Delight family and friends with this simple pasta salad featuring @eatbanza chickpea noodles with elevated herbs and vegetables
When summer is in full gear, there is nothing better than making a cold pasta salad to pair with a few days of meals and I LOVE this iteration each time I prepare it. It is the perfect blend of salt, fat and acid combined with fresh veggies and herbs that provide crunch, texture and flavor with each bite.
My favorite part of these pasta salad is the ability to sub out pasta with @eatbanza chickpea noodles. I have chosen shells for this particular salad because the shape of the pasta allows to trap herbs and our homemade dressing in each piece. I really do not miss the traditional flour pasta flavor or texture as the Banza noodles provides those elements.
My secret to a successful pasta salad is curbing off the bite of the red onion by soaking the diced onion in a blend of champagne vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and salt for at least 5-10 minutes as I am preparing the rest of the salad (seen on the left). This will become the base for our "dressing" and produces a more palatable onion that provides great crunchy texture without the overwhelming, intense onion flavor.
For this particular salad, I opted to use red pepper, cherry tomatoes, fresh
Thai basil, rocket arugula, fresh oregano, red & green onion, greek black olives and a balsamic glaze for sweetness to round out the dish. It's key to salt the tomatoes after you cut them which help bring their sweetness out and round out the finished product with some ground pepper and more salt.
To prepare the dressing, I used a quarter cup of champagne vinegar mixed with olive oil, salt and pepper to create a citrusy, bright mouthfeel to mix with the ingredients. The mixture is seen marinating with the red onion above. You can add more to your dressing if you like. Favorites include dijon mustard, garlic, basil, parsley or any other herbs depending on what you are going for. I finished off the pasta salad with a nice covering of sweet balsamic glaze to add sweetness and to balance the flavor of the champagne vinegar and salt. Combined with fresh oregano and basil, the dish is bright, herbal and healthy, quenching anyones summer appetite for light cuisine! Bon appetite!
Ingredients:
1 box Banza Pasta, cooked per directions and cooled
1 cup chopped arugula
1/2 diced red onion
12 cherry tomatoes, cut in half and salted
1/2 cup diced black Kalamata olives
1/2 diced red pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup champagne vinegar
1 diced large green onion
1/4 cup chopped Thai basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano
2 tbsp kosher salt
tbsp fresh cracked pepper
sweet balsamic glaze, drizzled to finish