Name: Green Goddess Pasta Salad
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 lemons; 1/2 cup olive oil; 1 1/4 cups basil leaves, tightly packed; 1 cup baby spinach leaves, tightly packed; 2 cloves garlic; 1/4 cup raw cashews; 1/3 cup nutritional yeast or grated Parmesan cheese; 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; 1 tablespoon salt; 1 pound dry medium pasta shells; 1 1/2 cups frozen peas; 12 stalks thin green asparagus, tough stems trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces; 1 fennel bulb, cored and very thinly sliced; 6 ounces drained, jarred pitted green olives, roughly chopped; 3 tablespoons finely chopped chives; 3 scallions, thinly sliced

Green Goddess Pasta Salad

Extra vibrant thanks to an herbaceous, creamy dressing and lots of green veggies.

30 min total 15 min prep 15 min cook 6 498 cal

Instructions

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1 Set a large pot of water (about 3 quarts) with 1 tablespoon salt over high heat and bring it to a boil.
2 While the water is boiling, zest the lemons and set it aside. You will add it to the pasta salad later. Juice the lemons—you’ll need about 3 tablespoons of lemon juice. In a blender, add the lemon juice, olive oil, basil, spinach, garlic, cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, and black pepper, and blend until very smooth.
3 When the water comes to a boil, add the pasta. About 2 minutes before the pasta is cooked—follow the cook time suggested on the packaging—add the frozen peas and asparagus to the pot. Cook for the remaining 2 minutes, then drain everything into a colander set in the sink. Rinse with cold tap water to stop the pasta, peas, and asparagus from cooking further in the residual heat. Leave the colander in the sink to drain thoroughly.
4 In a large bowl, add the cooled pasta, peas, and asparagus, plus the fennel, olives, chives, scallions, and lemon zest. Pour in the dressing and toss until everything is evenly coated. Season to taste with more salt and black pepper.
5 Enjoy the pasta salad chilled—pop it in the fridge for up to a day—or right away at room temperature. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Did you love the recipe? Give us some stars and leave a comment below!