Season’s Eatings is a column dedicated to eating seasonally and includes recipes and tips that help you make the most of each season’s produce.
Text and photos by Liz of Carpé Season
If you had met me when I was about nine, you would have probably come away with two major impressions:
1. Wow, that girl’s bangs are way too curly for the early nineties.
2. Man, she is a REALLY picky eater.
In my world at the time, the only vegetables worth eating were corn, potatoes, and the occasional cucumber. I know. My poor mom. It’s not that she didn’t try to get my siblings and I to eat other veggies; she would. I remember her efforts to covertly introduce us to broccoli by covering it with copious amounts of cheese or to sneak some peppers into our spaghetti sauce, but we would not be had like that.
It was only after friends in college peer-pressured me into putting bell peppers on homemade pizzas we were making that I began to understand that vegetables are what makes the world go ’round. And I am so, so thankful for that pizza-based intervention.
Farmers markets in Minnesota are a vegetable-lovers dream right now. The tables are virtually sagging with the best of summer: tomatoes (those glorious beasts of late August), peppers, cauliflower, eggplants, zucchini, onions, kale, green beans, and so much more. It’s a weird sort of culinary paradise for me to walk through the aisles and think about what to make. And so often, as I lug my produce-heavy bags to the car, I can’t believe how much I used to not eat and how far I’ve come.
And that’s what this pasta salad is about: cramming as much of summer’s produce into one pasta salad as possible – only after roasting the heck out of the veggies to deepen their flavor. It’s amazing what happens to tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, and onions when you drizzle them with a little olive oil, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, and let them spend some time in a hot oven. They come out tasting like the vegetables they are: the peppers are so peppery, the tomatoes so tomato-ey. I bet the vegetables themselves are kind of proud of who they’ve become – kind of like me.
recipe by Carpé Season|http://carpeseason.com/
yields 8-10 servings
This summer pasta salad is really adaptable to your tastes. Use whatever vegetables you prefer (broccoli, eggplant, cauliflower would be great additions). You can also use a store-bought Italian vinaigrette of your choice if you don't have time to make the homemade dressing. Finally, this recipe makes a ton of pasta salad; great for large gatherings and for leftovers as it keeps great in the fridge for 4-5 days. But feel free to cut the recipe in half.
Ingredients
- 8-10 smallish/medium heirloom or roma tomatoes
- 1 summer squash
- 1 medium zucchini
- 1 to 2 bell peppers
- 1/2 a large onion
- 2 tbsp. + 1/4 c. olive oil, divided
- salt and pepper
- app. 10 oz. uncooked pasta (rotini, penne)
- 1 c. parmesan, shredded
- 1 handful fresh basil, slivered*
- -parchment paper helpful to have
- 1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp. brown sugar
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 3/4 c. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. dijon mustard
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary, minced
- 1 sprig fresh oregano, minced
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375*.
- Prepare a large baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper and spraying it with cooking spray. Cut washed and dried tomatoes in half lengthwise; core and remove most seeds. Place tomatoes, cut side up, on prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tbsp. olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, using your fingers to coat all sides. Roast for 10-20 minutes, checking frequently to make sure they are not getting scorched. You're looking for the tomatoes to be withered, sunken, but not really browned.
- Remove from oven and set aside. Once cool, you can remove the peels if you desire.
- Increase oven temperature to 425*. Use the same pan as above, but replace the parchment paper and spray again with cooking spray.
- Prepare the veggies: Wash and dry all veggies. Cut the zucchini and summer squash in thirds lengthwise and then in half widthwise. Core and seed the peppers, then cut into quarters. Cut the onion into large 1-2" wedges. You're basically looking for the pieces to be more or less the same size.
- Place prepared veggies on re-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with 1/4 olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then use your fingers to make sure all sides are coated.
- Roast for 15 minutes with the pan placed in the top 1/3 or top rack of the oven. Check veggies for tenderness with a fork. Your zucchini and summer squash will most likely be done at this point. Remove them once tender and set aside. Continue roasting the onion for another 5-10 minutes, checking for tenderness (again, you don't want it too browned). Once tender, remove from oven.
- Place all ingredients in a tightly-lidded container, shake thoroughly to combine. Be sure to "reshake" just before pouring over salad.
- Cook pasta al dente according to package directions. Rinse in cold water, drain, and put in a large bowl. Once all veggies (including tomatoes) are cool, chop into small pieces, and place with the pasta.
- Add parmesan, and mix to combine. Pour about 1 c. (not quite all**) of the dressing over the salad, stir to combine, and add more to taste. Slice and sprinkle the fresh basil over the salad just before serving.
- Can be made a day ahead of time and stored in the fridge (though I would wait on the basil as described above).
Notes
*I did not use fresh basil when I made it because I am allergic, but you really, really, really should. **Unused balsamic dressing can be stored in the fridge for up to a week.
