Simple Pasta Salad Recipe – Love and Lemons

This recent, straightforward pasta salad recipe comes collectively in below half-hour! Tossed in a tangy French dressing and stuffed with veggies, it is a cookout hit.

At this time’s recipe is a picnic-perfect pasta salad! Each cookout wants an ideal pasta salad, and that is the one which I make all summer season lengthy. It comes collectively very quickly, it’s filled with recent components, and it packs a flavorful punch.

I took additional care to be sure that this recipe isn’t just straightforward, but in addition straightforward to make in advance… as a result of I completely get that you just don’t wish to be futzing together with your pasta salad when you might be spending time outdoors with your pals.

Word: For those who do resolve to make this salad prematurely, toss on some complete basil leaves earlier than serving to make it immediately prettier.

Pasta Salad Substances

This basic pasta salad recipe is straightforward and recent. Right here’s what you’ll have to make it:

• Fusilli pasta – Or your pasta of alternative! Brief pasta shapes are finest right here. I like rotini, penne, and farfalle along with fusilli.
• Cherry tomatoes – I like their candy taste and juicy texture on this salad.
• Cucumbers – For crunch! I like to make use of Persian cucumbers or English cucumber right here. Each have very skinny skins, so there’s no have to peel them.
• Chickpeas – They add plant-based protein.
• Arugula – It provides peppery taste and additional inexperienced.
• Feta cheese – For salty, tangy taste.
• Pine nuts – Just like the cucumbers, they add satisfying crunch.
• And recent herbs – Parsley, basil, AND mint pack this salad with recent taste!

Discover the entire recipe with measurements under.

Tips on how to Make Pasta Salad

Making this recipe is a breeze! Simply comply with these easy steps:

1. Prepare dinner your pasta in a big pot of salted boiling water. Drain it, toss it with some olive oil, and set it apart to chill.
2. Chop your cherry tomatoes and cucumbers, mince the parsley, and crumble the feta.
3. Whisk collectively the dressing components.
4. And toss all the things collectively in a giant bowl! Season to style and dig in.

My Finest Pasta Salad Ideas

• Prepare dinner your pasta a little bit longer than regular. It must be a tad previous al dente (however not mushy) in order that the pasta stays mushy when it cools. I discover that the upper time vary listed on the package deal directions is normally nearly proper for chilly pasta salad.
• Let your pasta cool utterly earlier than tossing it with the opposite components. If it’s nonetheless heat, the recent pasta will begin to prepare dinner and wilt the greens. Nobody’s a fan of heat cucumber, so be sure to’re tossing chilly pasta into this dish.
• Style and modify. Like most salad recipes, this one is tremendous versatile, so remember to style and modify it to your liking earlier than serving. Add extra lemon in the event you choose a tangier salad, toss in additional greens in the event you’re all concerning the veggies, and at all times, at all times salt to style.

Recipe Variations

This pasta salad is unbelievable as-is, however be at liberty to alter it as much as match your tastes or the components in your pantry. Listed here are a number of strategies:

• Make it vegan. Use olives or solar dried tomatoes instead of the feta.
• Make it gluten-free. Use gluten-free pasta or quinoa instead of conventional noodles.
• Go Greek. To make this recipe extra of a Greek pasta salad, add 1/2 cup every of kalamata or black olives, diced bell pepper, and thinly sliced pink onion.
• Strive a Caprese combo. Use halved mini mozzarella balls instead of the feta.
• Strive one other herb. Contemporary oregano can be pretty instead of the mint on this salad, and thyme would even be an ideal addition.
• Swap out the arugula for spinach, or depart it out altogether in the event you choose a better pasta: veggie ratio.
• Or roast your chickpeas for additional crunch.

Extra Favourite Summer season Salads

For those who love this pasta salad recipe, attempt one in all these scrumptious summer season salads subsequent:

Simple Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Prepare dinner Time: 10 minutes minutes

Whole Time: 30 minutes minutes

Serves 6

You will love this straightforward pasta salad recipe! It is an ideal one to make forward – in the event you’re bringing it to a picnic, prep it as much as a day prematurely.

Prepare dinner ModeStop your display from going darkish

• Convey a giant pot of salted water to a boil. Put together the pasta in accordance with the package deal instructions, or till barely previous al dente.
• In the meantime, make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk collectively the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, herbes de Provence, pink pepper flakes, and salt. (Word: the dressing can have a robust taste, it’ll mellow as soon as it coats all the pasta salad components).
• Drain the pasta, toss it with a little bit olive oil (in order that it doesn’t stick collectively) and let it cool to room temp. Switch to a giant bowl with the tomatoes, chickpeas, arugula, cucumbers, feta cheese, basil, parsley, mint, and pine nuts. Pour the dressing and toss to coat. Season to style with extra lemon, salt, pepper, and/or a drizzle of olive oil, if desired, and serve.