Zuchinni & Almond Pasta Salad

What are you doing for the labor day weekend? Ryan and I are going to have a staycation for once since we’ve been doing so much traveling and have more to come this month. I’m really looking forward to kicking back and cozying up with a good book. If you’ll be running around, here’s a good pasta salad to take with you.

Zuchinni & Almond Pasta Salad
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

Ingredients

• 2-3 zucchinis, halved lenthwise and very thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup lemon, garlic and oregano feta cheese
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1 box whole wheat pasta
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• Juice of one lemon
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup of basil, thinly slivered
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation Instructions

Toss zucchini slices with one teaspoon salt in a large colander set over a bowl or in sink. Let drain 20 minutes. If they taste too salty to you, rinse and drain them again (I didn’t have this problem  and actually added more salt). Boil the water for the pasta and while you wait, place the almonds on a pan in a 300 degree oven for 8 minutes to toast. Whisk together olive oil and lemon juice, seasoning generously with one teaspoon red pepper flakes, black pepper and salt to taste. Add the red onion and basil to marinate.

When your pasta is cooked, drain and toss it together with zucchini, feta, almonds, and dressing. You can eat it while it’s still warm or cold as a pasta salad the next day. If you’re Ryan, add some pan-fried chicken.