Meow Recipes: July 2020

Thursday, July 23, 2020

Lemon Herb Pasta Salad with Marinated Chickpeas

This recipe is sponsored by DeLallo

Consider this your weekly (daily?) reminder that really delicious food does not need to be complicated.

The basics – garlic, lemon, herbs, olive oil – are prepared to deliver. They are usually somewhere in the pantry or fridge, and they are always going to serve us well.

I give you Exhibit A: The Lemon Herb Pasta Salad with Marinated Chickpeas which involves deliciously squishy pasta coated in a silky “sauce” of olive oil and lemon juice, tossed with chickpeas that have been soaking in a flavor bath of fresh garlic and herbs and such, and finished with more herbs and lots of salt and pepper and some Parmesan cheese. Is it good warm? Is it good cold? Is it good as a side or a main or a… snack? The answer to all of the above is Y-E-S.

This is all you need:

Chewy, tender, appropriately noodley pasta
Hearty little chickpeas
Olive oil
Lemon juice
Basil and parsley
GARRRRLIC
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Thank you for understanding the amount of effort I’m prepared to give right now (minimal) and the delicious results I am expecting in return (major).

This served me so right on both levels.

“Marinated chickpeas” is how you make it FEEL fancy, but all it really is is giving a shot of big garlic / lemon / herb flavor into the whole thing with very little effort.

First, grab your pantry ingredients. DeLallo all the way.

We’re working with fewer ingredients here, so QUALITY MATTERS! Phenomenally textured authentic Italian pasta, good solid olive oil that actually, um, tastes like olive oil, and a can of never-fails-you chickpeas, and you’re basically halfway there.

The pasta gets cooked.

The chickpeas get… marinated. Overnight would be ideal, but lol. If you are short on time, I promise your mouth will still be happy with the work that’s been done. Just let the chickpeas hang out with all their flavors while you prep the rest. If you are bold, give them a little mashing with a fork so they soak up some extra flavor.

Toss with herbs and cheese and salt and pepper and lemon zest and the other good things you like….

And YOU’RE EATING THIS YUMMY LUNCH.

Or second lunch. Or bedtime snack.

Lemon Herb Pasta Salad with Marinated Chickpeas – it is there for you this week. THERE. FOR. YOU.

Lemon Herb Pasta Salad with Marinated Chickpeas

Author: Lindsay
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Print Recipe

Description

A super fresh, super summery Lemon Herb Pasta Salad! Packed with tangy marinated chickpeas, chewy pasta, lots of herbs and garlic, lemon juice and olive oil, and a handful of parmesan to top it off.

Ingredients

Marinated Chickpeas

1 14 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (DeLallo)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, grated or crushed into a paste
a generous squeeze of lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt

Pasta

8 ounces farfalle pasta (DeLallo)
1/4 cup olive oil (as needed) (DeLallo)
juice and zest of one lemon
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley and basil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Video

Prepare marinated chickpeas by combining everything together in a shallow bowl. For the best flavor, allow this to marinate for 8 hours or overnight. But hey, if you don’t have the time, just let it all hang out while you prep the rest of the pasta. It’s all good.
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain. While pasta is hot, toss with marinated chickpeas and allow to cool slightly.
Add more olive oil (as needed). Add lemon juice and zest and herbs. Season with salt and pepper. Add in Parmesan cheese last so it doesn’t completely melt. Serve warm, cold, or room temp with extra lemon, Parmesan, and herbs as needed!

Equipment

Notes

The equipment section above contains affiliate links to products we use and love!

Category: Lunch
Method: Toss
Cuisine: American

Keywords: pasta salad, lemon herb, chickpeas, marinated chickpeas, DeLallo, summer salad, herb salad

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Thank you to DeLallo for sponsoring this post!

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Monday, July 20, 2020

Cucumber Agua Fresca

This is a summery cucumber agua fresca, and it is the only summer drink I ever want to drink in the summer from now until… the end of summer.

(Long live summer.)

I recently learned about agua fresca and I won’t ever be the same.

Some things I learned:

An agua fresca is a light, non-alcoholic drink.
The translation literally means “fresh water” or “cool water.”
It’s popular in Mexico, Central America, and the US.
It’s usually made with fruits, flowers, seeds, etc. that are blended with sugar and water.
IT’S REALLY MY FAVORITE THING EVER RIGHT NOW.

Here’s my current favorite version: cucumber, lime, mint, lemongrass (had some left over from this salad, remember?), sugar and honey.

What happens now is you blend it.

And it’s going to get a bit chunky – no worries. You’re just going to pour it through a strainer to remove your pulp, so all you’re left with is the extremely potent, lightly sweet, totally refreshing good stuff.

Which will then be watered down further (to your liking!) and poured over ice to make the best thing you’ve sipped on all summer.

Cucumber agua fresca in a pitcher with ice-filled glasses.

The color is gorgeous and the flavor is like a sweet and cooling waterfall for your mouth with just a slight bite from the lime because, yes, we put the whole lime in there.

I could actually drink a full pitcher of this stuff. It’s AMAZING.

This particular version of agua fresca was inspired by A Spicy Perspective’s cucumber ginger mint agua fresca! Here’s a post with 4 ways to do cucumber agua frescas from Muy Delish. You can learn more about agua fresca here.