Spring Garden Pasta Salad
Published April 1, 2025
Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Prep Time
- 20 minutes
- Cook Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
Salt
1 pound rigatoni
Extra-virgin olive oil
3 shallots, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 small zucchini, diced
1 cup snap peas, strings removed
½ cup green peas (see Tip)
1 small bunch Lacinato kale or Swiss chard, stems and leaves separated, both finely sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 lemon, preferably Meyer
Parmesan or Manchego cheese or both, for serving
Freshly ground black pepper
Fresh mint leaves, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 to 6 servings)
70 grams carbs; 1 milligram cholesterol; 379 calories; 3 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 5 grams fat; 7 grams fiber; 604 milligrams sodium; 14 grams protein; 8 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season generously with salt. Add the rigatoni and cook according to the package’s directions.
- Step 2
While the pasta cooks, heat a large skillet over medium-high and add enough oil to coat the bottom. Add the shallots and garlic, season with salt and cook, stirring often, until just starting to soften, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Step 3
Add the zucchini, snap peas, green peas and kale stems to the skillet. Season with salt and cook, stirring often, just until crisp-tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the kale leaves, season with salt and stir just until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Step 4
Reserve ½ cup pasta cooking water and drain the pasta. Transfer to a large bowl and drizzle with oil to lightly coat. If the pasta seems dry, add a splash of pasta water.
- Step 5
Scrape everything from the skillet over the pasta and add the tomatoes. Zest the lemon on top, then squeeze in juice from half the lemon and stir to evenly coat. Toss, taste and add more lemon juice, salt, olive oil and pasta water to taste.
- Step 6
Finely grate cheese and grind pepper all over. Tear the mint and scatter it on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Frozen peas work well here and don’t need to be thawed before they’re added to the pan. If you have fresh English peas, boil them in salted water until bright green and crisp tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain well, rinse under cold water and drain again before adding to the sauté.
Private Notes
Comments
How can the recipe have "too much salt" when it never instructs you to add any specific amount? Pasta water is *always* salted, and this is after all a pasta salad, but the amount of salt you use in the pasta-cooking step is entirely up to you. The recipe then uses the phrase "season with salt" twice -- again, that means whatever you want it to; no one is pouring in salt except the cook her/himself. At the end, we're instructed to adjust various ingredients, including salt, "to taste."
Made this recipe as written (regular lemon and kale). This recipe is a keeper! We loved it and will add it to our summer rotation. This would also be a great dish for a bbq or potluck.
This is pretty bland. Needed a lot more salt/cheese and red pepper for interest/taste. It’s an okay pantry recipe for cleaning out the fridge but I def would not go out of my way to purchase the ingredients to make this.
I made as is and like many other reviewers, I also found this salad very boring and flavorless. The only positive was the fresh asparagus from the garden, but then I was disappointed to have wasted it on this recipe.
tomatoes aren't a spring veg! wish the recipes were more seasonally tuned in, I'm having a hard time with the curation.
This is superb. Then again, the Susans and Sarahs of the world are usually quick to say needlessly negative things about Meghan’s work.