Spaghetti Pasta Salad with Roasted Vegetables and Prosciutto

Ingredients

1 lb whole wheat spaghetti

1 red bell pepper

1 medium zucchini

10 asparagus spears

5 slices prosciutto

1 cup basil leaves

1 lemon

¼ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

½ tsp each salt and pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Dice zucchini into quarters, halve the bell pepper, and cut asparagus spears into thirds. Drizzle with olive oil. Cook for 25-20 minutes. Let cool.

Meanwhile, bring large pot of salted water to boil. Add spaghetti and cook based on box directions. Drain.

Dice the roasted bell pepper into small diced pieces. Cut the prosciutto into small slices.

Add the roasted veggies and prosciutto to the pasta.

In a blender or food processor add the basil, juice from 1 lemon, red wine vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper.

Pulse until smooth for about 30 second.

Toss 3/4 the dressing with the salad while the pasta is still warm.

Mix the remaining 1/4 of dressing in with salad when ready to serve (either that same day or at a later time!)

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About

There’s just something about spaghetti shaped pasta that makes me happy! Maybe it’s the big slurpy mouthful of noodles you get with each bite? Or it could be the way you can twirl them with your fork. Whatever the reason is, it’s definitely a favorite pasta shape of mine. And I’m going to share with you a great recipe to use them in today.

Today’s pasta salad is filled to the brim with summertime vegetables and salty prosciutto. It’s then topped off and tossed with a tangy basil vinaigrette.

If you don’t want to turn on your stove, you can cook those veggies up on the grill. The best part about that is the extra layer of flavoring. Unfortunately, as many of you know from my posts, I don’t have that option. (Having no grill’s allowed in my living complex is a serious downer). So I crank up my air conditioning and turn on the stove most nights.

Whether they are grilled or roasted, summer vegetables steal my the show in this salad. When cooking the vegetables featured in this recipe, I love the way summer squash becomes tender, bell peppers become sweet, and asparagus gets a sharp flavor and slight crispness. Also, because the basil is overflowing at the farmers markets (and on my counter top) it made it the obvious, convenient and delicious choice for a dressing base. It adds an herbaceous relish to the dish.

Now that the dish is fresh in your mind, here’s some ideas on how to incorporate it into your weekly menus:

Eat it as a light, cool dinner on a warm summer night
Pair it next to burgers and dogs at your BBQ
Make it for work lunches to eat all week long