Fake Summer Pasta Salad

Hello sunshine, my old friend.

Two hours ago, I jogged home with splotchy red cheeks and that stale, post-recess smell we all know very well from elementary school. Now I’m dropping tomato juices over myself as I both eat and type this summery pasta salad recipe for you (and your next sweaty day.)

This pasta salad will not ask you for unexpected ingredients or flavors. It will not claim to be a one-pot, one-sheet, no-mess, throw-it-all-together process. It’s a direct recipe with intention and delicateness behind each step. The final pasta salad is just warm, the same temperature as Brooklyn’s fake summer air. And each vegetable is introduced to preserve its most desirable (IMO) texture. No fibrous greens, no acidic tomatoes. And no frigid pasta!

Recipe

Serves 2

Stuff you need: a medium to large pot, a large mixing bowl, a large skillet, and a microplane or box grater (for the parm).

Ingredients

• 4 oz (2 servings) penne or any medium pasta

• 2 large red or yellow bell peppers

• 1-2 cups chopped lacinato kale

• 1/2 cup basil leaves, packed

• 1 cup cherry tomatoes

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 3 cloves garlic, grated or 1 teaspoon garlic paste

• 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes

• 2 tablespoons cold butter

• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

• 1/2 tablespoon honey

• 2 oz freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

Instructions

1. Fill the medium to large pot 2/3 of the way full with cold water. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and set to boil on high heat. Once boiling, cook pasta according to box instructions, until fully cooked (2 minutes past al dente). Reserve a cup of pasta water before draining it. Drizzle cooked pasta with some olive oil and set it aside in the same, now drained, pot it was cooking in.

2. Place the large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and tomatoes. Let the tomatoes sear and blister on all sides, shaking every 3-5 minutes. Let it burn!!!!

3. While the pasta boils and the tomatoes blister, slice the bell peppers into thin, 2-inch pieces and set aside in the large mixing bowl. Chop the kale into shreds and set aside.

4. Once the tomatoes begin to burst, add the garlic, chili flakes, and a pinch of salt and black pepper to the same skillet. Stir and increase the heat to high so the tomato juices simmer with the garlic. Add the shredded kale, pasta, and 1/2 cup of the pasta water, or just a splash of it. Stir until most of the liquid has reduced, about 5 minutes.

5. Transfer everything from the skillet into the large mixing bowl with the chopped peppers. Add the cold butter, balsamic vinegar, and honey. Rip the fresh basil leaves into the pasta salad. Stir everything together until the butter has melted.

6. Set the whole mixing bowl in the fridge or counter to cool off for 15 minutes, before adding the parmesan to the pasta and stirring again. Serve or eat from the big bowl itself, but with more parm, and enjoy!