Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Pesto Pasta Salad

 Yesterday I took 
Pesto Pasta Salad
to a birthday luncheon.
The original recipe is from my friend 
So many asked for the recipe
that I wanted to share it here.
Stephanie makes pretty food.
This is her version
decorated out with 
designer cellophane on a tray.
Happy Birthday Michaelanne!
My version was a little more casual
in a bowl
but the taste was just as excellent :)
Such an easy recipe that I especially like because it 
can be made the day before.

Steph's Recipe:

Pesto Pasta Salad
what you need:
•1 pound rotini pasta
•1/2 costco-size jar of basil pesto
(or 1 grocery store-size tub)
•1/2 cup craisins
•1/2 cup pine nuts
•1/2 cup shredded parmesan 
(not the powdery kind)
•1 costco-size container spring greens/spinach mix 
(or 2 grocery store-size bags)
•girard's champagne dressing
•rotisserie chicken (optional)

what you need to do the day before:

•cook the pasta in boiling, salted water according to package directions 
drain and rinse in cold water 
stir in pesto 
•add craisins, pine nuts, and parmesan 
•refrigerate overnight

what you need to do to serve:

in a large bowl, mix greens with a little champagne dressing 
don't drown them
•arrange greens on a large platter
(really, you need a large platter for this!)
top with chilled pesto pasta
optional: top with a few nice slices of rotisserie chicken

pro: looks impressive; tastes fantastic; nothing (seriously, nothing, unless you use chicken) to chop
con: after the greens are dressed, you can't really save the leftovers

3 comments:

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Unknown said...

Looks like a great recipe, will definitely try it.

em's scrapbag said...

I love this salad. I've made it several times since you first posted about it.