Pasta Salad

I don’t know about you, but I think pasta salad just goes with summer. I have tried to make it many times, but it always came out tasting too tangy, or having some other problem—until now!

Here’s a recipe that I think you’ll like, and it’s easy, too.

Ingredients:

1 lb pasta (I used regular rotini)
2-6 garlic cloves
1-2 bottles Kraft brand Tuscan House Italian dressing (this dressing is the secret ingredient...it is perfect!)

Add whatever veggies you like. I used the following:

7 green onions, thinly sliced thru the white and ½ of the green
20 grape tomatoes, halved
½ red bell pepper, diced
1 medium cucumber, cleaned and diced (I scrubbed with veggie wash, didn’t peel)
2 teaspoons dried basil (or several fresh leaves, torn)
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Bring water to boil in a large pot. Add pasta and stir well. Press the garlic cloves and add to the pasta. This will give it a great garlic flavor, and the more you use the more garlic-y it is. (yum!) After cooked, drain and rinse with cold water until cool.

Put prepared pasta in a large container (with a lid) and cover with one bottle of dressing, stirring gently. Refrigerate overnight. (This step is optional, but makes for a stronger flavor. It also helps the pasta from absorbing all the dressing once the veggies are added, which can make it sort of gummy.)

Add chopped/diced veggies, basil, salt and pepper (to taste), and pour over more dressing (again, to taste—you don’t want it drowning in dressing, but you want it covered well). Stir gently to combine. Refrigerate until serving time.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.