Pesto Pasta Salad with Peas and Parmesan
Ingredients
- ¾ pound fusilli pasta
- ¾ pound bow tie pasta
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ cups pesto, jarred or from your own favorite recipe
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 ¼ cups mayonnaise, I used light mayo with great results
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 ½ cups frozen peas, defrosted
- ⅓ cup pine nuts
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is cooked to your liking. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature, tossing every once in a while to prevent the noodles from sticking to each other as they cool.
- In a food processor or blender, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pine nuts, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.