Do you ever happen to make a dinner that completely satisfies what you're craving at that particular moment? That doesn't happen to me very often since I usually do all the meal planning and food shopping on Saturdays and by the time the middle of the week rolls around, I'm in the mood for something completely different (like going out to a restaurant and/or having someone else cook). But -- last night it happened. Pasta salad bliss. You should try this recipe the next time you're craving pasta salad. Or just go ahead and make it tonight.
Summer Tortellini Salad
Summer Tortellini Salad
(Adapted from Wegmans "Menu" Summer 2010 Issue)
Ingredients:
1 package cheese tortellini
1 sweet red pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 to 1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 small bunch asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces and tips intact
1 zucchini, diced
fresh mozzarella balls or slices (to taste)
3T pine nuts, toasted lightly
1 package grape tomatoes
6 oz (+/-) of jarred pesto or homemade pesto, if you're feeling really ambitious
basil leaves (to taste), sliced
2T olive oil or basting oil
salt
pepper
1) Preheat oven to 450F. Line cookie sheet with foil. Slice red pepper, asparagus, and onion. Arrange on cookie sheet with 1T oil. Lightly salt and pepper.
2) Roast veggie combo for 10-12 minutes; stir and roast for another 10-12 minutes.
3) While the veggies are roasting, prepare tortellini according to package directions.
4) While tortellini is cooking, dice the zucchini.
5) Set first veggie combo into big bowl. Roast the zucchini with 1T of oil on same cookie sheet for 5-7 minutes.
6) Lightly toast pine nuts (I use the toaster oven for this -- 3 minutes is enough). These burn fast, so watch this step closely.
7) Drain tortellini and combine with veggies. Add the tomatoes, zucchini, pine nuts, and pesto sauce all to same big bowl. Stir and chill the salad if you can wait that long. Add the mozzarella and enjoy!
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