This is my third year participating in a CSA. I feel like each year I have a better sense of how to make the most of all the veggies. I have been trying a lot of new recipes lately and thought I could highlight one or more of the veggies from our share in a new recipe each week. We have also been counting our calories so a lot of these recipes are low-cal. Don't let that term fool you! These recipes have been delicious and more than satisfying! So please check in every week for a new recipe. Hopefully you will enjoy them as much as we are!
The first couple weeks of our CSA are made up of a lot of greens. So the first veggie I'm going to highlight is spinach. My husband LOVES spinach any way he can get it. I like it as well but I enjoy it more when it is accompanied by something rather than just steamed. I found this recipe from Whole Foods and gave it a shot. This is by far the best pasta salad I have ever had! My whole family loved it!
Pasta Salad With Grilled Summer Vegetables and Fresh Mozzarella
Ingredients:
- 1-2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 yellow squash or zucchini, cut on the diagonal into 1/2 inch slices
- 2 red bell peppers, cored seeded and quartered
- 12 oz fusilli pasta, cooked, drained and cooled
- 2 cups baby spinach leaves
- 6 oz fresh mozzarella, cut into bite size chunks
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 Tbsp chopped basil
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinaigrette
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Directions:
- Preheat grill to medium heat. Brush squash and peppers with olive oil and grill, flipping once, until just charred in parts and tender.
- Transfer to a plate and set aside to cool. Cut into bite size pieces
- In a large bowl, toss grilled veggies with pasta, spinach, mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, vinaigrette, salt and pepper.
This makes 6 servings and is only 300 calories per serving!! Can't beat that! The best part is that you can substitute any of the veggies for whatever you have in the fridge. I bet this would be really good with grilled eggplant. This pasta salad is great for dinner or to bring to a cookout this summer. I guarantee everyone will love it. Give it a try and let me know what you think. Enjoy!
