I tend to hit a cooking slump during this time of the summer. It has been terribly hot the past few days and I glance over to look at the stove like it’s going to bite me if I turn it on. Instead of phoning it in though (literally, I considered phoning in a pizza), I’ve been trying to take this heat wave as a cooking challenge — can I create tasty treats that also keep me cool? That’s where this idea came in! I took the elements of a nice chilled antipasto plate and made them into dippable skewers, laced with some chilled provolone, tortellini, tomatoes and olives. I made my own pesto for the dipping sauce (I just throw in garlic, basil, pine nuts and olive oil and keep adding until the consistency looks right) — try Ina Garten’s recipe if you like to be exact with proportions! They chilled down in the fridge for a bit until they were ready to bring to a friend’s pool party and proved to be the perfect cool snack.
- 20 oz package of cheese tortellini, cooked
- 1 Cup of kalamata olives
- 1 Cup of cherry tomatoes
- 1 Cup of sharp provolone cheese, cubed
- 2 Tbsp of pine nuts, toasted
- 2-3 Tbsp of fresh basil, chopped
- Pesto for dipping
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Cook tortellini as directed, drain and cool in the fridge.
- Portion out olives, tomatoes, and cube provolone cheese.
- Thread skewers, alternating tortellini, olives, tomatoes, and provolone.
- Arrange finished skewers on a plate, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper.
- Garnish with toasted pine nuts and fresh chopped basil.
- Serve with pest for dipping.
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