Mixed Summer Bean & Basil Pasta Salad
Clock Image
Total: 30 mins
A summery jumble of seasonal broad beans, slinky flat beans, rich roasted cherry tomatoes and sweet red onion, tossed with chifferini pasta curls and drizzled in a zingy lemon and basil dressing, topped with crunchy toasted almond flakes.
This recipe is a:
312 kcal
(per portion)
Ingredients you'll need
From your kitchen
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • Sea salt
  • Freshly ground pepper
Step by step this way
  • 1.

    Preheat your oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 5. Fill a pan with water and add a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil. Meanwhile, trim the woody ends off the French beans and finely slice them. Pop the broad beans out of their pods.

  • 2.

    Halve the cherry tomatoes and pop them on a baking tray. Peel the red onion and slice it into thin wedges. Add the onion to the tomatoes. Drizzle over 1 tbsp olive oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Gently toss to coat in the oil and seasoning, then slide into the oven for 15-20 mins, till tender and a little browned at the edges.

  • 3.

    The water in the pan should be boiling by now. Add the fusilli and simmer for 5 mins. After 5 mins, add the broad beans and the French beans. Continue to simmer for 3-4 mins, till the beans and pasta are tender. When cooked, drain them and rinse with cold water to cool the beans and pasta down.

  • 4.

    Peel the garlic and grate it into a large bowl. Tear the basil leaves into small pieces and add them to the garlic. Grate in the lemon zest and squeeze in the juice from 1 half. Pour in 1 tbsp olive oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk together to make a dressing.

  • 5.

    Shake the pasta and beans dry and toss them into the bowl with the dressing. Add the roasted tomatoes and onion. Fold together, divide the salad between a couple of warm plates and serve.

  • Tip

    Love Your Leftovers:
    The salad will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge, stored in sealed tubs.

  • Tip

    Double trouble
    When you pop the broad beans out of their pods, they’ll look a little pale. This is because each bean is covered in a thin skin – this is edible, but on larger beans it can be a little bitter. If you’d like to double-pod the beans to take off the skins, plunge the shelled beans into a pan of boiling water for 2 mins, then drain and rinse with cold water. The skins will be loose and wrinkly, so you can pinch the ends pop the green beans out. If using this method, cook the shelled beans before you cook the pasta and flat beans, and double-pod them while the pasta simmers.

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