happy 4th of july!

my friend mary invited me to a bbq today to celebrate the 4th of july.  i am really looking forward to it, mary and i went to college together and according to the facebook invite some of our college classmates will be there.  mary texted me earlier last week and asked if i could bring a pasta salad and since she asked so nicely i said ok.  i wanted to create a summery pasta salad to go with whatever else we are having today. i made the salad fully vegetarian so everyone is able to have some of it.  the dressing is super easy and it can be adjusted to your personal taste. since i made this for over 15 people the rations are larger thank usual.  let me know (josie@josieskitchen.com) if you want me to send you the recipe for 4 servings. 

here is my recipe for a veggies & pasta salad!

INGREDIENTS:
2 boxes of small pasta shells
4 tablespoons of kosher salt
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 large carrots
1 bunch of broccoli
1 large red pepper
6 sprigs of scallions
1/2 large white onion
2 stalks of celery
2 cups of cherry tomatoes
1 large can of corn

for the dressing:
4 garlic cloves
juice of 3 limes
1 1/2 tablespoon of kosher salt
1 1/2 cup of white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons of dijon mustard
2 tablespoons of honey
1 1/2 tablespoons of dry oregano
fresh ground pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:
start by cooking the pasta with 4 tablespoons of kosher salt (i know it sounds like a lot, but it is 2 boxes) and 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  

cook the pasta until it is al dente (about 8-10 minutes). drain (but do not rinse) and let it cool.

while the pasta is cooking, find yourself a comfortable place and start chopping the veggies. try to chop them up around the same size as the shells. 

thinly chop the scallions

and cut the tomatoes in half

and cut up the onions, i only used 1/2 an onion but feel free to use more if you want it to be more onion-y.

get started on the dressing once all the veggies are chopped up.

mince the 4 cloves of garlic. 

add them to the lime juice. 

add the vinegar, oil, mustard and honey

whisk the mixture and add kosher salt, pepper and the dry oregano

whisk until the mixture has an even consistency.  taste and adjust the taste to your preference. i tend to do like my dressings on the more acid end of the spectrum.  

once you have whisked the dressing, start adding the veggies to the pasta. 

drizzle the dressing over the salad and veggies. mix well to coat everything and chill overnight. i found that the salad was a little dry this morning, so i whipped up a cup of dressing and mixed it in the salad.

the salad tastes great by itself, but if you want, you can serve with parmesan cheese and croutons.

the raw veggies are a nice textural change.  this salad will complement the typical bbq fare while also being able to stand on its own. 

i hope you try making this soon. 

what are your plans for 4th of july? hope whatever it is, you have a fabulous time!

thanks for stopping by!