spinach pesto bowtie salad

happy thursday! back to work for me, so long to my sweet summer off!

we love pesto and especially love this pasta salad. we would always get it at cucina in salt lake city, and we even served it at our wedding because we both love it so much. i took it to a party with friends last week and it was a hit, so i thought i'd share this simple but delicious recipe. i didn't put exact amounts because you can easily eyeball it and adjust ingredients.

spinach pesto bowtie salad

ingredients:

• one box bow tie pasta, cooked al dente
• one bag of spinach
• one jar of pesto
• craisins
• parmesan cheese {grated}
• olive oil

begin by cooking your bow tie pasta al dente. make sure they don't get too soft and overcooked. once they are cooked, put them in a strainer and rinse with cold water. let pasta cool.

break up spinach into smaller pieces, and add to a large bowl. once pasta is cool, add it to the bowl too. drizzle/spray with olive oil. be careful not to add too much and douse it! add the whole jar of pesto, so that it covers the pasta but is not too overpowering. stir everything together and add a dash of garlic salt.

add your spinach and the whole jar of pesto.
stir all together and sprinkle with some parmesan cheese. 

this salad is flexible! you can experiment and add more or less depending on your tastes. i usually let it sit for a little bit before serving, so that the flavors really come together.

keep it in the fridge and eat it fresh or later on. enjoy!

xo