Straightforward Pasta Salad Recipe – Love and Lemons

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

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

I took additional care to be sure that this recipe is not only straightforward, but additionally straightforward to make in advance… as a result of I completely get that you simply don’t wish to be futzing together with your pasta salad when you could possibly be spending time exterior with your pals.

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

Pasta Salad Components

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

• Fusilli pasta – Or your pasta of alternative! Quick pasta shapes are finest right here. I like rotini, penne, and farfalle along with fusilli.
• Cherry tomatoes – I really 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 must 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 whole recipe with measurements beneath.

How one can Make Pasta Salad

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

1. Cook 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 every little thing collectively in a giant bowl! Season to style and dig in.

My Finest Pasta Salad Suggestions

• Cook dinner your pasta slightly longer than regular. It needs to be a tad previous al dente (however not mushy) in order that the pasta stays delicate 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 ensure you’re tossing chilly pasta into this dish.
• Style and modify. Like most salad recipes, this one is tremendous versatile, so you should definitely style and modify it to your liking earlier than serving. Add extra lemon should you desire a tangier salad, toss in additional greens should you’re all concerning the veggies, and all the time, all the time salt to style.

Recipe Variations

This pasta salad is incredible as-is, however be happy to vary it as much as match your tastes or the components in your pantry. Listed below are just a few recommendations:

• 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 crimson onion.
• Strive a Caprese combo. Use halved mini mozzarella balls instead of the feta.
• Strive one other herb. Contemporary oregano can be beautiful instead of the mint on this salad, and thyme would even be an important addition.
• Swap out the arugula for spinach, or depart it out altogether should you desire the next pasta: veggie ratio.
• Or roast your chickpeas for additional crunch.

Extra Favourite Summer season Salads

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

Straightforward Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook dinner Time: 10 minutes minutes

Complete Time: 30 minutes minutes

Serves 6

You may love this straightforward pasta salad recipe! It is an important one to make forward – should you’re bringing it to a picnic, prep it as much as a day prematurely.

Cook dinner ModeStop your display screen from going darkish

• Deliver a giant pot of salted water to a boil. Put together the pasta based on 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, crimson pepper flakes, and salt. (Notice: the dressing could have a powerful taste, it’ll mellow as soon as it coats all the pasta salad components).
• Drain the pasta, toss it with slightly 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.