Do you need a dish to bring to a summer potluck? Are you looking for something to use up all that basil growing in your garden or flower boxes? Do you have a bunch of cherry tomatoes that you want to finish off before going on a last-minute summer weekend trip? I recently made this delicious summer pasta dish for a family dinner. It’s such a quick and delicious hit!

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 lb. rotini pasta (or whatever pasta you prefer) If you want to get more protein try the yellow box of pasta by Barilla.

3 cups fresh basil

3 Tablespoons pine nuts

3 cloves garlic

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup olive oil

1 pint cherry tomatoes

To make:

1. Cook the pasta as directed on the box in boiling water.

2. While the pasta is cooking, put the basil, pine nuts, garlic, and Parmesan cheese in the food processor and pulse it a few times.

3. Then while the processor is running add the olive oil through the chute in a stream. Process a few seconds until well-blended.

4. When the pasta is done, drain it from the boiling water. Place the pasta in a bowl and then toss it with all of the pesto sauce.

5. Slice the cherry tomatoes and then place them on top of the pasta.

6. Enjoy!

NB. I frequently make the pesto sauce (no pasta or tomatoes) ahead of time and keep it in the frig in an airtight ziplock bag. You could also freeze the sauce for up to three months. Then when you want to make the dish just cook the pasta, add the sauce and tomatoes.