Hurray, hurray, summer is here! And with it, of course, the barbecue season really kicks off. What should not be missing? A delicious pasta salad.
How good that I know the recipe for the tastiest pasta salad in the world – at least according to my guests. But why not see for yourself and try this alternative to the classic with ham and mandarins?
Pasta salad with pesto and caramelized walnuts
For my pasta salad, I prefer to use a walnut and ricotta pesto, which is nice and creamy and not as oily as a classic pesto rosso. But you can also use a Mediterranean pesto calabrese or try it with a green pesto!
Ingredients for approx. 6 portions:
- 500 g pasta (e.g. farfalle)
- 4-5 dried tomatoes (in oil)
- 200 g mushrooms
- 1 tbsp dill
- 80 g rocket
- Salt and pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tbsp oil
For the caramelized walnuts
- 100 g walnut kernels
- 50 g sugar
- 50 ml water
For the sauce
- 2 tbsp pesto (e.g. walnut ricotta)
- 2-3 tbsp herb quark (alternatively neutral yoghurt)
- 1 tbsp mayonnaise
And this is how it works:
1. first cook the pasta al dente in plenty of salted water according to the instructions on the packet. Drain and set aside to cool.
2 In the meantime, prepare the mushrooms. To do this, clean the mushrooms and cut into thin slices. Heat some oil in a pan and fry the mushrooms until crispy. Season with salt, pepper and a little garlic powder.
3. bring the walnuts, sugar and water to the boil in a pan, then reduce the heat. Keep stirring the walnuts so that they are coated on all sides with the sugar mixture. As soon as the water has almost completely evaporated Leave the walnuts to cool on baking paper. Then roughly chop with a sharp knife.
4. wash the rocket salad and spin dry (the easiest way to do this is with a salad spinner, like this one from Amazon*). Remove the tomatoes from the oil and chop finely, finely chop the dill (you can of course also use frozen dill).
5 Now mix everything together: Pasta, tomatoes, dill, mushrooms and walnuts. Mix and add the sauce, mix everything well and season with salt and pepper. Finally, fold in the fresh rocket – and the (probably) tastiest pasta salad in the world is ready!
