Are you tired of the same old mayo based pasta salads? They’re all pretty similar – but not this salad! Bursting with flavor and packed with fresh vegetables, this is the perfect summer salad to use up garden veggies and it provides a fun pop of flavor paired with some steaks.
We made this salad up to serve with tenderloins, shrimp, fried potatoes, and garlic bread for my parents 34th anniversary. The whole family was home and we had a great time. This salad was a hit and everyone loved it. It was so nice to have all the fresh veggies in an easy, delicious salad.
G3 Ranch Pesto Veggie Salad
Basil pesto stars in this awesome, veggie packed pasta salad!
Ingredients
Salad
- 1 16 oz box bowtie pasta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cups spinach, chopped
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped; about 3/4 cup chopped
- 2 bell peppers, red and yellow
- 2 cups corn (3 cobs)
- 1 large cucumber
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 8 slices bacon
- 1 cup shredded parmesan
Sauce
- 2/3 cup basil pesto
- 6 tbsp plain yogurt
- 4 tbsp mayo
- 4 tbsp lime juice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prep your pasta according to instructions on the box, add the tablespoon of olive oil to the water, this helps coat the pasta so it doesn't stick together after you drain it – leave it just a little chewy, it will continue to soften as it sits in the sauce. Drain the pasta, rinse in cold water until chilled, then drain again, place in a large bowl and set in the fridge.
- Prep all the veggies and bacon. Dice peppers and cucumber, blanch corn cobs and cut the corn off of them. Fresh corn is best, but thawed, drained frozen or canned corn works too. Chop spinach and cilantro. Fry the bacon until slightly crunchy, then cut into small pieces or crumble.
- Mix up the sauce ingredients well in a small bowl, add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add all of the veggies to the pasta and toss. Add the sauce and parmesan cheese and toss well again. Chill for an hour if you can. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
This is a pretty big recipe and easily serves 12-16 people. Cut it in half for a smaller recipe.
Add chicken or shrimp to make a cold meal out of it for a hot summer day!
One response to “G3 Ranch Pesto Veggie Salad”
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A great salad to go along will a summer meal!
Jackie Jacobson
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