Pasta Salad

Submitted by Kumquat the Cats fr

"Not your typical pasta salad; it's better:D I got it from a coworker and I tweaked it at home. It came out so well I thought I would post it. Its popularity at work was due to adding dressing sparingly. Start with a quarter cup, then taste and adjust if you think it's necessary. I've included instructions for a low-fat Italian dressing that I made with an envelope of Good Seasons Italian dressing mix. If you're not concerned about your fat intake, you can follow package directions (or use your favorite Italian dressing). I was able to make this in 20 minutes by cutting veggies while orzo was cooking and served it as a one dish meal. A good pot luck dish too (can be doubled easily)."

 

• Ready In: 20mins
• Ingredients: 18
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 1 cup orzo pasta
• 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
• 1⁄2 cup sun-dried tomato, cut into strips (not packed in oil)
• 1 yellow bell peppers (capsicum) or 1 orange bell pepper, cut into strips (capsicum)
• 1⁄2 small red onion, diced
• 15 kalamata olives, pitted and halved
• 1⁄2 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 1⁄4 cup fresh parsley or 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 ounces feta or 2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper (to taste)
• 1 (2/3 ounce) package good seasons Italian salad dressing mix
• 1⁄4 cup cider vinegar (I like to use a bit more vinegar and reduce water accordingly)
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil or 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1⁄2 cup water, plus
• 3 tablespoons water

directions

1. Cook orzo in 2 quarts water for 8-10 minutes or according to package directions and drain.
2. Add other ingredients up to Italian dressing mix and toss gently with a large spoon.
3. Combine the vinegar with 3 tablespoons water. Add Italian dressing mix and shake well. Add oil and rest of water and shake well. Measure out a quarter cup, pour over salad and toss gently.
4. Taste and add more dressing (a little at a time) if desired. Can be served immediately, at room temperature or chilled.

Reviews

[HBcook]

I brought this to our ladies bunko night and it was a big hit! I used 3/4 cup of dressing. I did not rinse the pasta and, of course, it got sticky. I mixed 1/4 cup of the dressing into the pasta and mixed it in to loosen it up - worked great and the pasta absorbed the dressing. It sat while I prepped all the veggies. A repeater!

 

[Ginny Sue]

This was a very good salad packed with all kinds of wonderful flavors and colors. I especially liked the instructions for the dressing; it was just the right touch. I made a few minor tweaks to the ingredients, using roasted red pepper instead of sun-dried tomato, and using green bell pepper instead of yellow or orange. I also left out the onions. This was very good, leftovers were great the next day for lunch, too.

 

[maggiemaye]

This salad was outstanding! All the ingredients blended together for a wonderful flavor. I added fresh mozzarella and used black olives instead of kalamata. And I couldn't find any tomatoes not packed in oil. So I rinsed them first before adding them to the salad. I also used 3/4 of the dressing then chilled the salad and added the rest of the dressing the next day before serving. My shower guests loved it. I will definitely make this recipe again!

 

[janchpn]

Yum, this is a great salad. I took it to work and didn't get any, thank goodness I made a double recipe and kept some at home!

 

[msstuart]

This salad wa soooooo good! I made it once and my family begged for me to make more. Thanks for sharing!!!