Pasta salad

Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 25 min

Difficulty level: easy
Source: allrecipes.comwith certain alteration
Serves: 2 people

Ingredients:

Pasta (penne/bow tie/rotini): 3 cups

Celery: 4 stalks, finely chopped

Spinach: about 20 leaves

1/2 of 1 big cucumber, julienne cut

Tomato: 1 medium size, diced

Bell pepper: 1/2, julienne cut

Olive oil: 1 tblsp to saute & 2-3 tblsp for dressing

Balsamic vinegar: few drops

Dried basil: to garnish

Salt, pepper, lemon juice: per taste

Croutons: as much as you like

(optional) Cashews: 4-5 roughly chopped

Procedure:

Boil water with a little salt. Add pasta & cook till al dente. Drain & keep aside. Toss the pasta with a little olive oil to avoid sticking. In a wok, add a little olive oil, saute celery, bell pepper & spinach on high heat for a couple of minutes till just soft but crunchy. In a salad bowl, toss in the pasta add the sauteed veggies; mix in tomato and cucumber; dress with dried basil leaves salt pepper and lemon juice. Garnish with croutons and cashews.