

This broccoli is actually part of the Botrytis Group of the Brassica oleracea species which is in essence wild cabbage. Botrytis means really nothing to me, but it does add to the alien life form theory. I would go as far as to say that broccolo romanesco is the most geeky vegetable we have, winning over regular white cauliflower because of its color and coney spikes that are in a fractal formation.

As far as pairing broccolo romanesco with pasta, I have to give credit where credit is due – Rachel from Rachel Eats, a blog from a British woman living in Rome, is the blog I’m currently living through quite vicariously. Winter is especially tough on a food blogger like myself who spends her days in an office. We need really good, natural light to make those photos sing unless we want to invest in a lightbox or artificial lighting that’s good for photography. And I don’t. At least, not yet. Rachel’’s cooking and blogging about it, much as I’d like to if I had access to my kitchen in daylight hours, which I don’t unless it’s the weekend.

So in these winter months, I have a choice: either I use those few daylight hours to stay in the kitchen and photograph, or I go out and do something with them. Guess which one I’ve been choosing?

But back to Rachel. W hen I saw her post about pasta e broccoli, I knew I had to try the simple pairing immediately. Now I have weekly requests for this dish!

If you see steam rising from this photo, it’s not a trick – it was hot and waiting for me to devour it after I finished photographing it, which I promptly did. I can’t wait until next week.

Broccolo Romanesco, Roman Cauliflower with Pasta Recipe

Note: I like to use as much of the broccolo romanesco as possible. I suggest cutting up the more tender parts of the stalk into small cubes.

A head of broccolo romanesco (around 1 lb or 1/2 kilo), separated into florets
Extra virgin olive oil (for cooking)
Extra extra read-all-about-it virgin olive oil (for the finishing touch)
Pecorino romano or parmigiano reggiano, to taste
Salt
250g of your favorite pasta

1. Boil salted water in a pot big enough to hold the cut-up broccoli.
2. Rinse the broccolo and separate it into florets and cutting the larger stalk pieces into cubes. When the water starts boiling, add the broccoli and boil from 5-8 minutes over medium-high heat (but don’t overflow your pot!) The broccoli should be very tender and starting to fall off your fork when pierced.
3. Remove the broccoli from the salted water, but do not drain it – save the water for the pasta! Bring it to a boil again, adding more water if needed for the amount of pasta you’re cooking, and cook your pasta al dente according to the package directions.
4. While the water is coming to a boil or the pasta has just been added, in a large frying pan, heat up a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and a clove of garlic if desired. Add the broccoli florets and saute them over medium-high heat, starting to gently smash them with your wooden spoon so they get nice and creamy.
5. After the pasta is drained, mix together the pasta and the broccoli off the heat and add an extra touch of the extra-extra very good olive oil so that the crude, uncooked olive oil taste comes through. Serve and add some grated pecorino romano cheese or parmigiano reggiano.

Serves 3-4 people, or two very hungry ones.

Some of the liquid gold I topped off this pasta dish with:

Other articles about Broccolo Romanesco:

• Pasta e Broccoli from Rachel Eats
• Broccolo Romanesco from Madonna del Piatto
• Seriously Italian: Broccolo Romanesco from Serious Eats

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• 3 Cheese Pesto Vegetable Lasagna Recipe
• Roasted Cauliflower Soup with Gorgonzola and Caramelized Onions Recipe
• Recipes
• Fresh Spinach Reginette Pasta with Walnut Pesto Recipe
• How to Make Pappardelle Pasta

We’re already considering what a 5th year anniversary of World Nutella Day might look like – what about you? If you have any suggestions, please feel free to pass them along via comment, tweet @nutelladay, or on the Facebook fan page (8,500 fans and growing!).

Here’s my own contribution: Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts

On to the rest of the community…..in no particular order, there were so many of your entries! We’re going to add all of these great recipes to the World Nutella Day Recipes page sometime later this week.

