no. 112: WHOLE lemon pesto pasta salad 🍋

Plus, my new favorite BIG ASS BOWL!

I went to lunch at Sqirl this week and had the most amazing, delightfully jiggly, soft-as-a-cloud quiche. I can’t stop thinking about it. I love quiche so much, mainly because I am a crust enthusiast. I also happen to think that it’s the most elegant way to enjoy eggs. Plus, I love when quiches are served with a dainty, leafy, barely-dressed salad.

In addition to my luxurious quiche, I also relaxed at a friend’s pool and enjoyed a fresh Bub and Grandma’s baguette with French butter and a Fishwife anchovy. Life is really about the simple moments of SPLENDOR! I had a few of those this week, and for that I am grateful.

Here’s a fun, not-so-lil’ product you should know about!

Crow Canyon Splatter Benson Basin

The most important investment that I made in my private cheffing business is my huge metal mixing bowls. I usually keep them in the trunk of my car because you just NEVER know when you’ll need a 30 quart mixing bowl. When I saw that Crow Canyon made these HUGE mixing bowls (32 quarts!!!), I knew I needed them in my life.

I genuinely love Crow Canyon’s products because they’re functional AND stylish. I have a bunch of their sheet trays and smaller bowls, and they’re great to bring on camping trips because they’re durable and easy to clean (and let’s be real, they look cute in my culinary camping content).

As much as I love my big metal mixing bowls, they are not very aesthetic. I have used my metal mixing bowls as an ice bucket for beverages, but now I will use my Crow Canyon bowls because they’re way cuter!! That splatter design just speaks to me in ways I can’t fully articulate.

Whole Lemon Pesto Pasta Salad

Serves: 6-8

Active time: 20 minutes

Total time: 30 minutes

I found myself with some arugula that was on its way out, so I decided to use it to make some pesto. Hopefully you all know this by now, but using the WHOLE lemon is one of my very specific kinks, so I decided to do that for this pesto.

Of course, you can use any green (spinach, kale, basil, parsley, or a mix of any/all) and any nut (walnut, pine nut, cashew, etc.), but I happen to think that the pepperiness of the arugula played nicely with the brightness of the lemon and toastiness of the almonds. Use what you have and what you like!

There is a lot of shocking going on in this recipe. You’ll need to blanch and shock the arugula in order to preserve the bright green color, and you’ll also need to shock the cooked pasta with cold water because that is going to prevent the pasta from overcooking. It also cools it down, since we’re making a cold pasta salad.

You’re also going to shock yourself and those around you by using the whole lemon. TRUST ME, it’s tasty. Use a small lemon, and if you see that the lemon is particularly pithy (you know when lemons have a 1/2-inch thick pith?), you may want to remove some pith to avoid it becoming bitter. If you’re whole lemon curious, go ahead and try my caramelized lemon orzo and my grilled zucchini with whole lemon vinaigrette.