This is not your ordinary, Tuesday night pasta salad! It’s a little extra trouble, but it’s worth it! This is a variation of a recipe from my favorite blogger, Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman (the girls call me a Junior Pioneer Woman and good grief, they may be right-I even bought the mascara she recommended on her blog last week! BTW, it is excellent!). I changed the ingredients to include some of my favorites and added the pepperoni to make it a heartier salad. Try it, you’ll like it!
Party Pasta Salad
Print recipe
Ingredients
- 8oz Corkscrew Pasta
- 1/3 cup Prepared Pesto (I used Butoni in refrigerated Dairy Dept)
- 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese (shredded)
- 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup Sour Cream
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/4 cup Milk (to thin dressing as needed)
- 1 head Romaine Lettuce (or 2 Hearts of Romaine-chopped into 1 inch slices)
- 1/2 cup Kalamata Olives (or black olives- halved)
- 4oz Fresh Mozzarella Cheese (cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
- 1 jar Artichoke Hearts-marinated (6 oz jar, halved)
- 1 stick Pepperoni (cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
- 1 cup Grape Tomatoes (halved)
- 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese (shredded, for sprinkling on top)
- 4 tablespoons Pine Nuts (toasted, optional)
Directions
| Step 1 | |
| Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Then drain it and rinse in cold water. Allow pasta to dry slightly, then toss in a bowl with 4 tablespoons pesto. Add Parmesan and toss. Cover and refrigerate pasta until cold. | |
| Step 2 | |
| Make the dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise, sour cream, and milk with the rest of the pesto. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder, mixing well. | |
| Step 3 | |
| Toast the pine nuts over medium-low heat in a small skillet until they brown slightly. Set aside. | |
| Step 4 | |
| To assemble the salad, make a bed of lettuce in a large, shallow bowl, then add pesto-coated pasta. Add vegetables, mozzarella and pepperoni chunks. Spoon a good amount of dressing all over the top. Serve extra on the side. | |
| Step 5 | |
| Sprinkle salad with pine nuts and a little extra Parmesan (or serve both on the side) and serve. | |
I’m dieing to know what the mascara is
We have the Pioneer Women recorded and I always think of my oldest sis when it comes on!
http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeandgarden/2013/06/the-best-mascara-in-the-universe/ It’s an orange tube.
This is my new favorite salad! Thanks for the recipe!