Even though I was missing from LaLa Way for awhile, I was still taking pictures and creating content for posts I just never put up. Among those was this phenomenal Creamy Herb Pasta Salad my sister and I created last year. It is a cold pasta salad so it’s perfect for these warmer days that are finally coming our way! We had it as a side with my go-to salmon recipe from Skinny Mom that you can find here. This salmon is delicious, extremely easy and a must try. On to the pasta!
You want to start by bringing a pot of salted water to a boil and then cook a half pound of penne as the label directs.
Once the pasta is cooked, you want to drain and rinse the pasta under cold water then transfer it to a large bowl.
Next, add one cup each of shredded carrots and diced cucumbers and a half cup of sunflower seeds to the bowl of pasta.
Now one of the best additions to the recipe: goat cheese crumbles. I dare to say goat cheese is my number one favorite kind of cheese so I try to add it to as much as I possibly can! This particular recipe will get about half a cup of crumbles (go ahead and add that little bit of extra cheese, you know you want to).
Let’s move on to the “creamy herb” part of the salad. The base for the dressing is mayo, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, salt and pepper. As far as the herbs go, you can really use whatever you want or happen to have on hand. Here, we used tarragon, rosemary, and thyme.
Add all of the dressing ingredients to a bowl and whisk together.
At this point, we were still cooking and decided I would put the dressing in the fridge to chill. Well let me tell you, I can sometimes be a little clumsy. As I was opening one of the fridge doors, the little bowl of dressing slipped out of my hand (I have no idea how) and fell to the floor. Little Colbie had been intently watching me take that dressing to the fridge so when it fell, she ended up getting covered in it! But her and Brooklyn thought she was absolutely delicious now.
Needless to say, I had to make the dressing again. Lesson learned: hold that bowl for dear life!
Once everything is added, toss the ingredients together and chill the pasta salad for up to 3 hours. We ended up having leftovers of everything the night we made this meal so the next day we just combined it all together for lunch. I think it took the recipe to a whole new level! With that being said, you can also make the salmon ahead of time, cut it into pieces and add that to the salad before you chill it for even more flavor.
Well I hope you enjoyed this post and will try this Creamy Herb Pasta Salad for your next meal!
Creamy Herb Pasta
- 1/2 lb. penne
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1 cup diced cucumber
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
- 1/2 cup goat cheese crumbles
Dressing:
- 1/3 cup mayo
- 3 Tbsp. Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 – 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 1/2 cup total tarragon, rosemary & thyme
- salt & pepper to taste
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the penne as the label directs. Drain and rinse the pasta under cold water. Transfer to a large bowl.
- Add the shredded carrots, cucumber, sunflower seeds and goat cheese to the bowl.
- In a separate bowl, add all of the dressing ingredients and whisk together.
- Pour the dressing over the pasta salad and toss.
- Chill up to 3 hours.