Ingredients
- 8 ounces gemelli pasta
- ¾ cup olive oil, divided
- 1 cup basil, packed
- ½ cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 2 medium yellow squash, cubed
- 16 ounces green beans, ends trimmed, sliced in 2-inch pieces
- basil leaves, for garnish
Directions
- In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook pasta, 7-8 minutes. Strain the pasta and cool completely under running water. Coat the pasta with 2 tablespoons oil and reserve for later.
- In a high-speed blender, blend the basil, walnuts, lemon juice, zest, and cayenne on high speed. In a steady stream, add ½ cup oil. Season the pesto with salt and pepper.
- In a medium bowl, toss the squash with remaining oil and season with salt and pepper.
- In a preheated square cast iron grill pan, add the squash and grill until soft, 6-8 minutes. Allow the squash to get good grill marks, do not over mix the squash. Mix in the green beans and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes.
- Mix the pasta and grilled vegetables then season to taste with the pesto. Transfer to a serving platter and garnish with basil leaves.