Bow Tie Pasta With Cherry Tomatoes Capers And Basil Recipes

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Stir in the bow ties and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and run it under cold water just until it stops steaming. Bounce the pasta around to get rid of as much water as you can.
• Dump the pasta into a large serving bowl. Stir in the pesto until the pasta is coated. Toss in the cherry tomatoes and the crumbled feta. Taste the salad and season it as you like with salt and pepper. You can make the salad up to about 1 hour before you serve it. Check out the salt and pepper just before you serve the salad. If it's looking a little dry, add some olive oil and stir it around.
• Pesto:
• 5 big handfuls basil leaves (about 2 hefty bunches)
• 1/2 cup pine nuts or 3/4 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
• Juice of 1 small lemon
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• Kosher salt
• About 20 grinds freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Place all ingredients with 1/2 cup of the oil in a blender and blend. Gradually drizzle in the remaining 1/4 cup of oil until pesto is thick and smooth.
• Yield: about 1 1/2 cups

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and place in ice water until cool.
• Toss pasta with onion, feta, balsamic, olive oil and tomato. Serve immediately or chill 1 to 2 hours in refrigerator.

Steps:

• Make pesto: In a small mixing bowl, combine basil, pine nuts, and 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• In a small bowl, blanch sun dried tomatoes for 30 seconds in boiling water. Drain well, and slice tomatoes into small pieces.
• In a large skillet over a medium heat, saute garlic in 1/8 cup olive oil. Simmer for 1 minute being very careful not to brown the garlic. Stir in the mushrooms and let them saute until tender. Add the pesto, salt, cayenne, and sun dried tomatoes. Reduce heat to low and let the mixture simmer.
• Bring a large pot of salted water and pasta to a boil. Let pasta cook until al dente, drain well.
• In a large mixing bowl, toss pasta and sauce until the pasta is well coated.

Steps:

• 1. Mix the tomatoes, basil, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and olive oil in a glass bowl or casserole dish. cover and refrigerate 4 hours or longer.
• 2. Remove the tomato mixure and let it come to room temperature.
• 3. Mix the hot bow ties with the feta cheese and then toss with the tomato mixture. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• Rinse capers in a sieve and transfer to a small bowl. Cover capers with water by about 2 inches and soak 30 minutes. Drain, then repeat soaking. Drain and rinse capers, then squeeze dry and coarsely chop.
• Cook onion, cut sides down, and garlic in oil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Add capers and cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Remove and discard garlic and onion. Add canned and cherry tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Stir in mint and pepper, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, 1 1/2 hours.
• Shortly before sauce is done, cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Reserve about 1 cup cooking water, then drain pasta. Add pasta to sauce and cook over high heat, tossing, 10 to 15 seconds. If pasta seems dry, add a few tablespoons reserved cooking water.
• *Available at some specialty foods shops and chefshop.com.

Steps:

• Combine first 10 ingredients in a large bowl, and toss well. Sprinkle vinegar over each serving, if desired.

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil. Cook the bow-tie pasta at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 12 minutes; drain.
• Quickly rinse the cooked pasta in cold water to stop it from continuing to cook; drain.
• Mix the cooled pasta, broccoli, tomatoes, sliced green onions, celery, red bell pepper, and green bell pepper in a large bowl.
• Gently stir the salad dressing, Parmesan cheese, sugar, basil, and salt in a bowl until evenly mixed.
• Pour the salad dressing mixture over the pasta mixture; gently toss to coat evenly.
• Refrigerate 3 hours to overnight before serving.