Hello, my friends! We interrupt your regularly scheduled Italy adventure recaps for a recipe. Image may be NSFW.
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Introducing my new hot weather favorite: Summer Artichoke & Pesto Pasta Salad! Served cold, preferably with some fruit, salad, or maybe some Prosecco on the side. Yep, I still have Italy on the brain, clearly.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
A couple weeks ago, I was given the challenge to come up with a recipe using one of Naked Juice’s new Power Garden juices: either Tomato Kick or Berry Veggie. The obvious choice would have been a berry smoothie or an amped up Bloody Mary, but I decided it would be more fun to get creative. Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
The Tomato Kick juice has all sorts of fun stuff in it – tomato, celery, red bell pepper, carrot… sounded like the makings of a nutritious pasta sauce, which is where I got my idea to use it in a cold summer pasta salad! I knew right away that it would be need to include artichokes – every since Italy, I’ve been obsessed.
Image may be NSFW.
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This pasta salad is quick and easy to make, vegetarian, and would be great as a simple dinner with a side salad or as an easy make-ahead packed lunch for work. For those that are looking closely at the pictures, you’ll notice you can’t see the pesto in the photos because I decided to add that last minute, after the photos. I know, I like living on the edge. Pesto just makes everything that much more delicious, don’t you think?
Image may be NSFW.
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Summer Artichoke & Pesto Pasta Salad
Serves 4
Whether you need an easy packed lunch or a simple dinner, this is your new go-to summer recipe. Serve cold and enjoy on its own, with a salad, or with fruit!
Ingredients:
- 2 C cooked whole wheat/grain pasta, any shape (I’m partial to spiral pasta but didn’t have any on hand, so spaghetti it was)
- 1 (15 oz.) can cannellini beans, drained/rinsed
- 1 (14 oz.) can artichoke hearts (canned/jarred in oil), chopped
- 2 C packed fresh baby spinach, placed on a plate and microwaved on high for 1 minute (to wilt it)
- 1/3 C goat cheese
- 2/3 C Naked Power Garden Tomato Kick juice
- 2 Tbsp. pesto (store bought or homemade – try my Spinach Basil Pesto recipe!)
- Dried or fresh oregano and basil to taste
- A couple shakes of garlic powder (optional)
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions:
1) Throw everything into a bowl, mix, and enjoy! I only had dried oregano and basil on hand, but fresh would have been a delicious addition.
Enjoy!
Told you it was easy! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I had mine with a side of fresh strawberries one day last week for lunch.
Image may be NSFW.
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Stay tuned – Naked is going to host a fun Pinterest sweepstakes contest related to the recipes created as part of this campaign, and I’ll share more details about that on Monday!
Have a great day, my friends!
What’s your favorite chilled summer pasta salad recipe?
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Image may be NSFW.
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Power Garden is Naked Juice’s new veggie drink lineup with 1lb. of veggies in every bottle (weight of veggies prior to juicing). With delicious flavors that only Naked could blend, Power Garden offers one of the easiest ways to get your daily servings of veggies and fruits, along with good sources of fiber, vitamins and minerals. Learn more at http://www.nakedjuice.com/veggiedrinks.
Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Naked via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Naked.
Summer Artichoke & Pesto Pasta Salad originally appeared on fANNEtastic food on June 13, 2013.
The post Summer Artichoke & Pesto Pasta Salad appeared first on fANNEtastic food.