Chicken Poppy Seed Pasta Salad

Chicken Poppy Seed Pasta Salad

8 oz pasta
2 cups shredded or diced cooked chicken
1 ½ cups halved red grapes
4 stalks celery, diced (about 1 cup)
½ yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
1 cup whole almonds

Poppy Seed Dressing
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup avocado or olive oil
¼ cup maple syrup
4 teaspoons poppy seeds
2 teaspoons sea salt

Bowtie Pasta Chicken Salad

Bowtie Pasta Chicken Salad

1 pkg (16 oz) bow tie pasta
Swiss cheese, shredded
Pineapple tidbits, drained
Green onion, chopped
Red grapes, halved
2-4 chicken breasts (or 8-10 tenderloins) grilled, then chopped

Measure cheese, grapes, onions, & pineapple ingredients with your heart and to your liking♥️😊

West's Favorite Salad

M goes to Lake Powell every summer with a bunch of friends. The Mom who is in charge of everything is a GENIUS. M always comes home raving about everything including the food.

She got this recipe from Mrs. West and said "Mom - this is literally the best salad on the planet." Quite the salesperson!

West's Favorite Salad

Romaine Lettuce
Cardini's Caesar Dressing
Sugared almonds
Red grapes
Grated Swiss and parmesan
Bowtie pasta
Grilled chicken breast

Sugared Almonds: add almonds with about 1/2 cup sugar in a pan on the stove top. Cook until the sugar sticks.

Boil pasta according to package directions. Don't rinse. Add dressing and stir to combine. Let chill for an hour or longer. Just before serving - combine everything else and eat!

Greek Pasta Salad

It's my Father In Law's birthday tomorrow and we want to make it a really special one for him. He LOVES salt - even more than I do! He also loves a little spice (like from a good peperoncini), the briny flavor of every kind of olive you can think of - so while a couple of my kids will only have a "no thank you bite" I only care whether or not Papa likes it!! I'll let you know how it goes with my picky kids!

Greek Pasta Salad
Bow tie pasta

Ken's Greek Salad Dressing (or your fave)
Cucumbers
Red onion, diced
Sundried tomatoes
Artichoke hearts (usually I have them in a can quartered)
Bell peppers, diced (multi colored)
Peperoncini (whole)
Feta, crumbled

Cook pasta to directions on package. Drain, rinse with cold water. Drain cold water off and add to a container with an air tight lid. Add about half the salad dressing to the pasta and put in the refrigerator while you prep everything else.

I peel, slice and quarter the cucumbers - do what ever you like! Then I dice about 1/2 a large red onion, dice the bell peppers (my favorite are red, orange and yellow - no thanks green!) Drain the artichokes and cut them into bite sized pieces. Do the same for the sundried tomatoes*

Combine all ingredients with the pasta that has been marinating in the Greek Dressing. Stir to combine and get that salad dressing all over the other ingredients.

Let refrigerate for as long as you can - at least 1 hour - I like to make the pasta/dressing the night before.

About 30 minutes before serving - check out how the dressing is doing. If it's had enough time - most of it should be absorbed into the pasta. Check for taste. I generally add the remainder of the dressing to keep the salad from being too dry while adding more flavor. Add the peperoncini's and feta very last - just before serving - if you are worried about the peperoncini's affecting the entire salad, serve them on the side.

*You can use cherry or grape tomatoes in lieu of sun dried

Yocum's Italian Pasta Salad

My husbands cousin brought over this life changing pasta salad for a family party several years ago. We couldn't stop eating it. I've made it several times since - but just recently realized I'd never posted the recipe! Shame on me :)

I made it again for a 4th of July BBQ we had - and as usual - it was a hit!

Yocum's Italian Pasta Salad
16 oz pasta (I like the tricolored spirals)
Italian dressing (your favorite - mine is Paul Newman Garlic Italian Parmesan)
Sun dried tomatoes (+some of the oil from the jar), diced
Tomato and basil feta, crumbled
Salami or summer sausage, diced
Bell peppers (all 4 colors), diced
Italian herb seasoning (I get the blend from Costco)
Garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta as directed on package. Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate until serving - the longer the better!!

Kid Friendly Pasta Salad

I got this recipe from the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond and only changed it a bit. I didn't have tomatoes on hand and I actually ran out of Cheddar cheese (GASP!) so I used Colby Jack - really any cheese will do - this would be good with mozzarella or swiss too.

Kid Friendly Pasta Salad

12 ounces fun-shaped pasta, such as radiator

8 slices thin bacon

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup whole milk (I used 2%)

4 tablespoons white vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar

10 ounces grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise

1/2 pound Cheddar, cut into small cubes

3 green onions, thinly sliced

Ground black pepper

Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Then drain and rinse in cold water until cool. Set aside.

Cut the bacon into 1/2-inch pieces and throw into a large skillet. Saute until slightly crisp, and then remove to a paper-towel-lined-plate.

For the dressing, mix the mayonnaise, milk, vinegar, salt, and sugar in a small bowl.

Stir together the pasta, dressing, tomatoes, bacon, cheese and green onions in a large mixing bowl. Taste for seasonings, adding more salt and pepper if needed.

Greek Tortellini Salad

I made 5 cheese tortellini with Alfredo sauce 2 days ago. I also made pasta on Monday (4 days ago) and I wanted to use the left over pasta in a different way and I came up with this salad and one other HERE...

Greek Tortellini Salad
1 small red onion, diced
1 cucumber, diced
2 c grape tomatoes, halved
1 c feta, crumbled
12 oz. tortellini - I used the 5 cheese tortellini from Costco
1/2 bottle of Greek salad dressing (I used Paul Newmans Greek dressing) just add little by little and toss until it's to your liking

So delicious. So fresh. So filling!!

*Sorry my pics are out of focus - I'm learning to use my 50mm and I'm not having much luck yet...

Sweet Pasta Salad

This salad is from my husbands side of the family. I'm tellin' ya - you could put this dressing on pretty much anything and it would be lip smackin' good. When my husband had some of this today - he said how much he loves and has missed this salad. He also told me that I didn't add enough kidney beans (I know kidney beans right? It took a while for them to grow on me in this salad - but I have to tell you that now, I wouldn't make the salad without them!)

Sweet Pasta Salad
5 celery ribs, halved and diced
2 English cucumbers, sliced
2 bunched of radishes, sliced
2 c carrots, diced
12 oz pasta

Dressing:
1 c mayonnaise
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c red wine vinegar
1 red onion, diced

Assemble dressing ingredients except onion and beat until smooth. Add onions and incorporate well. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Then, cook pasta according to package directions. For the pasta, Tri-color rotini is especially attractive but I always use what I have on hand. Drain and rinse pasta with cold water. I usually put the pasta in the strainer (towel underneath) in the fridge while I chop all the veggies. Wash and cut all veggies. Add the veggies, pasta and dressing together. Mix well. Refrigerate until time to eat. This pasta is even better the next day!

*I make this without the pasta also - such a great way to get your kids to try new foods like radishes or kidney beans - paving the way for them to try them in a different venue.

Creamy Italian Pasta Salad

This is another of my wonderous cheats. Suddenly Salads 'Creamy Italian Pasta Salad' is awesome all on its own, but they give you add in suggestions on the side that make it incredible!

Today I added grape tomatoes and mozzarella cheese (if you have kids - you have string cheese. String cheese = mozzarella people!) Mmmmmm...
This is what it looks like - Once a month or so Albertsons or Smiths will put these on deal 10 for $10 - stock up! They are all great!!