MINESTRONE SALAD

By

YIELD: Serves 8

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces fingerling or baby red potatoes
  • 8 ounces green beans, cut in half
  • 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 pound gemelli or tubetti (or any short pasta you choose)
  • 1/2 cup pesto
  • one 15 1/2-ounce can cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
  • one 6-ounce jar roasted peppers, sliced into strips
  • salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Step 1


1. Place 12 ounces fingerling or baby red potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 10 minutes. Spread them out on a baking sheet to cool, then slice the potatoes into 1/2-inch coins.

2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 1 teaspoon salt. Prepare a bowl of ice water. Add 8 ounces green beans, cut in half, and 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces so they're about the size of the pasta you're using, and blanch the vegetables just until they're bright green, 1 to 2 minutes. Scoop the vegetables out of the hot water with a spider or a strainer, rinse them with cold water, and submerge them in the ice water until completely cool, then drain, pat dry, and set aside.

3. Add 1 pound gemelli or tubetti (or any short pasta you choose) to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain the pasta and put it in a large bowl to cool a bit.

4. Toss in the potatoes, asparagus, green beans, 1/2 cup pesto, one 15 1/2-ounce can cannellini beans (drained and rinsed), one 6-ounce jar roasted peppers, sliced into strips, and salt and pepper to taste. If preparing ahead of time, combine all of the ingredients 1 to 2 hours before serving.

Reviews
Way yonder too much flavor of pesto. It is basically like eating the stuff by spoonfuls. Do yourself a favor and dress this with a nice vinaigrette. It also wouldn't hurt to roast the asparagus and green beans instead of poaching them.

*no potatoes *canned green beans *use sun dried tomatoes *use SDT oil to thin pesto *microwave asparagus in steamer bag *add a little apple cider vinegar about 1 Tbsp. very delicious with the changes I made. Love that it is room temp so no worries about temp spoiling it.