There is no guarantee that something new is going to work out the way you expect it to, and you might just convince yourself that there is nothing wrong with serving the same thing the way you always serve it, day in and day out to avoid the threat of “what if it all goes terribly wrong and they hate it.”
I understand that. If you can believe it, I get palpatations putting tuna salad on a baguette instead of sliced wheat. I have always been like that. I like the same, same and more same. The problem is, I also know the profound shift trying fresh, raw ruby red tuna and loving it had on my life. I was changed, I was elevated, and I could never look at anything in quite the same way again. Everything all of a sudden, had potential, including me.
Instead of just throwing the broccoli together with the pasta, try adding an anchovie. Even two. Get three cloves of minced garlic and a minced shallot going in your best olive oil with a little salt and a sprig of fresh oregano or a few tablespoons of finely chopped parsely. When it’s golden, add two anchovy filets (try to find the ones packed in salt; they’re worth it) and a few red pepper flakes. Mash the anchovies up with a fork until they dissolve. Steam the broccoli cut from the spears and into bite size pieces in boiling salted water with a sprig of parsley, and when they are still green, but beginning to soften, add to the garlic mixture. Cook the pasta (9 ounces of pasta for one head of broccoi) in plenty of salted boiling water until al dente. Drain well, reserving a few spoonfuls of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the broccoli over medium heat. Drizzle with a little more olive oil, and a bit of the pasta water. Toss with a good hand grated Romano cheese.