A Summer Salad

As mentioned previously, the poor garden is not fairing well this year due to our long, cold late spring/early summer and the tomatoes are yet to ripen.  I do have basil though, so pesto has been on my mind.  A cold pesto pasta salad screams of summer to me so I am not going to let the fact that there are no ripe tomatoes in the garden stop me.  Off to the store I go for some very nice tomatoes called Romanescas, a variety I had never heard of before.  They are a bit bigger than a cherry tomato and in a kind of oblong shape.  Perfect!

This is one of those recipes where I just clean out the cupboards, adding to the salad as my mood suits me and today this included 1 jar of marinated artichoke hearts, 1 small can of diced black olives, cubes of fresh mozzarella cheese, and some peas along with the pesto and some mayonnaise. It's the kind of non-recipe I love to make.

Pesto Pasta Salad

1/2 cup pesto, fresh or homemade  (My pesto recipe can be found here).
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 lb. pasta (any shape you want but I like Rotini)
1/4 shredded Parmesan cheese
8 oz. chopped tomatoes
4 oz. fresh Mozzarella cheese, cut into small cubes
1 small jar drained marinated artichoke hearts
1 small can sliced black olives
3/4 cup frozen green peas
2 green onions, finely sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Bring to boil 5 quarts of salted water.  Add pasta and cook until al dente.  Drain and run under cold water until pasta is cooled.  In a small bowl, mix pesto, mayonnaise and Parmesan cheese together.  Add to pasta along with the rest of the ingredients and toss all until well mixed.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.