Pasta Salad with Snow Peas & Pistachios.
Every year I find a pasta recipe that becomes the anthem of summer. In 2020, it was Melissa Clark’s amazing Corn Pasta recipe from the New York Times. We made it here in the gathr space over and over until corn season lost its summer glory. This year, I stumbled across a very simple recipe in Yotam Ottolenghi’s genius book, Simple. The photo in the book displayed spiral noodles coated in a bright green sauce with crunchy nuts and springy snow peas. It looked like the perfect summer dish and it has not disappointed. Even though it is only June, this recipe is been on repeat with no stop in sight.
I’ve made a couple changes to the original recipe. First I like to add roasted cherry tomatoes. Tomatoes are one of those special treats in the summer and I think they deserve a spot in this delicious pasta. The second biggest change I made to the original is I double all the ingredients! This pasta is too good not to make oodles of, and bonus, it’s great as leftovers. It is also a very versatile recipe. If you want to make it a complete meal, add some roasted chicken or grilled shrimp on top.
Recipe adapted from “Pasta with Pistachios and Pecorino” in Simple by Yotam Ottolenghi.
Serves: 6
Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 lb trofie pasta (fusilli or bowtie will work too)
4 cups snow peas, finely sliced on an angle
4 cups basil
2 garlic cloves, peeled
4 anchovy fillets in oil, drained
1/2 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
3-4 ounces parmesan or pecorino, grated
3/4 cup cup shelled pistachios, roughly chopped
1 lemon, zested then halved
Kosher salt
Pepper
Instructions:
1. Preheat your oven to 400° on Bake Mode. Place tomatoes in a small baking dish, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. No measurements needed, just eyeball it. Roast tomatoes for 25-30 minutes. Set aside.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until almost al dente, then add the snow peas to the pot and cook together for another 1-2 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water, then drain the peas and pasta.
3. Using a food processor, add basil, garlic, anchovies, and oil, and blitz until smooth. In a large bowl, combine the pasta and peas, basil sauce, roasted cherry tomatoes, and a 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta water. Gently toss to coat. Then add the parmesan, pistachios, lemon zest, and the juice of half a lemon. Gently toss together adding more pasta water if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve and enjoy.
*Pasta is best served at room temp.