I’m looking to add another salad at the deli and I think a good pasta salad is just the ticket, but I don’t have a favorite. Anyone have a recipe they’d like to share?
Here’s my current go-to pasta salad for parties and cookouts.
Not sure if it meets the needs of your deli, but it’s tasty!
This is one of my favorites.
Greek Pasta Salad
10 oz fresh angel hair pasta. Boil 1-2 minutes. Drain.
Mix the following together and pour over warm pasta:
1/2 cup mayo
2 tablespoons olive oil
3-4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon Cavender’s Greek seasoning (or similar)
1/2 teaspoon dill
3 green onions (scallions), chopped, white *and *green parts
2 ribs celery, diced, including leafy tops
small jar diced pimentos, or diced roasted pimentos (red bell peppers)
chopped parsley (optional)
MOST IMPORTANT: 1 or more cloves fresh, raw garlic, minced or pressed, to your taste (I use 3-4 because I love garlic.)
You can eat right away, but the longer it sits in the fridge, the better it is. Suggest you make it in the morning for dinner or for the next day. You will never be bothered by vampires while eating this salad.
Okay. Will have to make this very soon…
One of my favorites- this is al ‘to taste’ as I never measure anything!
Bow tie pasta, boiled till JUST tender
good olive oil
slivered almonds
bacon, crumbled
shredded parmesan cheese
fresh parsley
Mix all together. Sooooooo good! And a little different, too!
I always add cubes of smoked Gouda and salami to mine. Hearty and delicious.
Thanks you guys. These all sound delicious. I’m going to try at least one of them tomorrow.
Orzo
Grape tomatoes
Pine nuts
Baby spinach
Cubes of fresh mozzarella (optional)
Olive oil
Vinegar or Lemon Juice
Salt
My favorite is cold shrimp with beansprouts and assorted other veggies, (matchstick carrots, celery, snow peas, cucumber is my personal favorite combo), fresh coriander, sesame oil, sweet chili sauce, sweet soya sauce dressing. The pasta is spaghetini.
What’s really wonderful about it is, if you’d prefer your noodles hot, just microwave, by the plateful, for 1- 1/2 minutes. Also works with chicken/turkey/beef/pork. One of my best ‘left over’ dishes and always popular when I take it to functions!
I don’t really have a recipe–I just guess at the quantities.
Asparagus and Sundried Tomatoes
Penne
Asparagus sauteed in olive oil and garlic, with some red pepper flakes and a few drops of Tabasco
Chopped sundried tomatoes, in oil (reserve a bit of the oil for the salad)
Fresh chopped basil
Fresh chopped parsley (optional)
Crumbled feta
Pitted Kalamata olives
Mix it all together with olive oil, including some of the oil from the tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. Sometimes I add a bit of balsamic vinegar.
Broccoli and Feta
Rotini
Barely cooked broccoli–the woman who gave me the recipe spears a whole head of broccoli on a knife and holds it upside down in boiling water while counting to 100, then runs it under cold water
Crumbled feta
Chopped Vidalia onion
Grape tomatoes
Fresh finely chopped dill
olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste
Capers. All of these recipes are missing capers.
The only caper I enjoy is of the Great Muppet variety.
I get a box of the tiny shells and cook them, then add grated carrots, baby peas, and the small salad shrimp that comes frozen, toss all that with ranch dressing, and add baccon bits. It’s basically a homemade version of the Betty Crocker “suddeny salad” ranch and bacon version with shrimp added. It’s stupid easy and my husband can eat half a pound of it in one sitting.
Rotini
Green and/or red bell pepper
Red onion
Grape tomatoes – halved or quartered
Mozarella, small cubes
Diced pepperoni (those bags of mini ones work well, but are pricey)
I put a dressing of 1/2 Italian and 1/2 creamy ceasar with some fresh-grated parmesan.
This recipe is simple, relatively inexpensive as far as veg salads go and works as a good base – any extra veggies you might need to use up can be easily incorporated.
Box of Rotini/Corkscrew Pasta
1 jar small stuffed green olives, drained
1 can medium pitted black olives, drained
1 small sweet onion, small dice
1 red bell pepper, medium dice
1 yellow bell pepper, medium dice
3 s/b grilled chicken breasts, 1/2 inch cubes
(or 1 pkg precooked from the deli case)
1 small Bottle Bernstein’s Italian Salad Dressing
1 TBL apple cider vinegar
Cook pasta al dente
Return pasta to pot and dress with 2 Tbls EV Olive Oil
Add remaining ingredients to pasta and stir to combine
Turn into a storage container [eg tupperware]
Chill for at least 3 hours.
Garnish with…
1 Bunch fresh parsley
Cut off stems
Pulse in Food processor until finely chopped
Pass parley around table
Optional
Hot Cherry Pepper Slices
Grated parm
Not really a recipe, but a suggestion:
Rotini, or similar pasta
Onion
Sesame seeds, toasted if you like
For dressing, mix a little soya sauce, oil, crushed garlic, and pepper flakes to taste.