Q.E.D: Green Monstah Pasta Salad

There wasn't a lot I liked about living in Western Massachusetts. New England is devoid of many things: good drivers, sunshine, people who care if you live or die. It did, however, have two saving graces. The first was an overabundance of locally grown, sustainable organic produce. I could get all the local grass-fed beef, fiddleheads, and quinoa a person could want.

The other was NESN.

The New England Sports Network. You see, I was surrounded by baseball fanatics in graduate school. I was never a huge baseball fan (being from NC, no hometown teams to love), but being around knowledgeable fans changes one's perspective. My friend Aaron would explain elements of the game to me while we ate lunch and watched whatever games were being broadcast in the restaurants. A big gang of us took a weekend trip to Chicago where we watched the heated rivalry between the Cubs and the Cardinals in a Wrigleyville bar (with two people wearing Cardinals shirts, I might add). Baseball became associated with lots of my happy memories -- with the people I loved and left behind in the corn fields. When I left to take my first job in Texas, I watched the Astros for awhile, but they just didn't quite click. I was still looking for a team to call my own.

Enter NESN and the Boston Red Sox.

NESN was, for a time, the only real friend I had in New England. While baseball season was still going during the summer I moved, every night I would tune into NESN while I unpacked boxes. When I got home from the office and was tired from working on class stuff or grading papers, I knew I could watch the Red Sox while I was eating dinner. At a time when everything in my life felt different and strange, NESN was the constant. I would watch the Red Sox and remember the endless baseball conversations I had heard among my friends. Plus, the Red Sox fan base is huge and really strong in New England. Watching and following the games made me feel like there was at least one thing I had in common with all these strangers I was living with. Watching the Red Sox made me feel less alone. And they're just so darn loveable, I couldn't help myself.

Baseball season ended and I found myself missing the games badly. At that time, I was hating New England even more: a hard winter followed by rainy spring, a bad job experience, and still terrible driving everywhere. But finally spring training started. And I read the NESN website everyday following the news. I marked days on my calendar: opening day, the first game between the Red Sox and the Yankees, etc. It is not an overstatement to say that the Red Sox helped me make it from day to day. No matter what had gone wrong, there was a game waiting for me when I got home. It provided a kind of stability at the very time my life was turned upside down.

I'm glad to no longer be living in New England, but luckily I can take my favorite thing about it with me. Especially since I have MLB.TV.

Why the baseball soliloquy? It explains the name of the dish! My tribute to the Red Sox in pasta form.

Notes: If you're tired of mayonnaise-based pasta salads, try this one on for size. This can easily be served hot or cold.

If you really wanted to go all the way, using spinach pasta would be awesome. In fact, next time I make it, I think I'll do that.

This dish is so Q.E.D., it's almost like not cooking at all. If you wanted to make your own pesto, that would be fabulous. Since I am sans food processor, I went with the store bought stuff.

I didn't bother thawing my peas, but if you did, just toss them in with the spinach.

Ingredients:
1 tub store bought pesto (about 1/2 cup if you're using homemade)
1 box whole wheat pasta
1 small bag or box of frozen peas
1/2 bag fresh baby spinach
Salt
Pepper
Pinch red pepper flakes

Directions:

The cast

Fill a stock pot with water and set it on to boil.

Chop your spinach while you wait for the water to boil.

When the water boils, add two small handfuls of salt (whole wheat pasta needs it). Toss in the pasta and cook according to the directions on the box. When your pasta is has about a minute left on the cooking time, toss in your frozen peas.

When the pasta is finished, drain it and the peas. Return them to the hot pot. Toss in the spinach and the whole container of pesto. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flake. Toss well so that the spinach is slightly wilted and the pasta and peas are well-coated.

Serve immediately for a hot dish. If you're making pasta salad, chill in the fridge until you're ready to serve.

It's wicked good, so enjoy!