Pasta Primavera with Cherry Tomato Pesto

Spring fever has officially hit the low country with temperatures in the high 70’s and now 80's this past week! The warm temperatures, longer days (and swim suit season right around the corner) I was craving some pasta with fresh spring vegetables or, Pasta Primavera - ironically, meaning "Spring Pasta" in Italian. There is not really an official recipe for this dish. I’ve made it a thousand times- a thousand different ways. I start with whatever looks fresh at the store or in some cases whatever I have in the fridge and it always comes out delicious. The very first thing was to start my pasta pot filled 2/3 of the way with water to boil. I leave the lid on and just let it boil away until I’m ready for it. (If it goes too long, you’ll need to add more water because it evaporates.) Next I prepped my fresh herbs and veggies: 1 bunch of asparagus- ends removed and sliced into 1 inch pieces 1 container of cherry/grape tomatoes- sliced into halves 3 small-medium yellow squash- sliced in half length-wise and then sliced 1 jar marinated artichoke hearts- roughly chopped 1 large shallot, thinly sliced 5 cloves of garlic, minced 1 cup fresh basil- sliced into chiffonade 1 handful fresh parsley- chopped In a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, I sautéed the asparagus and squash in a little bit of olive oil until crisp tender but cooked through. I then transferred them it to a dish and set aside. In the same skillet over medium high heat I added another three tablespoons of olive oil and three tablespoons of butter. As soon as the butter melted I added the shallot, garlic and cherry tomatoes and tossed it all together. I turned the heat down to medium and let it cook for 5-8 minutes until the tomatoes were melting into a sauce and the garlic and shallots had softened. I let this cool a quick minute while I added one box of whole wheat penne pasta to the boiling water along with a generous sprinkle of kosher salt. I set the timer one minute less than the package called for to ensure that the pasta cooked to perfectly al dente. Next I tossed the tomato mixture into the food processor along with ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese, 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, and my basil and parsley. I pulsed the blade until it was all blended together- resembling a pesto-like sauce. At this point my pasta was finished. I drained it and then added it back to the pasta pot- adding the asparagus, squash, marinated artichoke hearts and the tomato-pesto-sauce. I tossed it all together and served with some additional grated parmesan cheese along side. The sauce was much lighter than a traditional pesto but still very flavorful. The vinegar and the artichokes added a little zip to the whole thing. You could easily serve this at room temperature or even as a pasta salad. It would also be delicious with the addition of some grilled chicken or shrimp. It would serve 4-6 people as a main course however we enjoyed eating the leftovers too!