	David Lebovitz pulls out all the stops and makes his own version of Nutella with a homemade Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread. Grazie, David!
	Jasmine from Amore in Cucina made not one, but two entries: treccia / bread braids with Nutella and Cheesecake with Nutella. Grazie, Jasmine!
	Maria and Lisa from The Art of Two Tarts takes 4 simple ingredients and make wonderful Nutella truffles! Grazie Maria and Lisa!
	Paola from In My Life, Banutella Brioche Puddings, little individual bread puddings made with brioche sandwiched with Nutella. Grazie, Paola!
	Meeta from What’s For Lunch, Honey? will inspire you to try her Black Sesame and Nutella Macarons! Grazie, Meeta!
	Robin from MyMelange makes Bite-Sized Amaretti and Nutella Sandwich Cookies. Grazie, Robin!
	Jessica from My Baking Heart made some soft and chewy chocolate fortune cookies filled with Nutella! Grazie, Jessica!
	Jamieanne from The Sweetest Kitchen made a variation of her fried peanut butter and banana sandwich. Grazie Jamieanne!
	Pamela from The Cooking Ninja makes Chinese Steamed buns with Nutella filling. Grazie, Pamela!
	Joanne from Frutto della Passion makes two tasty treats – profiteroles and cannoli! Grazie Joanne!
	Andrea Meyers takes a good thing and makes it even smaller: Mini Chocolate Whoopie Pies with Nutella. Grazie, Andrea!
	Sue from Couscous & Consciousness whips up Chocolate Panettone French Toast Sandwiches – a great way to use your leftover holiday panettone! Grazie, Sue!
	Ivonne from Cream Puffs in Venice tells you to step away from her Nutella and offers you a Nutella Ripple Cheesecake instead. Grazie, Ivonne!
	Cheryl from Have your cake and eat it! tries to figure out what kind of Nutella lover she is and makes Individual Nutella Tiramisu – I can’t wait to be a guest! Grazie, Cheryl!
	Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once gets naughty with bananas and Nutella and wraps them up into Nutella and Banana Pastries! Grazie Haalo!
	Emma from The Cake Mistress makes some “ridiculously decadent” Baci Nutella Cupcakes. Grazie, Emma!
	Deanne from On A Wim drools over her Nutella rolls ready to be eaten. Grazie, Deanne!
	BonnieBeth from Some Pink Flowers writes a lovely oath to Nutella and the country where they first met: France. Grazie, BonnieBeth!
	Nastasha from Domestica makes a Nutella Mocha Frappe and an easy Nutella Tart! Grazie, Natasha!
	Arlene from nyc/caribbean ragazza whips up some French Nutella Toast and uses up some of her precious syrup stock for Nutella Day! Grazie, Arlene!
	Alessandra from La Casin@ di Ale (Ale’s little home) makes her favorite Nutella cake to share with all of you (in Italian). Grazie, Alessandra!
	Kathy from Food Lover’s Odyssey remembers her first time with Nutella and makes a Gianduja – Nutella Cheesecake with Nutella Ganache Topping that looks amazing! Grazie, Kathy!
	Barbara from Art and Barbara Live In Italy swirl some Nutella into a traditional pound cake for a Nutella-Swirl Pound Cake. Grazie, Barbara!
	Kate from the Kat Eye View of the World shares her most essential recipe with Nutella: a spoon! Grazie, Kate!
	Mardi from Eat, live, travel, write whips up a marbled baked Nutella cheesecake with a molten Nutella sauce. Grazie, Mardi!
	Food Hunter’s Guide whips up some orange-Nutella sweet ravioli to not share with her husband! Grazie!
	Wic from delicious kitchen therapy makes some delicious Nutella Cinnamon Bread from scratch! Grazie, Wic!
	Kokomama from My Adventures in Food pipes out some pretty cupcakes with Chocolate Hazelnut Frosting! Grazie, Kokomama!
	Amy from The Petite Filet makes Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting. Grazie, Amy!
	Allie from Zucchero Dolce makes a homemade praline for her Hazelnut Cake with Hazelnut Florentine, Praline Buttercream, and Nutella Mousse! Grazie, Allie!
	Linda from Ciao Chow Linda rounds up some of the world’s fascination with Nutella. Grazie, Linda!
	Stephanie from Plain Chicken posts a roundup of her favorite Nutella creations. Grazie, Stephanie!
	Susan from My Life’s Joys wraps up some Nutella in wonton wrappers. Grazie, Susan!
