Linguine Pasta Salad

I know there are at least a million variations of pasta salad out there. I’ve always been extremely picky about pasta salad. I usually don’t order it in a restaurant because I don’t want to be disappointed. I have 3 favorite recipes for pasta salad and they are all very different from each other, but the one thing they have in common is that all 3 are family recipes.

This one is my mom’s recipe and I didn’t change a thing because it’s perfect on it’s own. These are the 2 simple ingredients starring in this show:

I normally never buy bottled salad dressing, but in this case, the Kraft brand of Zesty Italian dressing pairs perfectly with the salad supreme seasoning. My mom is very particular about sticking with certain brands for this recipe. Don’t try to substitute with another brand of Italian dressing or a different seasoning. Just trust me, ok? Both of these should be in any large grocery chain.

If you’re cooking for people who don’t like mayo, this is a great pasta salad recipe. It has a really fresh taste and I even turned my husband into a big fan! He hated all pasta salad before trying this one.

It’s a quick recipe because you don’t have to make the sauce from scratch. So while you’re boiling the water for the noodles, you can start chopping up the veggies that go inside – cucumber, red onion, and cherry tomatoes.

Dump your drained pasta in this bowl, add the dressing and seasoning, and there you have it! A great side dish to any cookout, potluck, or weeknight dinner. I recommend making this dish in advance. It’s actually better the next day because the noodles and veggies will soak up the dressing and it becomes more flavorful. Plus, warm pasta salad is gross. Leave it in the fridge for at least a couple hours before serving.