Summery Pasta Salad

Lalaloula's Note:

This is a fresh twist on the usual pasta salad. It uses crisp summer veggies, such as green onions, carrots adn cherry tomatoes and uses light cream cheese for the dressing. I came up with this recipes myself, so ingredient amounts are estimates. Adjust them to your own liking and feel free to swap veggies according to what you have on hand. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did! :)

• Total Time: 20 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 1

• 125 g pasta (I used gf corn conchiglie)
• 10 g herb-infused butter (or use ordinary butter and add a few Italian herbs)
• 1 tablespoon cream cheese (I used a light one)
• 1 small carrot , diced
• 1 small green onion , sliced
• 6 cherry tomatoes , diced
• 2 tablespoons feta cheese , diced (about a 1/4 package)
• ¼-½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon dried dill
• 1⁄8; teaspoon curry powder (I used an asian blend)
• 2 dashes paprika

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package direction until al dente (firm to the bite).
2. Drain and add in cream cheese and butter. With a spoon mix until everything is well coated. Set aside.
3. In a bowl combine cut veggies, feta cheese, spices and herbs. Add pasta and toss to mix.
4. Enjoy!

Reviews

[Andi of Longmeadow Farm]

A crystal delight to the palette! We used all the vegetables suggested and added some cucumber, and added a olive or two, and this magnificent salad was ready. I served this at room temperature, and we couldn't get enough. Loved the vegetables mixed so nicely with the dressing. Perfect combo!

[Shuzbud]

We loved this healthy recipe! I added cucumber and black olives and grated the carrots to keep the texture from being too crunchy. The cream cheese coating is delicious so I made more to boost its flavour on the pasta. The paprika was great with it so I added more of that too! I'll be making this frequently for take-to-work lunches!

[Kiwi Kathy]

Superb light salad. Tastes all worked well together and the subtle hint of curry was perfect. I served it as a main with a green salad. Would work well with steak or sausages too. Made for Aussie / Kiwi Swap Jan 2012.