Cheesy Pasta Salad - great holiday side dish!
It seems like everytime there is going to be a get together or people coming over it’s inevitable that pasta salad is made. Pasta salad is also one of those dishes that you can make a big batch of and then put in the fridge for a few days and each as a snack or with lunch. My version of pasta salad definitely has an Italian slant on it, but like most of my recipes you can customize this any way that you like. Learning to cook on the fly and use the ingredients you have on hand is something you learn over time - and my pasta salad recipe is no exception. I’m going to give you the recipe for a single batch which is usually adequate for 6-8 people. Just double it if you are going to need to feed 8-12 or more.
What you need:
- A 1lb box of pasta. It could be elbow macaroni, rotini, small shells, etc.
- About 1 cup of slice black olives (if you like them)
- Veggies (again - choose as many as you like or have on hand)
- 1 cup dice roma tomatoes
- 2 cups chopped broccoli florets
- 1 cup grated carrots
- 1/2 bunch chopped green onion or 1/2 medium diced red onion
- 1 cucumber cut lengthwise like pickles and then sliced shortwise (making little wedges)
- Meat (same here, but choose one)
- 1 Cup Pepperoni sliced or diced
- 1 Cup Ham diced
- 1 Cup Tuna drained
- 1 Cup Turkey chopped
- 1 Cup Summer Sausage Chopped
- 1 cup light Mayo or Miracle Whip
- 2 tsp mustard
- 1/4 cup Ranch dressing
- 1/4 Italian dressing
- 1 tbsp minced garlic (jar) or 2 cloves fresh garlic chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped oregano or parsley (if you have it on hand)
- Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder to taste
- 2 cups cubed cheese (10-12 oz, co-jack, marble or Mozzerella)
- handful if parmesan cheese grated (if you have it)
Ok, now I’m just going off the top of my head for the ingredients for how I usually make this. Here’s how it goes down. Turn on the hot water and let it run while you get all the ingredients out on the counter. By the time you have them all out the water is as hot as it will get and fill a 4 quart sauce pan and fill 3/4 with hot water and put on high on the stove. Add a few tbsp of olive or cooking oil and a dash of salt and leave until it boils. While it gets hot start chopping up the veggies you like and add to a large bowl. Once you get the veggies in there add the Italian dressing in there and mix it up and let it set. Add a little more dressing if it doesn’t coat all the veggies, but don’t use more than 1/3 - 1/2 cup. If your water is boiling add the pasta, and stir after 30 seconds and turn down to med-high heat. Cut your meat, and stir the pasta every 2-3 minutes while you do. If you have time cut the cheese in to cubes too.
When your pasta is done, drain it in a colander in your sink, rinse with hot water, then I like to squirt a tsp or two of extra virgin olive oil on it, sprinkle some salt (like a tsp) and some pepper, fresh ground if you have it. then mix it up good (in the colander). Now - add the pasta in the large bowl with the veggie mix and stir up real good. Add the mayo and mix up, then the mustard and ranch, stir and mix well again. Last add your meat and your cheese cubes with your garlic, and mix up one last time. Taste it and see how you did. If you still need some salt and pepper and garlic powder, add a little to taste. Then I usually put it in my serving bowl and top with a handful of fresh grated parmesan cheese. Now you’re done!
You can see the different variations of this you can make, from Tuna to Turkey to Ham! I prefer pepperoni or summer sausage myself. Either way it goes over well every time we serve it! A lot of people ask me why I use the Italian and Ranch dressing. The Italian dressing softens the veggies a bit while you work with everything else. The Ranch dressing keeps it from getting to dry and makes it not taste completely like Mayo - it gives it that little “buttermilk” taste. The mustard takes the edge off both and makes a good mix that’s not too Ranchy either. I have made variations on this that were all Italian dressing, Vinegar and Oil as well. Again - experiment and use this as a great base to most any pasta salad! Have a special way you like it that I missed? Comment now!
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