A Fresh (Pasta) Salad

I love all the fresh produce you can get during this time of the year. It makes me want to eat a little lighter and create no-fuss meals with fresh ingredients!

So, last week when I was at Trader Joe's I saw a huge box of fresh basil for a really great deal! Right next to it I saw this box of small cherry tomatoes, so then obviously the very next thing that came to my mind was fresh mozzarella...-ella, -ella, eh! ;)

These three fresh ingredients had me super excited. So I came home and decided to make a super simple salad. Even for someone like me, who for the longest time could not make a meal without first looking up the recipe, this was is a no brianer! 

I simply cut the cherry tomatoes and mini-fresh mozzarella balls in halves and julienned the basil leaves. Next I made a super simple dressing by just eye balling 1/4 cup of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. To add some more flavor, I added 1 clove of minced garlic and good amount of salt and pepper and just whisk it all together. Toss it with the tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella and you're all done! Super, simple right?! You can adjust all the ingredients to your liking. It's so delicious because the freshness of the ingredients just speak for themselves. 

But I didn't stop there..I am a crab loving, girl after all (hence, all the running). So I added some cold pasta to the salad and turned it from a side dish into a main dish. Technically this was no longer "light", but it was still considered "healthy" in my book without any high calorie sauce or cheese. I noticed, I had a cucumber and some green onions in the fridge, so... why not?! I added them to the mix as well. All fresh ingredients worked perfectly with the cold pasta. You could even use the blender and mix basil into the dressing to make a pesto sauce, but I was too hungry and lazy! 

On a side note... I also picked up this mini-rose plant from Trader Joe's the same day. Looks, my new hobby of starting a garden on my patio continues. Aren't they just beautiful?!

Back to the salad.... If you are looking for a perfect cold salad dish to take on your next picnic, this would definitely be amazing! Speaking of picnics... the weather has been amazing lately, but unfortunately I've been stuck indoors studying for my exam. Just five more days to go... wish me luck! :)

What are you cooking up this weekend?