Tag Archives: salad

Summer Picnic Pasta Salad

Pasta Salad
Crumbled bacon

Crumbled bacon

Pasta Salad

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Pasta salad Mise-en-place

Pasta salad mise-en-place

 

This pasta salad makes the best summer side dish, and the best part of it, you can prepare it ahead of time. This salad goes well with grilled New York strips or skirt steaks. In this recipe I am using the elbow pasta shape, but fusilli or bow ties are great alternatives. Put on your apron and let’s get cooking!

This recipe yields a large bowl of pasta salad, but the recipe can be divided in half to feed fewer people. 

Serves: 10 – 15 as a side dish

Level of difficulty: Easy to medium

Prepping time from start to finish: 1 hour

Chilling time: 3-4 hours in the fridge

Ingredients: 

  • 1.5 lb. pasta, elbow shape, cooked al dente
  • 1/2 lb. of bacon, crumbled
  • 4 boiled eggs, chopped
  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 ribs of celery, chopped
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • 4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, diced
  • 1 cup mayonnaise*
  • 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
  • 2 tsps. Mrs. Dash, Italian Medley, no sodium
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 

Preparation:

1) Bring pasta water to a boil. Add a handful of salt. Cook pasta al dente as per package’s direction.

2) Drain pasta well and pour it into a large mixing bowl.

3) Add all the ingredients and mix well.

4) Cover and chill in the fridge for a at least 3-4 hours. The colder the salad, the tastier it will be, and this will allow the flavors to infuse nicely.

Upon serving, remove from the fridge and drizzle more olive oil to moisten the salad.

* If you don’t like mayonnaise, substitute it with more olive oil, and add some red wine vinegar. It will be similar to a vinaigrette dressing. Taste and adjust the spices as needed.

Wine pairing suggestion: Pink Flamingo Rose made with 100% Grenache produced by Vranken Pommery. 

This refreshing wine boasts a summery salmon color, and offers aromas and flavors of berries, strawberries, peach and apricot.

I hope you will make this delicious pasta salad to bring to your next picnic. Please let me know how it turned out!

Happy Cooking & Sipping!

Gina Martino Zarcadoolas, aka Foodiewinelover
Culinary Personality, Food & Wine Blogger
Author of the cookbook: Cuisines, Corkscrews & Cultures: https://atomic-temporary-72612853.wpcomstaging.com/product/cookbook/
Level-2 Certified world-renowned – “WSET: Wine, Spirit, Education, Trust”
Level-2 Certified Sommelier & Italian Wine Scholar Student (Prep course and Unit 1 completed)
Winner of 2019 Italian Wines “Salice Salentino USA Bloggers” Award, held in Puglia, Italy
Brand Strategist

 

 

 

 

 

Pasta Salad

Pasta Salad

pasta salad

veggies

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In my house, we love our pasta in all shapes and forms. Most of the time, I make it as a hot dish, but with summer upon us, (at least for us, South Floridians), I decided to make a killer Pasta Salad. I normally use the elbow shape just for cold pasta salads, since it’s the perfect size to blend well with all the chopped ingredients. You will never see me use this shape with any kind of red sauce, except for macaroni & cheese. LOL! I know, it’s an American thing!  This time, I served it as an accompaniment to some grilled New York strips. My family went crazy over it, and ate, and ate, and ate to their heart’s content.

This recipe will yield a very large bowl of pasta salad, but it can easily be divided in half.

Serves: 10 – 15 as a side dish
Level of difficulty: Easy to medium
Prepping time from start to finish: 1 hour
Chilling time: Minimum of 4 hours in the fridge

Ingredients: 

  • 1.5 lb. pasta, elbow shape, cooked al dente
  • 1/2 lb. of bacon, crumbled
  • 4 boiled eggs, chopped
  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 ribs of celery, chopped
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • 4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, diced
  • 1 cup  mayo*
  • 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
  • 2 tsp. Mrs. Dash, Italian Medley, no sodium
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • Lots of extra virgin olive oil to drizzle

Preparation:

1) Cook bacon, crumble it and set aside.

2) Chop up all your veggies.

3) Get all your ingredients, condiments, and spices ready.

4) Boil eggs, chop them up set aside.

5) Boil salted water for pasta, and cook according to package directions.

6) Drain pasta well, and pour it in a very large mixing bowl.

7) Add all the ingredients and mix well.

8) Drizzle with olive oil. Mix again, cover and chill in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours. The colder the salad, the tastier it will be. This will allow the flavors to infuse nicely.

Right before serving, remove from the fridge, and drizzle more olive oil to moisten the salad.

