Vegetarian Summer Pasta Salad with Dill Vinaigrette

Summer, Gathered and Quietly Dressed

There is a particular kind of cooking that belongs entirely to warm weather — unhurried, abundant, and best made a little ahead of time. A pasta salad like this one asks almost nothing of you, only patience while it chills and the willingness to let a bright, herb-laced vinaigrette do its quiet work. It's the kind of dish that looks effortless on a table and somehow tastes even better the longer it rests. A gentle gathering of the season's best, held together by something simple and sharp.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pounds green beans
• 1/2 pounds small potatoes (a variety of red, purple, and gold are what I used)
• 8 ounces Alessi Organic Penne (or other Alessi pasta)
• 1 15oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 bunch radishes, stems trimmed and sliced in half
• 1/2 cups olives
• • Dressing • •
• 2 tablespoons Alessi White Wine Vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• dash of Alessi Sea Salt and Black Peppercorns
• 1/2 cups Alessi Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Instructions

1. Prepare an ice bath by combining water and ice in a large bowl. Set aside.
2. Bring a large stockpot full of salted water to a boil.
3. Add the green beans and cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until tender but crisp.
4. Use tongs to transfer the cooked beans into the ice bath and set aside.
5. Using that same boiling water, add the potatoes and let them boil for 12 to 15 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.
6. Drain and set aside.
7. Meanwhile, bring another stockpot of salted water to a boil.
8. Add pasta and cook according to the package directions.
9. Remove from heat and strain.
10. Transfer pasta to a large but shallow serving dish, making sure to pile the pasta a bit higher on one end.
11. Top with green beans, potatoes, chickpeas, tomatoes, radishes, and olives.
12. Alternatively, you can just toss all the ingredients together for a more traditional looking pasta salad.
13. In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, lemon juice, dill, salt, and pepper.
14. Slowly pour olive oil into the mixture while constantly whisking to emulsify the dressing.
15. Pour over the pasta salad.
16. Cover and let chill in the fridge for at least a half an hour before serving to let flavors develop.