I wanted a great pasta salad that was more than just the standard mayo or Italian dressing version. I do love pesto! I came across an America’s Test Kitchen recipe that discussed pesto pasta salad. It said that often the salad turns a yucky color (which we know pesto will do if kept much longer than a half hour, even in the fridge) and also that the oil often separates out and it gets greasy.

America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) is awesome because it will try literally ANYTHING to fix these problems.

To fix the color, we add spinach! I also love this because I have a shady back yard and can’t grow massive amounts of basil— I never seem to have enough for a big batch of pesto! Spinach, on the other hand, is crazy available. Check!

To fix the greasy, they added some mayo! I used to be a mayo-hater and I still KIND OF am. Light mayo isn’t actually that high in calorie, and it really does lend a richness to recipes. It’s egg based, and egg yolk is wonderfully rich, so I guess it makes sense! Anyways, a bit of mayo in the pesto keeps it creamy and cohesive. Check! This really was a delicious finished product and I highly recommend it for your next BBQ.

Pesto Pasta Salad

3/4 c. pine nuts
2 medium cloves garlic, unpeeled
1 tbsp. table salt
1 lb. farfalle (bow ties) pasta
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil plus 1 additional tablespoon
3 c. packed fresh basil leaves

1 c. baby spinach (packed)

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon
1 1/2 oz. finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 3/4 cup), plus extra for serving
6 tbsp. mayonnaise
1 pint cherry tomatoes , quartered

1. Bring 4 quarts water to rolling boil in large pot. Rolling boil means big huge bubbles breaking the surface.

2. Toast pine nuts in small dry skillet over medium heat, shaking pan occasionally, until just golden and fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes. Don’t turn your back on these babies. They will toast quickly. They smell like bacon when they cook, I swear. Put your face right in there.

2. When water is boiling, add garlic and let cook 1 minute. Remove garlic with slotted spoon and rinse under cold water to stop cooking; set aside to cool.

3. Add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta to water, stir to separate, and cook until tender. ATK made a big deal of explaining how when making pasta salad, you need to cook the pasta all the way through. If it’s served cold AND al dente (“to the tooth”, or with a slight resistance in the middle) it could seem a tad crunchy. Gross. Make sure it’s all the way cooked through.

4. Reserve 1/4 cup cooking water, drain pasta, toss with 1 tablespoon oil, spread in single layer on rimmed baking sheet, and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. I used mini-farfalle because it was what I had on hand. When I make this again, I would use regular sized. Also, remember THE OIL. It’s vital in anti-stickiness!

(Pasta water!)

5. When garlic is cool, peel and pulse a few times in the food processor.

6. Place 1/4 cup nuts, basil, spinach, pepper, lemon juice, 1/4 cup oil, and 1 tsp. salt in food processor and process until smooth, scraping sides of bowl as necessary.

6. Add cheese and mayonnaise and process until thoroughly combined. Cover and refrigerate until ready to assemble salad.

4. When pasta is cool, toss with pesto, adding reserved pasta water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until pesto evenly coats pasta. Fold in remaining pine nuts and tomatoes; serve. I didn’t need that much pasta water.. maybe 2 tbsp.

Some pasta salad recipes suggest that you dress the pasta while it’s still warm so that it will absorb the dressing. I get that, and I think you should do that for THOSE salads, but not for this one. I say assemble this within an hour of serving.

It really did hold it’s color and didn’t seem greasy at all! Yum!

Oh, pesto tip. If you make regular pesto and want to freeze it, make sure you give it a good layer of olive oil on top of the pesto (don’t mix, just pour it on there) before you freeze it. It will help keep it fresh and green. And if you always add spinach to your pesto, you’ll always have a fresher green color, as the spinach will hold it’s color much better than basil.

If you make this for a non-entertaining reason and want to healthify it, here’s how. Use whole wheat pasta (any shape), light or nonfat mayo, and change your pasta to veggie ratio. More tomatoes, grilled chopped eggplant and zucchini, etc. I wouldn’t mess with the flavor of the pesto… just deal out some pasta. Whole wheat is as high calorie as “white”.