Pasta salad is often served at potlucks and picnics.
It's hard to go wrong when it comes to creating a tasty pasta salad. Although you can serve them hot, one of the handy things about pasta salad is that you can prepare it 24 hours ahead of time and chill until needed. In fact, most pasta salads taste better after marinating for several hours.
Bacon Spinach Pasta Salad
Combine the salty taste of bacon with the sweet taste of baby spinach to create a filling pasta salad. Cook and drain bow-tie pasta. Toss the pasta into a bowl with shredded baby spinach, diced red onions, chopped tomatoes and sliced celery. Drizzle the salad with Catalina salad dressing and mix well. Cover the bowl and chill in refrigerator for at least two hours. Cook bacon until crispy and pat away excess grease with a paper towel. Remove the pasta from the refrigerator, crumble the bacon into the salad, mix well and serve.
Healthy Pasta Salad
Boost the nutrients while preserving the flavor to create a tasty and healthy pasta salad. Cook and drain whole wheat macaroni pasta. Toss the pasta, diced cucumbers, diced tomatoes, diced celery, diced onions, diced carrots and diced baby squash together in a large bowl. Drizzle light Italian salad dressing, minced fresh parsley and lemon juice over the salad. Mix the salad well, cover the bowl and chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours before serving.
Spicy Ham Salad
Balance spicy and sweet flavors in a filling pasta salad with a little help from honey ham and brown mustard. Cook and drain mini pasta shells. Add pasta and diced ham lunchmeat to a large bowl. Mix spicy brown mustard, mayonnaise and lemon juice together in a small bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Toss shredded cheddar cheese, diced red onions and diced celery in the salad. Cover the bowl, place in the refrigerator and let salad chill for at least four hours before serving.
Classic Italian Pasta Salad
Go with traditional Italian flavors to create a pasta salad that both kids and adults will enjoy. Toss cooked corkscrew pasta into a large bowl with sliced pepperoni, diced salami, shredded mozzarella, sliced black olives, diced tomatoes and sliced green onion. Mix olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic paste, parsley, sugar, pepper, salt and shredded Parmesan cheese together in a small bowl. Drizzle and mix the dressing into the salad. Cover the salad and chill in refrigerator for at least four hours before serving. Mix well before serving.
Gourmet Greek Pasta Salad
Artichokes, feta and olives are three calling cards of Greek cuisine and a flavorful addition to a pasta salad. Cook and drain tricolored corkscrew pasta. Mix the pasta, sliced black olives, diced artichoke hearts, chopped tomatoes, chopped onions and crumbled feta cheese together in a large bowl. Stir Italian salad dressing, mayonnaise, lemon juice, garlic paste and minced cucumber in a small bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well. Cover bowl and chill salad in fridge for at least four hours, stirring once before serving. Garnish salad with fresh basil and toasted pine nuts before serving.
Tags: before serving, Cook drain, large bowl, bowl chill, chill refrigerator