Pistachio Pasta Salad with Tomatoes, Olives and Red Onion
Serves 4 to 6.
From "Flavor," by Sabrina Ghayour, who writes: "I have been making this salad for many years now, using both the pistachio pesto with the recipe or — when I'm short of time and ingredients — store-bought fresh basil pesto. We all make compromises sometimes, but I must admit I prefer the punchy combination of herbs in this pistachio pesto mix, brightened up even more with semi-roasted (aka sun-dried) tomatoes and my favorite Kalamata olives and red onion. It's a lunchbox classic for me, and something I make in big quantities for the household to snack on over a few days. I also love serving it with roast chicken and as a picnic dish, too." (Aster, 2024).
• 9 oz. of your favorite pasta shape
• 2 1/2 oz. Parmesan cheese, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 c. pistachio slivers, or very coarsely chopped whole nuts
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• Sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 c. fresh dill
• 1/2 c. fresh cilantro
• 1/2 c. fresh flat-leaf parsley
• Juice of 1/2 large lemon
• 10 1/2 oz. semi-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and oil reserved and cut widthwise into strips
• Olive oil, optional
• 1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced into half moons
• 2 to 3 generous handfuls of pitted Kalamata olives
Directions
Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water following package directions, then drain, rinse very well in cold water until completely cooled, and let stand to continue draining.
Put the Parmesan, pistachios, garlic, and some salt and pepper into a small food processor and blitz together. Then add the herbs, lemon juice, and the oil from the tomatoes and blitz until well combined. Add more olive oil as needed to enable the pesto to spin without making it too oily.
Add the drained pasta to a mixing bowl along with the tomatoes, onion and finally the pesto. Mix everything together, then stir in the olives. Taste and adjust the seasoning if desired. This needs no accompaniment.
