Grief and loss never goes away, no matter the years, gratefully love and gratitude for the blessings always remain

“ For thou didst form my inward parts, thou didst knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise thee, for thou art fearful and wonderful. Wonderful are thy works! Thou knowest me right well; my frame was not hidden from thee, when I was being made in secret, intricately wrought in the depths of the earth”

Psalm 139: 13 - 15

My mother loved to make this dish of penne pasta tossed with broccoli, garlic, crushed red pepper and olive oil topped with pecorino Romano cheese.

She got the recipe from my sister Anna and she made it Mama style. It is versatile and my mother often made it using her electric skillet to prepare the sauce.

At one point my mom was confined to a wheel chair and unable to access the stove very easily so using the electric skillet worked perfectly. My dad would prepare the penne and the broccoli on the stove. And she would do the rest and put it all together in the skillet.

One of my favorite pictures with my mom was just before we were about to sit down to her broccoli con penne. She had made it for me and my cousin Kathy about six months before she was called home to the Lord. In the picture we are both looking forward smiling for we knew the feast we were about to have and the joy we had in being together and preparing it together.

On the table in front of her, but out of the camera’s eye was the skillet sizzling with the olive oil, garlic and broccoli the aroma filling the house.

It is one of the last meals my mom prepared for me so it is very special and dear to my heart. And thinking about my mom and this very special day we shared is always fitting, but especially so as tomorrow will be the 20th anniversary of her passing onto glory. 20 years and there are times it feels like yesterday.

My sister Anna makes this dish the best. I know that every time I or one of my siblings makes this dish mommy is smiling down on us.

My mothers recipe is very simple and goes like this - Sauté oil with garlic cloves and crushed red pepper, add broccoli florets (fresh or frozen), cook pasta al’dente (any kind of pasta will do, penne is preferred), mix oil/garlic with pasta, toss and top with Romano cheese.

Although we all seem to add our own twist to her dish (I like to add chopped plum tomatoes and sliced red onions) nothing compares to Mamma’s broccoli con penne.

If you want the recipe go to www.lindasousa.com and from the Home Page click on the link to Family. It will bring you to my cookbook that I wrote to honor my parents and to glorify God.

I wrote Made with Love - A Tribute to my parents and got the copy write years ago. Long before I started making my health a priority. Something I think back and wish my mom had done too. She did the best she could, but because of harsh conditions and hardships in Italy where she grew up and genetics she suffered greatly in her short 77 years.

Years ago I published private copies of the cookbook for my family which was my intention. so that the future generations of our family would know the amazing legacy from where they came. Following a story that was publised in the paper about my passion for cooking there was a lot of interest in getting my cookbook. So a few years later I created the website to share some of the recipes and the legacy of my parents with others as I was often asked for some of my recipes.

You can find my mom's broccoli con penne there. And all in all this is a dish that can easily be made healthier by reducing the oil, increasing broth if necessary and using 100 organic semolina pasta, whole wheat pasta, quinoa pasta or even gluten free.