	Eryn Chandler from Cappuccino Chit Chat suggests milk for her chocolate butter cream frosting on her Nutella cupcakes. Grazie, Eryn!
	Michelle from Culinography takes the chance to make her own Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread. Grazie, Michelle!
	Rachel from Coconut & Lime mixes creamy cream cheese with Nutella in her mini Nutella Black Bottoms. Grazie, Rachel!
	Laurel from Un’Americana in Cucina gets spicy and mixes up some Spicy Nutella and Pequin Pepper Truffles. Grazie, Laurel!
	Karen from Shortbread resists eating from the jar and instead swirls in into rich, buttery pound cake. Grazie, Karen!
	Silvia from “Ao Longe o Mar” shows you what it looks like to have a double pack of 750g Nutella jars up close (in Portuguese). Grazie, Silvia!
	Elaine from The Italian Dish recommends keeping one of her Nutella pound cakes on hand and one in the freezer at all times! Grazie, Elaine!
	James from The Cotswold Food Year ponders the question “Coffee then toast or toast then coffee?” with Espresso, nutella and hazelnut brioche crown Grazie, James!
	Jayka from The Giant Typo ladles out some Nutella crepes and suggests you add some ice cream on top. Grazie, Jayka!
	Christina from Mausi swirls up some Nutella into a Nutella Cinnamon Swirl bread. Grazie, Christina!
	Jen from My Kitchen Addiction rounds up her Nutella recipe favorites and shares a new recipe: Crispy Nutella Treats! Grazie, Jen!
	anna l’americana from Only in Maine adapts a classic and makes it her own: Nutella and Nutella Streusel-Topped Nutella Banana Bread. Grazie, Anna!
	F_A from Seelensturm (soulstorm) makes some really yummy Nutella Mozart Cupcakes with almond marzipan, pistachio marzipan, nougat and chocolate. Grazie!
	Kathleen from Kathleen’s Confections makes something someone should have thought of a long time ago – the CupCrepe – a cupcake built with crepes. Grazie, Kathleen!
	Åsa from Miss Meister’s mat med mera… tells us what it feels like to celebrate Nutella Day in Sweden! (in Swedish) Grazie, Asa!
	Patricia from Brownies for Dinner skips brownies this time and makes vanilla bean Nutella sandwich cookies. Grazie, Patricia!
	Ellen from Mangia, Mangia, Mangia sustains Nutella Day is a holiday she can get behind, and puts it to a test…a Nutella taste test! Grazie, Ellen!
	Joy from Gourmeted tries her hand at “The Asian Ferrero Rocher” and makes Nutty Nutella Mochi. Yum! Grazie, Joy!
	Mary from The Food Librarian celebrates just a little smaller with her Nutella Bread Pudding for World Nutella Day. Grazie, Mary!
	Shannon from Adventures in Food of a Stay-at-Home-Mom rounds up her Nutella recipes for all the fans. Grazie, Shannon!
	Wandering Chopsticks has a spicy Nutella meltdown with her Mexican Nutella Hot Chocolate with Chilies. Grazie!
	Vanessa from Chefdruck Musings asks how do you worship Nutella? And answers: with Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Bread. Grazie, Vanessa!
	Lizzy from Geek Chica had a breakfast of champions to celebrate the day – with Nutella, of course! Grazie, Lizzy!
	Karen from The Shock of the Old shares a good way to eat Nutella when you aren’t alone, but don’t want to share: the Grilled Nutella sandwich. Grazie, Karen!
	Isabelle from Eat my Cake now takes a crumble and adds a magic flavor to it to give us Nutella Fudge Squares. Grazie, Isabelle!
	Sara from Pixel3v Weblog uses a classic “glass” of Nutella and makes some Sorrisi di Sfoglia Ripieni di Nutella (in Italian) Grazie, Sara!
	Palma from Palmabella’s Passions made a simple but deliciously effective and heavenly Nutella Mousse! Grazie!
	Achim from Cookelani makes a Torta all gianduia (Schokoladen-Haselnusskuchen) (in German), Grazie, Achim!
	Carlotta from Kitchen Confidential mixes both almonds and hazelnuts in a cake called Torta Mandonutella (in Italian). Grazie Carlotta!
	Lindsey from LindseyBee shares where she first fell in love with Nutella – can you guess where? Grazie, Lindsey!
	Wendy from Pink Stripes doubles up the Nutella in her Nutella and Hazelnut Brownies. Grazie, Wendy!
	Tracy from Trailer Park Karma waxes about how Nutella is one of the World’s Most Perfect Road Trip Foods. Grazie, Tracy!

