Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 10 minutes | Total time: 20 minutes | Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
12 oz. dried pasta
2 cups baby spinach
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 bag 10-oz frozen peas (1 1/2 cups), defrosted
1 can 15.5 oz chick peas (1 1/2 cups), rinsed and drained
½ cup sunflower seeds
1 small shallot sliced thin (1/4 cup)
1 cup green tahini sauce
To make your own sauce
½ cup tahini
½ cup lime juice
1 cup packed fresh parsley thick stems removed
¼ cup olive oil yes, you can sub water
2 jalapenos
4 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
Directions
1) Make Green Tahini Sauce. You can do this up to 5 days in advance. The easy recipe can be found here and made in just 5 minutes. Put all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth.
2) Bring 3 quarts water to a boil. Stir in pasta. Cooking on high heat, stirring frequently. Cook pasta according to the directions on the box. Do not rinse pasta after it's cooked.
3) While pasta is cooking, prepare remaining ingredients. Thinly slice shallot and halve the tomatoes. Make the dressing if you haven’t already.
4) Before draining pasta, set aside 1/2 cup cooking water. Then drain, but do not rinse.
5) Combine pasta, sauce, spinach, peas, chick peas, sunflower seeds and shallots. Mix well. It’s ok if the spinach gets a bit wilted. If sauce is too thick to distribute evenly, add set aside pasta water 1-2 Tablespoons at a time.
6) Serve warm or room temp. Pasta salad will stay good in the fridge for up to 5 days. Bring to room temp before eating for best taste.
