From the kitchen this week, it's been all chick food, all the time. There was the chicken salad sandwich I posted last week, there was quiche, there were chicken-sauced baked potatoes....and there was this meatless (gasp) pasta salad. That's right....this week's recipe is neither a sandwich, nor a chicken salad and Has. No. Meat. Which is why it's appearing while my husband is out of town.
My daughter-in-law, Sarah, runs marathons and does her long runs on Saturdays, so she carbo-loads on Fridays. For the foreseeable future we will be having pasta on Friday nights to assist her training. This ticked all the boxes for both of us. First off, it was cool, which just works in the ugly summer heat. It also has vegetables....yay, us. The dressing for it is a combination of pesto and Italian salad dressing which flavors it up really well, and it comes together in less than 30 minutes. Yep, chick food at its finest, with the extra bonus of a quick prep time and carbs for marathon runners. The recipe is put out by the the gals on the Our Best Bites site.
Tortellini Pesto Pasta Salad
- 1 pound fresh asparagus, washed, trimmed of woody ends, and chopped into 1" pieces
- 1 (12 oz.) package fresh cheese tortellini
- 5-6 ounces grape tomatoes
- 1 (7 oz.) container pesto
- 7 oz. good-quality Italian salad dressing (use the empty pesto container as a measure for the dressing)
- Shredded Parmesan cheese
Cook tortellini according to package directions. When there's a minute or two left of the cooking time, throw in the asparagus with the pasta. When the pasta is done cooking, drain it and the asparagus and run cold water over the mixture until the pasta and asparagus are cool. Transfer to a serving container and throw in the tomatoes.
While the pasta mixture is cooling, mix together the pesto and Italian salad dressing. Drizzle it over the pasta and gently toss. This can be served immediately or refrigerated for 2-3 days before serving. Before serving, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serves 4-6
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