Not Your Mamas Pasta Salad Food

NOT YOUR USUAL PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; cook shell pasta at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water.
• Place bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon slices on paper towels; crumble.
• Whisk creamy salad dressing, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, garlic, Dijon mustard, and oregano together in a bowl to make a creamy dressing.
• Mix pasta, bacon, red onion, water chestnuts, eggs, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, celery, olives, Cheddar cheese, and Parmesan cheese together in a large bowl. Add dressing and stir to coat. Chill in refrigerator at least 1 hour before serving.

NO MAYO EASY PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; cook the rotini and tri-color rotini at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes; drain. Rinse the pasta with cold water until cool; drain.
• Combine pasta, tomatoes, cucumber, and purple onion in a large bowl.
• Stir ranch dressing and Italian-style salad dressing together in a separate bowl; spread over the pasta mixture and stir to coat.

NOT YOUR MAMA'S CHICKEN SALAD

Steps:

• FIRST: Prepare herb dressing.
• Using a hand mixer, beat yogurt and sour cream together well.
• Stir in remaining ingredients.
• Thaw skinless/boneless breasts, if necessary.
• Put them in a large, sealable container with 1/3 of the dressing and marinate in the fridge for a few hours.
• Cook on hot grill, but be careful to not OVERCOOK, otherwise all you'll be able to taste is the charred chicken.
• Cool and cut into bite sized pieces.
• Toss with grapes, almonds, parsley, mayo and remaining herb dressing (amount of dressing varies to your desired consistency).
• Chill.
• Serve alone or on bed of greens with nice, crusty bread and a tall glass of iced tea or lemonade.
• YUMMY.

NOT YOUR MAMA'S PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Cook pasta. Rinse in cold water to cool. Drain well.
• In a very large bowl, mix all ingredients together. Add dressing. If you are not serving until the next day, I recommend withholding the tomatoes, cucumber and cheese until shortly before serving, to prevent them from getting too soft or mushy. As this sits, especially if you prepare it the night before, you will find it soaks up the dressing and you will need to add more. Start with one bottle of dressing and go from there. You want it coated well, but not sitting in a pool of dressing.
• Note: I believe my cousin used kalamata olives. I like them ok, but I love green olives, so I use green olives in their place. Experiment with the varieties you love! Enjoy! P.S. If you want a healthier version, omit the salami and/or use chopped chicken breast.