Here is a pasta salad that just screams summer.

{Yes, I do realize I’m a little obsessed with all things summer – and Ina Garten, for that matter}

Basil is quickly becoming my herb of choice for this time of year, because it seems to go so perfectly with everything I feel like eating – I want beautiful chiffonades of it over my Caprese salads, and I need it to be muddled into my strawberry-vodka cocktails, of course. And what about these perfectly simple + gorgeous tomato, basil, and goat cheese tartlets for your next get-together? Or maybe a super-refreshing salad of watermelon and feta, drizzled in basil oil? I mean, we need basil. And lots of it.

Lucky for me, I do have a lot of it – in fact, I have an enormous vat of the deliciously sweet stuff growing on my balcony right now. Can you guess what’s next?

Pesto.

Pesto, meet pasta salad. With peas and lots of other healthy stuff like spinach (which sort of blends right in, by the way – if you have any picky veggie eaters out there) and whole wheat pasta. I loved everything about this salad – especially the beautiful green color. If you want to add a pop of something else, however, I think sun-dried tomatoes would be a great addition.

Pesto Pasta Salad

Recipe courtesy of Ina Garten

• 3/4 pound fusilli pasta {I use whole wheat}
• 3/4 pound bow tie pasta {again, whole wheat}
• 1/4 cup good olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups pesto {see recipe below}
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1/4 cups good mayonnaise {I use light or olive oil mayo}
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook the fusilli and bow ties in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until al dente. The purpose of two different types of pasta is to give it some texture and help the pesto to hang on to it nicely, but you can absolutely use just one. After it’s cooked, drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pine nuts, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.

To make the pesto:

*This makes about 4 cups of pesto, so you can roughly halve it if you want only enough for the salad

• 1/4 cup pine nuts (or you could do half pine nuts, half walnuts)
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic (5 cloves)
• 2 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup good olive oil
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Place the pine nuts and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.