Now, if this meal doesn’t bring spring right to your doorstep, I don’t know what will!
Lemon-basil pasta has been a favorite dish of LeeLee’s and mine for more than a decade now. Once, in a galaxy far far away, TGI Fridays actually served a dish very similar to this on their summertime menu, and we both fell completely in love with it back when we lived in Tallahassee. Then, just like that, it was gone, leaving us both bereft.
So imagine our delight when, a few years back, LeeLee perfected a recipe very much like our old restaurant favorite! Some olive oil, some vinegar (sometimes we use champagne vinegar, sometimes white balsamic, sometimes regular old balsamic), some salt and pepper, halved cherry tomatoes, minced basil, diced cheese (tonight we used Parrano), and, of course, plenty of lemon juice always blend together just perfectly and meld with the penne pasta with aplomb. It’s one of the quickest, easiest, and prettiest meals we make!
And it’s easy on the taste buds, as well. LeeLee and I each mowed down two helpings (and he went back for a third – but don’t tell him I told you!). And there’s still plenty left for our lunches tomorrow. We can eat in style, right at our desks!
:)