Spring Greens Pasta Salad

This spring greens pasta salad embraces spring produce to the fullest, with blanched asparagus and fresh peas, plus pasta and beans for heartiness, tossed in a sweet  and creamy basil vinaigrette.

When I was noodling around the idea for a springy pasta salad, I really wanted something super green — hence the idea for making a creamy basil vinaigrette. Which is undoubtedly the star of this salad. It’s citrusy, sweet, and perfectly creamy, and I highly recommend using this for other dishes as well.

Spring Greens Pasta Salad Ingredients 

• Calamarata pasta or similar pasta: Been loving this pasta shape for pasta salads — I feel like it’s perfect for both catching the sauce. Partanna and Seggiano both have great calamarata pasta. 
• White beans: Went with canned butter beans for convenience, but when I have the forethought to plan, I love using an heirloom white bean in this salad. 
• Asparagus
• Fresh peas: Feel free to use frozen green peas — they’ll just need a 20-30 second blanch.
• Fresh parsley
• Fresh basil
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Lemon juice
• Honey
• Garlic cloves
• Dijon mustard
• Kosher salt: Specifically, Diamond Crystal kosher salt. If you’re using Morton kosher salt, reduce the salt by half. Morton is much saltier and denser than Diamond Crystal kosher salt.

A Visual Guide to this Spring Greens Pasta Salad

Prep the veggies. Chop the woody ends of the asparagus off, then slice each stalk into 1-2-inch pieces on a bias. Weigh out the chopped asparagus and set aside. 

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add in the fresh peas, along with a generous pinch of salt, to the pot and blanch until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Scoop up with a spider and plunge into an ice bath. Alternatively, add the blanched peas to a colander and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Repeat this same process with asparagus. I typically cook the asparagus for 8 minutes, which is on the softer side.

Dump out the blanching water and refill the same pot with water, bring to a boil, then cook the pasta until it’s a little past al dente. Pasta firms up a bit when it cools, which is why I like to cook it on the softer side. Drain the pasta and toss with 2 tbsp of butter or olive oil. Add the pasta, drained and rinsed beans, blanched asparagus and peas, and minced parsley to a large bowl. Set aside.

Add all the dressing ingredients to a blender and blend on high until creamy and emulsified, about 45-60 seconds. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine — adjust for salt as needed. Serve with freshly cracked pepper and grated Parmesan.

Notes

• Pasta firms up (quite a bit) when it’s cold, so overcooking it will give you perfectly done pasta with just enough bite when it’s cold outta the fridge.
• Some thinly shaved chunks of Parmesan would be fabulous with this salad, and add a nice umami note. I’m dairy-free, and the vegan parmesan just isn’t the same, which is why I didn’t add any.
• Love pairing this pasta salad with grilled steaks (either lamb or beef). It’s the perfect spring/summer dinner!
• This pasta salad saves so well — keep it in a glass container in the fridge and pull it out whenever you want. It tastes best within 3 days.

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