Tuna Salad Topped Summer Veggie Pasta

 

I would just like to formally say "Farewell to Summer."

Adios!

Sayonara!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Summertime is great for many things. I especially enjoy sandy beaches, strung with naked lady beach towels, the scent of coconut tanning oil being rubbed in layer over layer, 65 year old men jogging in Speedos, and of course the lady in the bright blue floral swimsuit next to me that just happened to have eaten an entire whale for lunch, consequently blocking all sunshine from me. Ahh, summer in Virginia Beach. 

Other fun memories would be shoving away those stuffy sweaters, turning off the oven and firing up the grill, late nights in the backyard playing with friends and trying to catch lightning bugs. And of course, Otter Pops!

But as great as Summer is, we eventually come to the realization that it also, well... bites! The hot sticky weather, the unrelenting rain storms, and those pesky mosquitoes! All which keep us calling for the next season. Fall, baby, Fall. At least, until we get so sick of hot soups and UGG's that we start screaming for warm weather! We actually start booking flights to like the equator, just so that we can defrost. It's a vicious cycle, that I am fully embracing!

Over the next few days, I will share my the last few summer recipes of my repitoire in tribute to the "End of Summer."

Tuna Salad Topped Summer Veggie Pasta

Serves: 4

Ingredients: 

For the Tuna Salad:

2 cans of White Albacore Tuna,drained

2 tbsp Mayo, to taste

1/2 tsp Mustard, to taste

Salt and Pepper

Sweet Relish, to taste

Dash of Cayenne Pepper

Finely Chopped Red Pepper, Zucchini and Onion

For the Veggie Pasta:

1 Zucchini Squash, halved and chopped

2-3 Roma Tomatoes, quartered

1 Red Bell Pepper, cut into 1/2 inch strips

12 oz Linguine, cooked and drained

1/2 stick of Butter
1/2 cup of Heavy Cream
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 cup Parmesan Cheese, divided

Directions:

 For the Tuna Salad:

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix well. Refrigerate.

 For the Pasta:

Cook the noodles according to directions on package. 

In a large skillet, heat olive oil and saute the veggies. Season with salt and pepper.

In a small saucepan heat the butter and heavy cream, mix well. salt and pepper, according to taste. Add 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese, mix well. Add the other 1/2 cup to a serving bowl.

Drain pasta, add to serving dish with cheese. Add sauteed veggies and toss to coat. 

Now, you have 2 options. You can allow this to chill and have a cold pasta or serve warm. Either way is yummy. I really enjoyed the contrast of the cool tuna salad with the warm cheesy noodles. But its also very tasty chilled. Either way, top with a generous scoop of tuna salad. Enjoy!