Basil Tuna Pasta Salad

Hi everyone!  We survived Hurricane Irene this past weekend.  Thankfully things weren't as bad as they were initially made out to be in the Baltimore area.  We never even lost power (phew!), and other than being stuck inside all day on Saturday, nothing noteworthy occurred.  I know many people were actually affected by the hurricane, and my thoughts go out to them!


We did stock up on some (okay, way too many) non-perishable food items before the storm hit, just in case we were without power for a few days.  So we've been trying to eat through most of those, and we haven't had a chance to hit up a grocery store this week, so ingredients for blog-worthy recipes are at a premium.  However, I'm working from home today, and can't bear to eat another can of soup.  I found this recipe (posted by guest blogger Sawsan from Chef in Disguise) on the blog Eat Yourself Skinny a few days ago and bookmarked it.  When I realized that I had all of the necessary ingredients on hand, I knew I just had to make it.  Btw, if you haven't been to Eat Yourself Skinny, please check it out!  Even if you aren't trying to lose weight, her recipes are pretty darn tasty looking.  The recipes on the blog Chef in Disguise aren't too shabby, either ;).


You can find the original recipe here, and the recipe with my modifications can be found below:


1 box pasta (I had some radiatore lying around)
1 can tuna
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1/2 cup corn
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
10 or so basil leaves, chopped


Dressing:
1 tbs mustard (I used Dijon)
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup olive oil
salt


Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the box, drain and allow to cool a bit.  In a bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, mustard, oregano, and salt.  Drizzle the olive oil in while whisking, until incorporated.  Add the tuna, olives, corn, beans, and basil to the pasta.  Add the dressing and toss.

Not the world's greatest photography, but you get the idea.

It's really quite good!  All of the flavors meld together well, and the basil flavor is wonderful.  Please enjoy!