Button mushrooms and bow-tie pasta combine with fresh from the garden vegetables for a delightful summer salad. 

 I remember my Mom fussing about in our kitchen and singing a silly little song about Buttons and Bows and telling me that although she liked the song it was stuck in her head and she was singing it out loud to lose it. I’m not sure how long it took to work its way out of her head, but I still remember some of the words and the tune. Somehow, when I picked up a package of bow-tie pasta recently, the song returned, but luckily it did not get stuck in my head!

A perfect salad pasta

Kids love farfalle pasta! It’s fun to eat, and you don’t have to be a kid to appreciate it. It’s perfect in a pasta salad. Hmm, all I needed was buttons and I could make a salad, so enter the button mushrooms! You could, of course, use any type of mushroom you like, but sometimes I think the common little white button mushroom is much overlooked!

Local produce first!

Now is the time to think of pasta salads stuffed with all the color and flavor of our local produce. Use what is fresh and best. In this case, the sugar snap peas were calling my name along with some beautiful cherry tomatoes. However, you can add any favorite vegetable here such as summer squash or zucchini, turnips, radishes, green beans, peppers, etc.

Flavor you way

You can also use any favorite herb, just adjust the amount according to the strength of the herb. If I were using tarragon for example, I’d more than halve this amount, but I might be tempted to put more parsley in.

Don’t forget to season well!

Buttons and Bows

• 10 ounces whole wheat or brown rice farfalle pasta
• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 20 ounces button mushrooms
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups Sugar snap peas, sliced
• 2 cups sliced cherry tomatoes
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
• Zest and juice of one large lemon
• 1 rounded tsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp. minced fresh mint or other herb of choice

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add a couple of tablespoons of salt and the pasta. Cook according to the package directions, then drain and place in a large mixing bowl. Do this ahead of time so the pasta can cool.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Prep the vegetables. Quarter the button mushrooms if they are large, or halve them if not. Dice the onion. Remove the strings from the peas and slice them into little rings. Slice the cherry tomatoes as well.

Once the oven is hot, drizzle the 2 tbsp. evenly on it and add the mushrooms and onion. Roast for 15 minutes, then turn them over and add the garlic and sugar snap peas. Continue cooking another 10 minutes or so, until everything is tender and starting to crisp. You should have a lot of garlic aroma just about now, but keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn. When ready, add to the pasta bowl, along with all the flavorful oil and garlic on the baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper.

While the vegetables are roasting, combine the ¼ cup of olive oil, the vinegar, zest and juice of the lemon, and the mustard. Whisk well, and add to the pasta and vegetables along with mint. Mix this all together and taste for seasoning.

Plate and enjoy! This is one of those recipes that tastes even better the next day!

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