Quick and Easy Veggie Pasta Salad Recipe

By: Ashley

This heat wave has got me thinking of cold food to eat. What better than pasta salad? I used to be intimidated by pasta salad and think it was impossible. I think the trick is finding an oil and vinegar based dressing that you really like. I think I finally found mine! The next trick, is frozen peas. They add color, great flavor, and great nutrients to any cold salad you’re making.

Quick and Easy Veggie Pasta Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

· Vegetable Rotini

· Bell Pepper (Yellow, Green, or whatever you prefer)

· Small bag of frozen green peas (LOVE Wal-Mart Sweet Peas)

· Grape or Cherry tomatoes

· Your favorite O/V dressing (Mine was Kraft Tuscan House Italian)

· Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package making sure to NOT OVERCOOK. You really want an al dente pasta. While the pasta is cooking, dice peppers, slice tomatoes, and rinse peas (optional). You can also prep any other veggies that you might want to add.

When pasta is done, rinse it with COLD water in a colander. Continue rinsing pasta until pasta has cooled. Pour pasta into a bowl along with ½ c. of dressing. You will need to adjust the amount of dressing based on personal preference and the amount of vegetables you put in. Toss in each type of vegetable. Sprinkle in some grated parmesan cheese and gently toss again.

For garnish, you can add some extra sliced tomatoes and peppers to the top. Sprinkle with a little extra parmesan cheese. Chill until it is time to serve. ENJOY!

I know all of the directions aren’t incredibly specific, but that’s what makes this recipe perfect! You can make it what you need it to be. =) Add what you want, what you like, and what you can get. For me, it was what I could find at Wal-Mart! Enjoy… and stay cool this summer!

Meet Ashley (Managing Editor at MomStart): Ashley is a mom, wife, sister, daughter, friend, and former teacher working to navigate through the mysterious world of Mommyia. Read more about her adventures atMomicles and follow her @Momicles2010.