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Close up zucchini, green beans, watercress and pasta.

Gorgeous Greens Summer Pasta Salad with Basil-Lemon Vinaigrette

Sip + Sanity | Linda Feller
This Summer Pasta Salad is full of vibrant green veggies! One bite and you’ll be swooning over the super fresh veg, chewy pasta and bright basil-lemon vinaigrette…and a little nutty parm for good measure!
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Prep time.10 minutes
Cook time.12 minutes
Custom time.5 minutes
Total time.27 minutes
Course.Pasta, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine.American, Italian
Number of servings.8
Calories per serving.372 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

Vinaigrette

  • 1½ cups basil leaves, loosely packed
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 lemon, juice and zest
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • fresh cracked black pepper
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Pasta Salad

  • 1 pound short dry pasta
  • 8 ounce French beans, cut in half (thin green beans)
  • 1 medium zucchini, cut into half moons (about ⅛" thick)
  • 2 cups watercress, about 2 handfuls
  • ½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated / shredded

Instructions

  • Make the vinaigrette: blend together the basil, garlic, lemon zest, juice, 1/4 tsp kosher salt and several grinds of black pepper. With the blender running, drizzle in the olive oil until everything is well combined. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
  • Create an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice and water. Leave enough space to add the green beans after blanching.
  • Set a large pot of salted water over high heat. Once it comes to a boil, drop in the green beans and blanch them for two to three minutes. Using tongs or a spider, remove them to the ice bath. After a few minutes, drain and set aside to dry.
  • Bring the pot of water back to a boil and cook the pasta per package instructions. Drain in a colander and allow to cool. (It's ok to drizzle a little olive oil on your pasta to keep it from clumping as it cools. To speed up the cooling process, spread it out on a parchment lined sheet pan.)
  • In a large bowl, add the pasta, all the veggies, 1/4 tsp kosher salt, some black pepper and the cheese. Drizzle in the lemon-basil vinaigrette and toss everything together to combine. Taste and adjust for seasoning.

Nutrition

Calories: 372kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 257mg | Potassium: 310mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 804IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 122mg | Iron: 1mg
Keywords.pasta, stove top, summer, vegetarian
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