Lemony Artichoke Pasta Salad

I took Gayle to the doctor. A real doctor visit, in person, with masks and distance and the particular anxiety of driving your seventy-four-year-old mother to a medical building during a pandemic. Her blood pressure was high — 158/92 — which the doctor said was concerning and Gayle said was irrelevant and I said was exactly why we came. The doctor adjusted her medication. Gayle took the new prescription without argument, which tells me she was more worried than she let on, because Gayle without argument is Gayle who has been convinced by fear, and the fear that convinces Gayle is real fear.

I drove her home. She sat in the passenger seat with her mask on and her purse on her lap and said, 'I do not like that doctor.' I said, 'You do not like any doctor.' She said, 'That is because doctors tell you things you do not want to hear.' I said, 'So do daughters.' She said, 'You are worse than the doctor.' I said, 'Thank you.' The exchange was our love language — insults as affection, stubbornness as devotion, argument as intimacy.

The pool opened this week, with restrictions — limited capacity, masks on the deck, social distancing in the water, which is a concept that makes no sense and which the lifeguards are attempting to enforce with the futility of people trying to control the behavior of two hundred children in a body of water. Tyler and Justin went. Josie went. Amber stayed home and read. The pandemic has made Amber more internal, more bookish, more Amber. I am watching to make sure the internality is choice and not retreat. So far it looks like choice. I keep watching.

I made fish tacos — cod fillets, breaded and baked, in tortillas with cabbage slaw, lime crema, cilantro. A summer meal, a light meal, the kind of meal that says: summer is here despite everything, and summer food is still summer food, and the cilantro does not know about the pandemic. Tyler said the fish tacos were 'actually good,' which from a thirteen-year-old boy who has just discovered the word 'actually' as a modifier is the highest praise available.

That evening, after I’d gotten Gayle home and settled, after the kids had come back chlorine-damp from the pool and Amber had looked up from her book long enough to report she was fine, I needed something that felt like summer without requiring anything of me emotionally. The fish tacos I’d been planning took more focus than I had left, so I pivoted to this Lemony Artichoke Pasta Salad — the kind of dish that practically makes itself, tastes like a patio somewhere warm, and reminds you that a squeeze of lemon can carry a lot of weight on a hard day.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 10 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

12 oz rotini or bow-tie pasta
1 (14 oz) can quartered artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil), drained and sliced
1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives, halved
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 large lemon)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/3 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop cooking; transfer to a large mixing bowl.
Make the lemon dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, minced garlic, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of black pepper until combined.
Combine the salad. Add the artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives to the bowl with the cooled pasta. Pour the lemon dressing over the top and toss well to coat everything evenly.
Finish and season. Fold in the Parmesan and fresh parsley. Taste and adjust with more lemon juice, salt, or pepper as needed. The salad should taste bright and a little tangy.
Chill or serve. Serve immediately at room temperature, or refrigerate for up to 2 hours before serving. If making ahead, reserve a tablespoon of olive oil to toss in right before serving to refresh the salad.

Nutrition (per serving)

Lemony Artichoke Pasta Salad — Summer on the Table, Despite Everything