Easy Pesto Pasta
This 10-Minute Pesto Pasta Salad relies on some store-bought ingredients, à la SemiHomemade Cooking with Sandra Lee, but it’s about as tasty a dish as you could make in under half an hour. Cheesy and delicious, it makes the perfect side dish for picnics and outdoor parties, all of which I hope to be getting back to as the months get warmer and COVID (hopefully) becomes a thing of the past.
It is a highly customizable dish. You can add or remove vegetables based on your own preference and it will taste every bit as good as the original. Though it’s yummy enough to stand on its own and vegetarian-friendly as prepared, it also pairs very well with grilled vegetables, fish, shrimp and grilled chicken breast.
Let’s talk ingredients. As I mentioned, this pasta salad requires you to lean on some pre-prepared ingredients from the grocery store. I recommend picking up the Giovanni Rana brand 5 Cheese Tortellini and a jar of either the Prego Basil Pesto or the Barilla Rustic Basil Pesto. You’re also free to try your hand at making your own homemade pesto if you have the time and are feeling adventurous. BelGioioso Fresh Mozzarella Cheese Pearls are my top pick for cheese balls here, but you can make your own choices! I do recommend sticking with a variety that has been marinated in olive oil, rather than water.
In terms of vegetables, the cherry tomatoes called for here work best, however, whole, chopped tomato would do fine if it’s what you have on hand. Sundried tomatoes would be equally tasty. Red onion can be swapped for white or yellow at your preference. Roasted red peppers and freshly chopped bell pepper are good choices if you want to add a few extra veggies to your pasta. The cucumber can be left in or taken out at your preference.
This 10-Minute Pesto Pasta Salad will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to five days. It should not be left out of the refrigerator for longer than 2 hours, and I do not recommend it for freezing.
Want to make it yourself? Here’s what you need:
♦ 1 20-ounce bag cheese tortellini
♦ 1 cup pesto
♦ 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half ♦ 1 12-ounce container marinated mozzarella cheese balls, drained
♦ 1/4 cup red onion, diced
♦ 1 small cucumber, diced
How to make it:
Begin by bringing a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Add in the store-bought tortellini and cook for exactly 1 and 1/2 minutes. Do not cook for the full seven minutes recommended on the package instructions or the tortellini will be mushy in the pasta salad. Once it has cooked, drain and rinse with cold water to stop it from cooking further.
Place the drained tortellini in a large bowl. Spoon in the pesto, followed by the sliced tomatoes, diced onion, cucumber and mozzarella cheese balls. Toss well to coat. Serve at once or cover and refrigerate until ready to eat. Keeps for up to five days.
Kelcey Walker is a reporter for the Calhoun
Times. She was born in North Carolina and raised in Georgia. After spending the last three years in Los Angeles, she’s pretty stoked to be back in the South, where the food is good and the people are friendly. You can email her at KWalker@CalhounTimes.com.