mediterranean pasta salad

this pasta was born out of a collaborative shopping effort the yesterday. i took a trip to the farmer's market to see what looked good and ended up with a fennel bulb and broccoli. kris went to the grocery store and got a jar of marinated artichoke hearts and some tomatoes. thrown together with some ingredients we had at home and this pasta was a success. we didn't really set out to make a pasta salad but i think that's what it is. we ate it warm for dinner but i had it cold for lunch today and it was just as good (i do really like cold leftovers though so who knows if my opinion can be trusted). also, we didn't put olives in it but i think it would be a nice addition if you want to toss a few in. we ended up with four hefty servings out of the recipe below.

mediterranean pasta salad
ingredients:
8 ounces pasta
3 cloves of garilc, finely chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 large fennel bulb
1 small head of broccoli
1 small jar artichoke hearts, drained
2 small tomaotes, diced
handful of parsley and fennel fronds, finely chopped
red chili flakes
olive oil
salt and pepper
feta (optional)

begin by cranking your oven to 350. chop fennel bulb into thin strips and toss with olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. place on a baking sheet and bake until nice and roasted and softened.*

meanwhile get you're pasta water boiling and cook the pasta.

heat a splash of oil in a pan and sautee the garlic for a few minutes until fragrant. add the artichoke hearts and continue to cook 5-10 minutes longer. add the tomatoes and season with chili flakes, salt and pepper. cook until tomatoes begin to break down and release some juices.

when the pasta is almost done, toss the chopped broccoli in for the last minute to blanch it. drain and return to the pot. add artichoke/tomato mixture and roasted fennel. toss with parsley/fennel fronds, lemon juice, a splash of olive oil and more salt and pepper if desired. kris added some crumbled feta to his and said it was good.

*we were kinda impatient and didn't actually do this. we broiled them for maybe 10 minutes and then just threw it in while it was still a little crunchy. i liked it but i think it would be better roasted for longer. however, if you're impatient and starving as well, broil for a few minutes and throw 'em in like we did. it'll still be good.

-d