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Summary
Is anything smothered in pesto bad? I mean, really? Having nut allergies in the family, I substitute toasted sunflower seeds for the pine nuts, and it still turns out great.
Servings
10 servings
Prep Time
0 hours, 20 minutes
Cook Time
0 hours, 20 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 pounds small Yukon gold or red-skinned potatoes, quartered
- 1 pound green beans, cut into one-inch segments
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 bunches basil (about one ounce each)
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 6 Tablespoons (or more to taste) mild vinegar, such as champagne, white wine or a white balsamic
- 1/4 cup chopped green onions (scallions)
- 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted (or sunflower seeds if dealing with nut allergies)
- Parmesan cheese to taste
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 10 minutes. Add beans; cook four minutes longer. Drain well and let cool, then transfer potatoes and beans to a large bowl.
Meanwhile, discard the stems from the basil and wash and dry the leaves. Puree them in a food processor with garlic, drizzling in enough olive oil that it gets saucy. Season the pesto with salt and pepper. [Alternately, you can swap this step with one cup of prepared pesto, but seriously, I think you’ll be missing out.]
Toss the beans and potatoes with pesto. Stir in vinegar, green onions, pine nuts and season with salt, pepper and/or additional vinegar to taste. Finally, shave some wide flecks of Parmesan over the salad with a vegetable peeler.
Serve immediately, or make this up to two hours in advance. It can be stored at room temperature.
