Uses for garden basil part 1: very green pasta salad

by Katie

For the first time this year, we planted a small vegetable and herb garden. While there have been some notable failures (ahem, zucchini) our basil plant has taken off like crazy, and is now waist high. I like pesto and caprese salads as much as the next girl, but we have wayyyyyy too much basil for just those. So for the next few weeks I'm going to talk about some of our efforts to branch out and use basil in more interesting/unusual ways.

My first attempt was this pasta salad. Like I said, I love pesto, but it can sometimes feel a little heavy and oily, particularly on a cold pasta salad. What if, I wondered, I tried to brighten the flavors of pesto up a bit using some vinegar to make a pesto vinaigrette? And then, just to continue the green theme, threw a bunch of green vegetables in there too!

BINGO. So tasty.

Basil vinaigrette dressing:

1 cup basil leaves, lightly packed (I used a mix of traditional basil and lime basil, which has a nice citrus flavor. If you have an unusual basil flavor growing in your garden, use it!)

1 clove of garlic, blanched in boiling water for one minute to soften the bite, then minced

2 Tbsp champagne or white wine vinegar

3 Tbsp olive oil

a generous pinch salt

a small pinch red pepper flakes.

Throw all the ingredients in a blender or food processor, and whir until liquid.

Assembling the salad:

Cook 1/2 pound of your favorite pasta shape according to package directions.

About 3 minutes before the pasta is done, toss in a handful of frozen broccoli and a handful of frozen peas. Drain and rinse with cold water until cool.

Transfer pasta and vegetables to a large bowl. Add 1/2 can white beans, rinsed and drained.

Pour dressing over the mixture and toss to coat.

(Photos from: me)