Greek Pasta Salad
No mayo here. Just a lot of amazing Mediterranean flavor.
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There’s nothing wrong with the classic macaroni salad when you need a potluck or picnic side, but in the same amount of time you can make this pasta salad, which (thanks to a bunch of Mediterranean-inspired add-ins) is a whole lot more interesting. There’s seriously so much flavor here – there’s salty olives and feta, cool cucumbers and juicy tomatoes and a bright lemony dressing that is a far cry from the gloppy mayo-laden ones you might find on the average picnic table.
I love this particular pasta salad because there’s so much texture involved – the pasta has a chewy bite, while the red onion and cucumber lend crunch, the feta gives a bit of creaminess, and the dressing coats everything in a velvety lemon and herb glaze.
I’m not saying there’s not room for the classic, creamy pasta salad, I’m just saying that this is a nice change. It’s filling and totally scrumptious, but it’s not going to weigh you down.
And it’s just as good room temp as it is chilled, which is great news because it means you can get to eating it even faster. It won’t take you any more time to make than it does to boil the noodles so it’s a great option to work into weekly meal prep – you don’t need to wait for a potluck to enjoy this kind of deliciousness!
Greek Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz pasta, such as cavatappi or fusilli
- 1 1/2 cups English cucumber, diced
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup canned artichokes, drained and chopped
- 1/2 cup red onion, chopped
- 1/3 cup pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped
- 3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
- 1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- Juice from one lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preparation
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, prepare the pasta according to package directions. Drain well and set aside.
- To a large bowl, add the cucumber, tomatoes, artichokes, red onion, olives, feta cheese, and dill. Once pasta has cooled a bit, add to bowl.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, oregano, garlic, and salt and pepper.
- Pour over pasta and vegetables and toss to combine. Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from Bake Eat Repeat.
