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My name is Beth ‘Binky” Neels from Binky’s Culinary Carnival! I live in Upstate NY, USA, near the waters of beautiful Lake Onatio on a 28 acre farm with my husband and 2 sons. I’m delighted to be doing a guest post for Marlee today! This Grilled Garlic Shrimp Pasta Salad with Cherries, String Beans and Pesto is perfect for all your summer get-togethers!

I love summer salads!  They are so easy and delicious! This one is a perfect dinner or lunch salad, too! The dressing is a beautiful pesto made with garlic scapes so that you literally get all 5 servings of fruits and vegetables your daily intake requires in one delicious meal! Of course, it is also a great side salad for all your BBQ’s and picnics this summer, too! To see some other delicious salads, like my popular BLT Pasta Salad from my blog head over here!

These small grilled shrimp will take only a moment to grill one each side. Don’t overcook them or they will become tough and rubbery! Cool them down in the refrigerator immediately so that you don’t have a lot of “hold over cooking”.

The garlic scape pesto could not be easier, either! Use fresh, garlic scapes, if you can find them, in the spring! They are usually available in June in my area at the farmer’s markets. If you can’t find garlic scapes, or want to do the pesto at different times of the year, you can make a traditional pesto and just add a few more cloves of garlic. The garlic flavor is the key for this salad.

Your choice of pasta can be used for this dish, too. Whatever you have in your pantry will work fine.

I hope you all enjoyed this salad recipe! Thank you to Marlee and I hope you have a great, restful vacation! Stop by Binky’s Culinary Carnival and check out  for lots of other great recipes! Have fun cooking!

Grilled Shrimp Pasta Salad with Cherries and Garlic Scape Pesto

Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

This is such and easy recipe! Fresh and delicious!

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Table of Contents

Ingredients

• 1 lb pasta, your favorite shape
• 1 lb small shrimp
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 cup cherries, halved
• 1 pint each green beans and yellow beans
• 4 tbsp fresh chives, chopped
• 1-1.5 cup pesto, any flavor you like but one with extra garlic is best
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp olive oil, divided

Instructions

1. Boil pasta according to package directions. Drain when done and toss with a bit of olive oil so the pasta doesn't stick together. Cool to room temperature or refrigerate until cool.
2. Peel and devein shrimp. Marinate the shrimp in the olive oil and garlic for about 20 minutes. Cook shrimp on a hot grill for a minute ore so, until pink on the bottom. Flip and grill the other side. Cool to room temperature.
3. Blanche green and yellow beans for only about 3-4 minutes, depending on the size. You want them to be a bit crunchy. Bathe in an ice bath to stop cooking.
4. Add cherries, beans, chives pesto and the salt and pepper, to the pasta and toss well. Serve either room temperature or cold.

Notes

Great for a side salad or for a dinner salad.

Nutrition Information

Yield 8 Serving Size ounces
Amount Per ServingCalories 433 Saturated Fat 2g Cholesterol 145mg Sodium 737mg Carbohydrates 52g Fiber 4g Sugar 6g Protein 21g