Tortellini Primavera

I made this dish tonight not even truly know what “Primavera” was, but I was fascinated by the photo they had in the book.  Turns out, it’s just chopped vegetables.  

Here’s the cool thing about this dinner  - it has 4 main ingredients that a year ago, I would have turned my nose up at.  Yellow Squash, Zucchini, Sun Dried Tomatoes, and Pesto.  I really couldn’t tell you why I was so afraid to try zucchini.  I had myself convinced it was going to taste like a cucumber, and every bite would remind me of the mall near the neighborhood I grew up in, that housed only the movie theatre, and Ziggy’s Boutique. 

I really loved Ziggy’s.  I think half of my 8^th grade wardrobe came from that shop, and I went often with my friend to make payments on our layaway clothing purchases of horrid late 80s and early 90s fashion.

But back to zucchini. If I had to guess, since I don’t know for sure, I tasted my first zucchini two months ago.  Raw.  It was fantastic. Now I am chopping them up and tossing them in salads, and making things like Primavera.

I also searched for sun dried tomatoes for weeks.  Weeks, I tell you.  I looked for them for so long that I can’t even remember the original dish I needed them for. 

I also think it’s really worth mentioning that the pesto in this recipe? I made it.  From scratch. And from Basil I grew in my own backyard. Going forward, I am pretty sure I will always have an herb garden. Using them is the highlight of every meal.