15 Minute Greek Pasta Salad

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Loaded with veggies and tossed with a homemade Greek vinaigrette dressing

Prep Time15

Cook Time0

Total Time15

Course: Appetizer, Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine: Greek

Servings: servings

Author: Rena

Ingredients

1 lb Whole Wheat Short Pasta Or Rotini
1 large Cucumber chopped
1 Cup Cherry Tomatoes halved
1 Yellow Bell Pepper diced
1 Cup Kalamata Olives pitted and chopped
1 small Red Onion sliced
2 Tbsp Fresh Dill finely chopped
½ Cup Crumbled Feta Cheese
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to your taste

For the Greek dressing:

¼ Cup Extra-virgin olive oil
½ Lemon juiced
3 Tbsp Red wine vinegar
½ tsp Dried Oregano
2 Garlic Cloves Minced
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to your taste

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, then add in the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl.
In a small jar add all dressing ingredients and shake vigorously until combined.
To assemble the salad add in the remaining ingredients: tomatoes, cucumbers, bell pepper, olives, onions, dill, and feta cheese.
Pour in dressing and gently toss until evenly coated. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

Use extra virgin if possible. I prefer using olive oil over other types of oils for this recipe. There are so many health benefits of olive oil. They are rich in healthy Monounsaturated Fats and high in antioxidants.
It would be best if you use fresh lemons for this Greek pasta salad dressing. Nothing beats the robust flavors of fresh lemons. If you happen to only have bottled lemon juice then use bottled lemon juice. I highly recommend using fresh lemon juice.
You can use lime if you have that instead, it gives you more of a tang.
If you don't have red wine vinegar you have a few other options you can use. You may try to substitute with white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or balsamic vinegar. Vinegar is essential for traditional greek dressing.
Use dried or fresh herbs. Traditional Greek salad dressing calls for oregano.
Garlic will bring out the flavor of the dressing. If you don't have any fresh garlic you can about 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
Use salt and pepper sparingly. You can either add some to the dressing say about 1/2 a teaspoon each and then taste the salad later to see if it needs more salt and pepper and go ahead and adjust accordingly.
Swap the pasta for something like spinach tortellini, to make it a Greek Tortellini Salad.
Add a protein to make it even heartier, grilled chicken works great.

Nutritional facts:

Please keep in mind that the nutritional information is calculated using a nutrition facts calculator. It is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

Nutrition