* Notice that my salad is not saturated with mayonnaise, however if you don’t like mayonnaise at all, just substitute it with more olive oil, and add some red wine vinegar. It will be similar to a vinaigrette dressing. Taste, and adjust the spices as needed.

My son Matthew is a very picky eater, and he said, he’s never had such a good pasta salad before. The compliments were pouring in, as I sat and watch the bowl of pasta salad slowly disappearing before my eyes.  This was a good sign that I had prepared a wonderful culinary creation. My job was done in the kitchen, and I was happy with the results.

I hope the next time you get invited to a picnic, you will offer to make this very refreshing pasta salad.

Happy Cooking From My Kitchen To Yours!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bites, Bubbly & Blogs

Since I am still fairly new at blogging, I decided to have a little get together in my kitchen with a couple of fellow (beginner) bloggers. We brainstormed and exchanged notes and ideas to help each other out. Angela will be blogging about food and wine and Barbara will be blogging about her amazing photography skills. I learned a lot from Angela’s organizational skills and computer knowledge, and Barbara taught me how to give my photographs some character and make them pop.  Their sites will be up and running soon, and I could not be more excited for them. From what I am seeing, bloggers help one another and are very supportive of each other.  That in itself is a big inspiration and motivates me to bring out my creative side.

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Needless to say, we had fun in my “Gina’s Kitchen” with small bites and bubbly to celebrate our new ventures. Of course, we spent nearly two hours, on and off trying to get some great food shots. Thank goodness, Barbara was there to guide us and give us some useful tips in food photography. This takes practice, and one can only get better with time and lots of experience. I made a lovely lump crab meat salad “sans mayo” since Angela does not care for it. I know some of you are frowning but not all of us are created equal and that’s what makes life so interesting.

It is a very simple recipe that anyone can whip up in no time

  • 1 – 8 ounce jar lump crab meat
    you can also use imitation crab meat which works
  • 2 stalks of celery, sliced
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • 1 lemon
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 TBS olive oil

Degree of difficulty: Very easy
Serves 4-6

Preparation:

Lightly break up lump crab meat, if you are using imitation crab, you can shred it with your hands for a nice presentation. Combine all the ingredients at once and chilled for at least one hour. For added richness, you can add some mayonnaise and whatever spice you like.

lumpcrabmeat

I also served some delicious smoked salmon with sliced cucumbers. They were light and tasty but most of all, they paired beautifully with the bubbly.

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Simple, yet sophisticated

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Barbara brought some delicious hummus with veggies and Angela made a very healthy and scrumptious salad with field greens, avocados, corn, cherry tomatoes and sunflower sprouts.

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It was a fun and productive day, especially in the company of two friends that I care for. I admire both for their lovely qualities and  generous hearts.

Stay tuned for more exciting blogs on food, wine and travels. Until next time, happy blogging from Gina’s Kitchen!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Helene’s Delicious Tabbouleh

Happy New Week everyone! I’d love to share with you, my favorite salad that my Mom taught me. Her name is Helene and her background is from the Middle East. It is sometimes called Tabouleh or Tabouli.You will love this recipe because it’s delicious and very refreshing. You can make it on hot summer days or cold winter nights. Either way, it will be delectable.

 

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Tabbouleh

 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1.5 cup finely cracked wheat, which can be found at specialty stores *
  • 1.5 cup of water
  • 1 cup chopped fresh mint
  • 2 cups chopped flat leaf parsley
  • 1 large tomato, diced
  • 5 scallions, sliced
  • 1 large lemon, juiced
  • 6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • Pomegranate seeds for garnish, optional

PREPARATION:

  1. In a large mixing bowl, soak the cracked wheat in water for about 20 to 30 minutes until all the water is fully absorbed.
  2. In the meanwhile, chop and prep all your ingredients.
  3. Add all the ingredients in the wheat and give it a good stir. Taste it and adjust as needed. Chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours for maximum flavor. Most of the time, the oil will be absorbed during the chilling process. You will need to add some extra lemon juice and olive oil  to moisten the salad and give it that glistening look.
  4. Place the salad in a serving bowl and garnish with pomegranate seeds.

* You can substitute the cracked wheat with bulgur or quinoa. Cook according to package directions. The measurements that I give you are to be used as a barometer. I always recommend that you tweak everything to your taste.

Bon Appetit

Gina Martino Zarcadoolas
Foodiewinelover
My Food, Wine & Travel Lifestyles
Culinary Aficionado and WSET-Level 2 certified wine connoisseur

 

 

 

 

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