Tortellini Summer Salad

Last week, as a thank you for granting her access to my Amazon Prime account, my darling older sister (there’s a darling younger version too -- see below) sent me a cookbook I had “saved for later” in my Amazon shopping cart. It’s called Super Natural Every Day, and I cooked my first recipe from it two nights ago. 


Me and my sea-stars on New Year's last year. 

Usually this is where I would put a tantalizing photo of the colorful and gorgeous salad. You would see the lemon-garlic-olive oil dressing shining off broccoli as green as a rainforest. You’d see an avocado so perfectly ripe and yellow-green that you’d write to Essie to request a nail polish of its color. The striking picture would have you feeling the texture of the ricotta-filled tortellini on your tongue, and you’d swear you could smell the mint exciting your senses. You’d pin it to Pinterest under your “Make This Tonight” board. 

Welp, no such picture exists. The lemony-minty, crunchy-creamy combination possessed me long enough that by the time I thought to snap a quick jpeg, the whole batch of the satiating summer salad was resting happily inside our tummies. So, you’ll just have to make it yourself!

Here’s the recipe. (Note: I got everything I needed at Trader Joe’s.) 

• 1 package (16 ounces) of ricotta-stuffed tortellini 
• 1/2 head of broccoli (I chose broccolini because it looked pretty), chopped into small trees
• 8-10 asparagus spears, chopped into 1-inch segments
• 1 clove garlic
• Pinch of sea salt
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Small handful of chopped almonds
• Small handful of chopped mint (cilantro works too, but I highly recommend mint)
• Small handful of sprouts
• 1 ripe avocado, chopped

Cheers to summer salads and pretty peonies!

Directions: 

Boil water and add tortellini. Cook according to instructions on package. About 30 seconds before the pasta is finished cooking, add the chopped broccoli and asparagus. Cook for 30 seconds; then drain and rinse with cold water, to stop cooking. 

In the meantime, to make the dressing, use the flat part of your knife to mash the garlic and salt into a paste. Whisk together the garlic paste, lemon juice and olive oil. 

When you're ready to serve the salad, toss the pasta, asparagus, broccoli and mint with about half of the dressing. Add more dressing to taste. Add the sprouts, nuts, and avocado. Toss gently and serve. Use the remaining dressing for leftovers...if you have any! 

If you like this salad as much as we did, you'll want to check out this sample menu of some of the recipes from Super Natural Every Day. Let me know which ones you try and like! The book is also $14 on Amazon. 

On a related note: who else is granting access to their Amazon Prime account in the interest of getting free gifts? You can bet I’m gonna leave a lot more items in my “Save for later” section. Thanks Brookie!