Pasta Salad with Pesto

Name: Pasta Salad with Pesto
Yield: Serves 8 to 10 as a side dish
Ingredients: 3/4 cup, pine nuts; 2 medium cloves, garlic, unpeeled; , Table salt; 1 pound, farfalle (bow ties) pasta; 1/4 cup, extra virgin olive oil plus 1 additional tablespoon; 3 cups, packed fresh basil leaves (about 4 ounces); 1 cup, baby spinach (packed), about 1 ounce; 1/2 teaspoon, ground black pepper; 2 tablespoons, fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon; 1 1/2 ounces, finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 3/4 cup), plus extra for serving; 6 tablespoons, mayonnaise; 1 pint, cherry tomatoes, quartered, or grape tomatoes, halved (optional)

Side Dishes
Pasta
Salads

Appears in Cook's Illustrated July/August 2006, America's Test Kitchen TV

At its best, pesto is fresh, green, and full of herbal flavor. Could it stay that way even when added to an American pasta salad?

SERVES 8 to 10 as a side dish

TIME 55 minutes

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