Pasta salad, what can I say? It really just speaks for itself. And when the temperature rises and the grills begin to fire up, pasta salads come out of my kitchen often. In this salad, feta is the star, though many wouldn't know. It is the base for the dressing, and then you add some crumbles to the salad. It is all about balance in the dressing that coats the salad and the texture and flavor of the other salad ingredients. Use this dressing for other salads, remove salad ingredients you aren't a fan of and add those you love, but definitely try this dressing.
When you add feta to your salad dressing and blend it until creamy and smooth it makes such an amazing dressing for your pasta to bathe in. Add the veggies and herbs and be ready for your taste buds to start dancing.
Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup champagne vinegar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon honey
2 oz feta cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Salad:
1 pound pasta (cooked with 2 tablespoons salted water)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup English or Persian cucumbers, quartered
1 cup hearts of palm, diced
1/3 cup green onion, sliced
1/3 cup red onion, finely diced
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup feta cheese crumbles
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Toppings:
2 cups baby arugula
2 tablespoons fresh basil, finely chopped
2 tables fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 lemon, juice only
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Into a blender, add the olive oil, dijon, vinegar, honey, feta cheese, salt, and pepper, blend until the dressing becomes creamy and smooth, and pour into an extra-large mixing bowl.
Over the dressing, add your cooked pasta, and toss until combined. Add the tomatoes, cucumbers, green onion, red onion, hearts of palm, and feta, and season with salt and pepper. Toss until ingredients have combined into the pasta. Refrigerate for at least one hour.
Before serving, add arugula, basil, and parsley. Top with lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and toss until combined. Serve immediately.
Welcome to my kitchen.
Get a fresh delivery of only the goods delivered to your inbox.
Comment
Did you love this? Let us know!