Memorial Day weekend was the unofficial start of Michigan grilling season, and with that comes the eternal question: what do I serve with my grilled foods?

In years past, I've enjoyed exploring many different approaches to potato salads, but friends have recently been asking me for pasta salad recipes. So many friends, in fact, that I felt moved to stop just forwarding my mom's wonderful Greek fusilli salad and start looking for some new recipes.

I loved this recipe for its simplicity, its mix of textures, the bright citrusy kick from the lemon, and for its use of a mortar and pestle.

Next to bread kneading, mashing ingredients together with a mortar and pestle is just about the most satisfying kitchen activity I know. And it has a huge benefit over the food processor when it comes time for cleaning up. Just rinse it, wipe it dry, and set it aside. Brilliant!

Pasta Salad With Basil and Charred Bell Peppers
Adapted from a recipe from “Italian … Made Simple”
Salad ingredients
1 red bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
10 ounces dried rotini, farfalle, conchiglie or other pasta
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (plus more as needed)
1 garlic clove, minced
3 tablespoons shredded fresh basil leaves
3 thin slices of prosciutto
salt

Pesto ingredients
4 tablespoons fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon pine nuts
1 garlic clove
generous 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Instructions:
Put the whole bell peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet and place under a preheated broiler, turning frequently, for 15 minutes, until the peppers are charred all over. Carefully remove the peppers with tongs and place them in a bowl. Cover with crumpled paper towels and set aside to cool.

Cook the prosciutto - in a dry skillet (I used a non-stick frying pan), over medium heat, cook the prosciutto until crispy, as you would bacon. In fact, if you would rather use bacon, that would work too. Let it cook, then crumble or chop into little bacon bit-sized pieces.

Make the pesto: Put the basil, pine nuts, and garlic into a mortar and pound to a paste with a pestle. (If you do not have a mortar and pestle, pulse gently in a blender or food processor.) Transfer to a bowl and gradually work in first the Parmesan, then the olive oil, until you’ve got a thick, creamy sauce.

Mix together the lemon juice, garlic and olive oil and whisk into the pesto.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, bring back to a boil, and cook according to the instructions on the box. You’ll want the pasta to have a bite to it, so do not overcook.

When the pasta is done, drain it in a colander and immediately toss it with the pesto mixture.

When the charred bell peppers are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins. They should come off easily. Then slice them open and remove the seeds. Slice the peppers coarsely into strips, then add them to the pasta. Toss the peppers, pasta and basil together, then scatter the prosciutto on top.

Taste the salad and add more salt, pepper or lemon juice as needed. I found that more lemon juice brightened the salad up nicely for me.

Serve at room temperature.

Jessica Webster leads the Food & Grocery section for AnnArbor.com, a part of the MLive Media Group. Reach her at JessicaWebster@annarbor.com. You also can follow her on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.