Growing up on the West Coast of the United States, I didn’t grow up with a passion for lobster.

In some ways, I’ve never really developed a taste for lobster. I’m not sure I’m a fan at all. I don’t get excited about Maine lobsters or vats of melted butter or lobster tails on a menu with a price of “ask your waiter“.

I’d much prefer to crack piles upon endless piles of dungeness crab and pick out all the meaty parts with a tiny fork or my fingers, never making eye contact with the other people at the table as my hands become covered in shell fragments and stray shards of meat yet I don’t pause to wipe off my hands because they’d only get messy again and I’d risk giving up a portion of the crab I could be otherwise eating and the social custom of a civilized dinner table is lost to the moment to the crab.

Um, if you know what I mean.

But, lobster I find has a huge fanbase so I try not to write it off completely. So many people can’t be wrong. Maybe it’s just me. (Or maybe you, too?)

In Italy, I don’t really consider lobster as part of my regular cooking repertoire, as I’ve seen some live lobsters be sold as high as 70 euros for a kilo or two, and that kind of takes the fun out of it. And while I do look for crab often, and never find it other than some soft-shelled guys I don’t really get excited about, I sometimes pick up code di arragoste, spiny lobster tails. They can be a bit steep, around 25 euros a kilo (~$33 for 2.2 pounds) but you don’t need a kilo, or really even a half kilo to make a nice pasta dish just for two.

And they’ll pacify even the biggest crab fans.

If you love lobster, do you eat it with pasta? Let me know your favorite way to eat lobster with pasta in the comments. Maybe it’ll convert me into a lobster lover….maybe.

Spiny Lobster Tail with Asparagus Pasta Recipe

For two. You can use full-size, regular lobster tails in this recipe, too, but you’ll have to cook them longer so that they are cooked fully.

1/2 lb. (Spiny) lobster tails, in shells
3 tablespoons of butter
300g (1/2 lb.) asparagus spears, thinly sliced
150-200g spaghetti pasta
1-2 garlic cloves (optional)
4-5 cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil

1. In a tall pot, set some water to boil for the pasta. Make an X with a knife on the cherry tomatoes. Blanch the cherry tomatoes in hot water for 30 seconds, and then cold water for a few seconds. Remove the skins from the tomatoes and set aside.
2. Heat the butter until it starts to bubble in a large frying pan. Add the lobster tails, still in their shells, and brown them for a few minutes on both sides and the tail meat isn’t opaque any more. Remove the tails from the pan and set aside until cool enough to touch.
3. If your water has started to boil, add a small handful of rock salt to the boiling water and then the spaghetti. Cook according to package directions.
4. While the tail meat is cooling, add the garlic cloves into the remaining (lobster) butter in the frying pan and add another tablespoon of olive oil. Add the sliced asparagus and tomatoes and cook until tender. While the asparagus is cooking, remove the tail meat from their shells and chop it into large chunks with a knife. Add the meat back to the asparagus and tomatoes for a final minute before turning off the heat.
5. Drain the cooked pasta and set aside 1/2 cup of pasta water. Turn the heat under the frying pan back on, and toss the spaghetti with the asparagus, tomatoes and lobster meat. Add a little pasta water if there’s not enough liquid to toss the pasta with.

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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
• Spiny Lobster Tail and Asparagus Pasta Recipe
• Fresh Spinach Reginette Pasta with Walnut Pesto Recipe

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
• Vote for World Nutella Day on Technorati’s WTF