Here is a very fresh pasta salad with zucchini.
I just couldn’t resist tweaking it with some add-ins for extra colors, textures, and flavors!
I think I’d add some black olives to at least the tops of the individual salads to give some punch to the colors. You could add some tomato wedges or cherry tomatoes for more color and plenty of taste. I can’t stop thinking of additions to this salad. What about some garbanzo beans (or whatever kind of beans you like) to add crunch & textures. Plus the beans combine with the pasta (not to mention the cheese & nuts) to make complete protein. That makes the salad a whole meal salad rather than a side salad!
It’s making my mouth water just thinking of those additions! What a nice change from the usual pasta salad. A little more appealing to me at least. Now if you serve this with some garlic crostini on the side, it goes into the gourmet category, in my opinion.
If your family thinks it’s not a meal unless there is meat somewhere, try adding a few chicken pieces. You don’t have to add a lot because of all the protein already in the salad. Or arrange some pieces on top of the serving you give to the meat-lovers in y0ur midst.
You can use any kind of pasta you like for this of course. My favorite is penne pasta because it’s so easy to stab with a fork! It has more “tooth” to it than linguini. Also I get it in bulk at Sam’s Club for a pretty good price. It’s a fair amount of pasta, but not so much that it goes bad on me. Love it for spaghetti sauce and all sorts of casseroles!
Click here for the original recipe at Smitten Kitchen.
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