Lori's Homemade Pasta Salad

                                                                                

Lori's Homemade Pasta Salad

  As you can see, I made boat loads of this stuff for a community meal a couple of months back and I ended up with over 8 pounds of pasta salad! It was delectable and oh, so delicious! It was also addictive and hard to stop eating as it tasted so good! It was one of my 'throw together' recipes where I did not measure out anything, including the vinaigrette, but just added what looked right. However, I did begin with 1 cup of olive oil and added more as I needed to. I added half the amount of vinegar as oil, so that is how I came up with amounts below. Ditto for the spices.

  You won't need to make that much, and besides, I really didn't use a recipe, I just threw stuff together and it all worked.  I used the vegetables I had growing in my garden at the time: cherry tomatoes, small pickling cucumbers, red onions, green bell peppers, and then opened up a can of black olives, drained them, then sliced them into rings. Yummy.

  I cooked 4 pounds of noodles, but that is way more than what you will need or want to cook. This recipe I am putting together used just 8 ounces of noodles, though you can double the recipe to take to a pot luck, if so desired. The nice thing about this recipe is you can use any veggies you desire, and you can add chunks of bite-sized cheeses or pepperoni, if that is what floats your boat. I like it as it is above, which made a lovely and delicious salad that went well as a side dish with everything. Pasta salads are good year-round, not just during the summer.

  I sure hope you enjoy this recipe and adjust it to fit your veggie likes/dislikes. Broccoli, peas, just about any veggie can be added to this recipe. Make it once, then make it yours.

Lori's Pasta Salad

8 ounces rotini noodles, uncooked*

1 red onion, diced small, about 1/2-3/4 cup

1 green pepper, diced, about 3/4 cup

1 red pepper, diced, about 3/4 cup, optional*

1 small pickling cucumber, diced

1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

Grated carrots, about 1/2 medium or 4-6 baby carrots*

1 (6 ounce) can pitted olives, sliced*

1/4-1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese*

1 cup  extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar*

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. dried oregano

dash of Italian blend seasonings (mixture of herbs)*

1/4 tsp Real Sea Salt, to taste

1/8 tsp black pepper, to taste

Cook noodles according to package directions; strain, rinse with cold water to cool; set aside.

Dice all vegetables; set aside.

Combine olive oil, vinegar, spices, salt and pepper; set aside.

Place noodles in a large bowl. Add veggies and stir to incorporate.

Pour vinaigrette over top and stir to blend well.

Add Parmesan cheese and blend.

Cover and chill at least 2 hours before serving, though 8 hours is better. Best if left overnight.

Tips:

*You can use rainbow noodles, if desired.

*Use red pepper, if you like, but I did not.

*I used baby carrots, but you can use regular.

*You can buy sliced olives or keep them whole in the recipe.

*I like a lot of Parmesan cheese and tend to add a lot. Add to taste.

*I only use Bragg's unpasteurized apple cider vinegar as it has the enzymes in it.

*You can use red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar, if desired, in place of apple cider vinegar.

*I used a dash of Sylvia's Italian Blend spices.

*You can add 6-8 ounces of pepperoni, diced, if desired.

*You can add 6-8 ounces of Mozzarella, if desired.

*You can add some fresh Parsley (1/8-1/4 cup) minced, or some dried (1 Tbls), if desired.