And some more blog posts about World Nutella Day from some of our community:

• Grapefruit from Needful Things gets her weekly Nutella fix with a Grilled Nutella Sandwich. Grazie!
• Avanika from Yumsilicious Bakes guest posts at her friend’s blog with a Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse Cake! Grazie, Avanika
• Something Just To Start swirled Nutella into her Pound Cake. Grazie!
• Sarah from What Smells So Good? recommends you indulge once or twice a year with her Home-From School Special! Grazie, Sarah!
• Anali from Anali’s First Amendment wrote a Nutella Day-inspired poem! Grazie, Anali!
• Juicy and Delicious reminds you about World Nutella Day
• Raymond from Holland shows us how to make his famous Raymonds Cocktail – orange juice, passion fruit alcohol, eggs, and Nutella – only for the very brave!

Looking for more Nutella Recipes? Don’t forget to check the World Nutella Day Recipes page for hundreds of recipes, check more pictures in the World Nutella Day Flickr pool where there are some great shots!

Betty Squirrely from Bad Manors Squirrel Diner had her squirrel friends make a special tribute to World Nutella Day: Although we couldn’t use the actual Nutella (squirrels + chocolate = badness) we did EAT all the Nutella, then have the squirrels celebrate the day SAFELY.

See you next year on February 5, 2011!

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• 4th Annual World Nutella Day is on February 5, 2010
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2009: February 5th
• World Nutella Day – February 5th, 2008!
• Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts Recipe for World Nutella Day
• Nutella Virgin? 50 Ways to Eat Nutella and Nutella Lover Types

It’s our 4th year celebrating and every year we’re surprised by the level of excitement and participation – be sure to head over to www.nutelladay.com to see what’s happening around the globe! Be sure to come back here and Bleeding Espresso.com on Monday, February 8th for the round-up.

You can also see my recipes for past World Nutella Days like Hazelnut Macarons with Spicy Nut Centers or Nutella Mousse, Cupcakes and Clusters.

This year I was craving little tarts…little chocolate tarts…filled with Nutella, and just in case it wasn’t rich enough for you, mixed generously with mascarpone so that biting into one feels like eating the inside of a Lindt Lindor truffle – you know those truffles with an inside that melts? That’s what this is.

I suggest mixing it up with some salted nuts, too, to contrast and make it oh, so, sweeter.

Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts Recipe

Note: this is close to a pate brisee or pasta frolla recipe, with the addition of the cacao powder. You are welcome to make this with a food processor, but it’s important that the mixture is not overmixed or heated up too much as the butter will melt. Try handling it as little as possible. Also, I used mini tart pans, so be sure to roll out your dough to fit your pan.

For the Chocolate Crust
170g flour
30g cacao/cocoa powder
100g cold butter, in small cubes
66g sugar
1 egg and 1 yolk
1 pinch salt

1. Cut the butter pieces into the flour and cocoa mix with a pastry cutter or use your fingers to create the consistency of large crumbs. You don’t want the butter to get too warm and start to melt, so work quickly.
2. Make a well in the middle of the crumb mix and add the egg and extra yolk. Continue cutting the mixture until the egg has been incorporated and distributed. With your hands, start to form a single mass – if the mixture is too crumbly you can add a small amount of cold/ice water and mix that in. You don’t want to work the dough too much.
3. Flatten it into a disk and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
4. Remove the dough from the plastic wrap and preheat your oven to 350F (175 C). On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough with a rolling pin, being careful not to add too much flour as it will change the composition of the dough. Roll it out until it’s between a 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick (around 1cm).
5. Depending on what pan size you’re using, you’ll want to cut the dough to fit or try to fold it in and fix it with your fingers. You’ll want it to come up the sides of the pan evenly, and I like a little to peek above the top of the pan. Otherwise you can put it just even with the pan top.
6. Next, we’re going to blind bake them – cut out a piece of parchment paper larger than the tart pan, enough so that it sticks up above the pan edges, so you can remove it easily later, and fill the center with dried beans or lentils that will help keep the crust from rising and deforming.
7. For small tarts, bake 8-10 minutes, keeping a close eye on them that they don’t burn. Remove the pie weight and return the tarts to the oven for several minutes (3-4). Remove the tarts and let cool completely before filling.

For the Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Filling

Start with a 1:1 mixture of Nutella:Mascarpone. In this recipe I used roughly 125g of Nutella with 125g Mascarpone. I whipped the Nutella for a minute or so with an electronic (whisk) mixer so it would incorporate easier with mascarpone. Mix in the mascarpone and mix for a few seconds until completely mix. Taste, a little, to see if you want to add more Nutella at this point, or more mascarpone.

Refrigerate the mixture for 20-30 minutes, then fill the tarts just before serving, so the crust stays crisp and the filling stays cool. The tarts can be refrigerated after filling, but the crust will lose the snap so it’s best to serve them the same day.

To contrast nicely with the Nutella flavor, I recommend chopping up some salted pistachios or peanuts and sprinkle them on top, or add a little filling to the tartlette, then a layer of chopped nuts, and then the rest of the cream on top.

Did you make something for World Nutella Day?

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• Mini Nutella Tiramisu for World Nutella Day
• Vote for World Nutella Day on Technorati’s WTF
• World Nutella Day – February 5th, 2008!
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2007 – February 6th
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2009: February 5th