Pasta with arugula & lemon pesto and cherry tomatoes

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PRESENTATION

Today we are preparing a dish that’s just bursting with flavor and color, a combination of completely different tastes and fragrances coming together to create a truly special balance that only bow tie pasta with arugula & lemon pesto and cherry tomatoes can provide. It starts out with the slightly bitter taste of the arugula, but before you know it, the freshness of the lemon will come through to awaken your taste buds ready for the next, altogether sweeter encounter in the form of the cherry tomatoes. Great for a dinner with friends or for lunch in the office, and a perfect dish to serve hot, but even better served cold. The ideal treat on a hot day! 

Check out our variations of pesto:

INGREDIENTS

Wholegrain bow tie pasta 0.75 lb (320 g)
For the confit cherry tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes 0.66 lb (300 g)
Fine salt to taste
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Sugar 1 tsp
For the pesto sauce
Arugula 6.75 oz (190 g)
Lemon juice 1
Extra virgin olive oil ½ cup (100 g)
Pine nuts 1.5 oz (40 g)
Parmigiano Reggiano PDO cheese ⅓ cup (40 g)
Fine salt to taste
To garnish
Almond flakes ¼ cup (25 g)
Lemon peel to taste
Preparation

How to prepare Pasta with arugula & lemon pesto and cherry tomatoes

To make your pasta with arugula & lemon pesto and cherry tomatoes, start with the tomatoes. Wash them, cut them in half 1, and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper 2 with the cut side facing upwards. Season with salt and sprinkle with the sugar 3.

Next, drizzle them with extra virgin olive oil 4 and bake in a convection oven preheated to 250°F (120°C) for around 2 hours. Once the tomatoes are cooked and shriveled, remove them from the oven 5. Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling water, salted to taste 6. Drain the pasta, transfer to a bowl, drizzle with a little oil and leave to cool. 

Place the flaked almonds on a baking pan 7 and toast them in a conventional oven at 390°F (200°C) for a few minutes until golden brown 8. Meanwhile, start preparing the pesto. Place the arugula in a food processor and add the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese 9.

Next, add the pine nuts 10, a pinch of salt, and the lemon juice 11, and pulse to blend everything together gradually, adding the oil a little at a time 12

This will create your pesto 13 for dressing the bow tie pasta 14. Plate up and garnish each dish with the confit cherry tomatoes 15

flaked almonds 16, and some lemon peel 17. Your pasta with arugula & lemon pesto and cherry tomatoes is ready to enjoy 18

Storage

You can store your bow tie pasta with arugula & lemon pesto and confit cherry tomatoes in the refrigerator for up to a day. If you prefer, you can prepare both the pesto and the cherry tomatoes in advance and store them in the refrigerator. 

Tips

Have you fallen in love with this pesto? Why not use it to dress a potato salad or spread it on a slice of toasted bread!