Casarecce Pesto Pasta Salad Recipe with Heirloom Tomatoes, and Edible Flowers
Flowers are always a good idea, and they don’t have to come in the form of a bouquet. This Mother’s Day, spoil mom and impress her with your cooking and presentation skills by making her this gorgeous Barilla Collezione Casarecce pesto pasta salad with dazzling spring flair. Pistachios, heirloom tomatoes, capers and basil combine for knockout homemade pesto flavor—and the addition of edible flowers like nasturtium-marigolds or pansies makes this a festive casarecce recipe look as glorious as it tastes.
Casarecce Pasta Salad with Pistachio, Basil & Edible Flowers Pesto
Ingredients1 box Barilla Collezione Casarecce
½ cup pistachio, shell off
6 tablespoons Sicilian extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Romano cheese
12 capers in salt, rinsed
10 edible flowers (nasturtium-Marigolds, or pansies)
12 basil leaves
1 cup heirloom tomatoes, diced
Coarse sea salt and black pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook casarecce pasta according to directions.
2. Meanwhile, in a mortar, crush pistachios with garlic, a coarse sea salt, flower petals, capers and basil leaves to make homemade pesto
3. Mix in 6 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil to create pesto and set aside
4. Drain casarecce and toss with pesto sauce
5. Served topped with tomatoes and add additional flower petals for presentation
Recipe and Photo Credit: Chef Lorenzo Boni