Happy Monday!  What signifies summer more than outdoor grilling, fresh basil, garden tomatoes, and great family and friends to join and share?  This past weekend we hosted Mamma’s Zesty birthday celebration.  It was filled with grilled pork tenderloin topped with an apricot and apple chutney, bbq turkey and beef sliders, delicious salads, roasted vegetables, fresh bruschetta and of course a big birthday cake.

The dish I want to share with you today may just be my favorite pasta salad ever.  I was contemplating flavors and browsing a few recipes online when I came across this Jamie Oliver recipe and immediately knew this would be a hit.  I had all the ingredients on hand and I knew it would match the summer theme I was going for.  I did a couple of swaps including adding some creamy feta cheese and omitting the yellow grape tomatoes and olives.

Here is the Zesty adapted version.

Ingredients

• 310g/11oz fusili pasta
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 255g/9oz red cherry tomatoes
• 3-4 Tbsp. Feta cheese
• 2 Tbsp. fresh chives
• 1 handful of fresh basil
• ½ a Cucumber
• 4 Tbsp. white wine vinegar, or to taste
• 7 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Throw in the pasta and cloves of garlic, boil until al dente, drain and run under cold water to cool.
2. Put the garlic to one side to use for the dressing.
3. Put the pasta into a bowl.



4. Chop the tomatoes, chives, basil and cucumber into pieces about half the size of the pasta and add to the bowl.
5. Squash the garlic cloves out of their skins and mush in a pestle and mortar. Add the vinegar, oil and seasoning.



6. Drizzle this over the salad, adding a little more seasoning to taste.



7. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: For an even more condensed garlic flavor you can roast a whole head of garlic in the oven at 350 for about an hour.  Just cut the top of the head off, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and wrap with tin foil.

Here are a few snap shots at some of the eats from the weekend.  We served 14 people and had a blast.

Have a super Monday and I will talk to you on Wednesday morning.

Take care

zesty

Let’s kick this Monday off with a “lounge in front of the TV on a Saturday night comfort food dinner plate“.  That is exactly what we did on Saturday night.  It was a busy day over all with a birthday party,  house work and a trip to the stock car races only to be canceled due to rain.  So when we finally got the kids to bed we made a little snack for the couch.  This really is my kind of food.  Simple and easy yet tasty and wholesome.

It all started with some fresh rolls from the bakery and a thought of a tuna melt and fries.  Then it slightly adapted roasted potato wedges and my version of zesty sliders.

Ingredients

• 2 cans of Tuna ( drained)
• 1 Tbsp. mayonnaise
• 1 Tsp. Thyme
• 1 Cup shredded cheese
• 2 handful baby potatoes ( halved )
• 2 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 1 Tsp. Chili powder
• 1 Tsp. Garlic powder
• 1/2 Tsp. Celery salt
• 1 Tsp. Black pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line cookie sheet with parchment paper
2. Halve and slice potatoes and then rinse well and pat dry with paper towel.
3. In a large bowl add potatoes, olive oil, celery salt, garlic, black pepper and chili powder and mix well
4. Pour out on a cookie sheet and bake 20-25 minutes turning occasionally until golden brown





5. For the tuna, open and drain cans and dump tuna in a bowl and mix with mayo, thyme.
6. Split open the rolls, top with the tuna mixture, sprinkle with cheese and bake until cheese melts.



7. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: For a nice crunch in your tuna, add chopped up dill pickles or celery.  It adds a great dimension of texture and flavor.  I couldn’t because Mrs. zesty is not a fan at all.

Alright, a new week begins.  I have a funny feeling this week is going to fly by as it is a short week with Canada day celebrations taking place on Thursday and me taking Friday off.  What is your favorite type of slider? They seem to be all the rage now.  For me, I am leaning towards a nice juicy lamb slider will a cool topping of yogurt and mint.  Have a fantastic Monday and keep smiling.

Take care

zesty