This light, summery pasta salad makes the perfect healthy lunch or potluck meal. It’s packed with veggies, and great for those adhering to a vegan and/or gluten-free diet!
I love salads that don’t have lettuce.
I love salads that do have lettuce.
I don’t discriminate when it comes to leafy greens. To be frank, I haven’t met many salads I don’t like (except the ones that skimp on the dressing or are held together with mayonnaise and resemble a salad about as much as my left sock).
This, my dear frands, is a lettuce-less salad chock full of a gazillion veggies other than lettuce. After all, it is not the lettuce that makes the salad, but the salad that makes the lettuce.
What?
Summer is all about eating all the food outdoors, and this is the healthy potluck salad of your dreams right here. Noodle dishes tend to make people feel heavy, but let me assure you…that isn’t this. It’s kind of like a shiz ton of crisp flavorful veggies with a side of pasta. The pasta is not quite an afterthought, but not the star here, either.
If you’re serving hangry carnivores, you could totally add grilled chicken or shrimp. Toss in a can of chickpeas if you’re an herbivore looking to make this a full meal!
I hope you like it so much you wanna marry it.
- 8oz pasta shells of choice (gluten-free if neccesary)
- ¾ cup shredded carrots
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 small to medium cucumber, de-seeded and chopped
- 1 large tomato, chopped
- ⅓ cup chopped green onions
- ⅓ cup kalamata olives, chopped
- 2½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 3 tbsp chopped basil
- ½ tsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)
- ½ tsp oregano
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Cook pasta according to package directions.
- Whisk or blend together dressing ingredients.
- Drain pasta, rinse with cold water, and then dump into a large bowl.
- Add the rest of the ingredients including dressing, tossing to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
[Tweet “Bring these Healthy Pasta Salad to your next potluck! @TheHummusapien #MeatlessMonday”]
YUMMY! Love a healthy pasta salad during these HOT summer months…DELISH! XOXO
ACKTIVE LIFE recently posted…Getting bACK Into The Routine
That’s it. I’m telling my husband I’m leaving him for this pasta salad. It looks suh good I want to cuddle with it all night long. <3
Sarah @ Making Thyme for Health recently posted…Vegan Cashew Ricotta Zucchini Lasagna
Great pasta recipe. Love pasta salad in the summer.
Lauren @ The Bikini Experiment recently posted…Best Arm Exercise with Floor Press
Sweet! Bookmarking for future use. I got a box of pasta shells that’s been dying to be cooked.
You might also want to consider using leftover pasta. I hear it has fewer calories and more resistant starch (the good kind of carbs) than regular pasta. 🙂