Pasta Salad
Pasta salad is one of the most popular dishes during the summer months. It’s a healthy meal that’s easy to prepare and has many variations. It’s time to tell you what the benefits of this delicious dish are, and propose two different versions for you to try.
Benefits of pasta salads
Pasta is a meal with many properties, which makes it a complete dish and essential to include in our diets. It contains proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and sugars. In addition to supplying vitamins in groups B and K, another of its advantages is that it can be made in different ways: lasagna, cannelloni, macaroni, etc.
When making a pasta salad, it’s important to choose ingredients that aren’t very caloric, otherwise, the pasta won’t be a healthy meal. For the same reason, you shouldn’t dress the salad with sauces, and if you choose to do so, use light, home-made ones.
Some foods that we can include are the following:
- Vegetables. Tomatoes and lettuce are classic choices in salads. They can also be added to pasta-based salads. In addition to all of their properties, vegetables are a good option to satisfy your appetite, without adding any extra calories.
- Fermented and pickled foods. Whether it’s olives, pickles, chives, or any other type, they add a spark of flavor to the salad. They provide fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Moreover, they can be a healthy snack for obese and overweight people who want to lose a few pounds.
- Cheese. The best thing about salads, is that we can add practically any type of food, and dairy products are a good example. You have to be careful with the type of cheese that you add, though. The number of fats and calories can grow significantly depending on the kind of cheese you choose.
- Fish. Some fish, such as tuna, combine perfectly with a salad. They are great for making a single-dish salad for lunch or dinner. Furthermore, they provide healthy protein and fat.
Pasta salad with broccoli
This salad provides a different way of eating broccoli, instead of the traditional ways that we are more accustomed to. Also, this recipe is very complete because it includes tomatoes and cheese. Keep reading and feel free to try this original blend.
Ingredients for two people:
- 3.5 ounces of spiral pasta
- 2 ounces cherry tomatoes
- 2 ounces of broccoli
- 1.5 ounces of cheese
- Black olives
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Vinegar
Procedure:
- To make this original and delicious salad, begin by setting two pots of water to boil. In one pot, cook the pasta, and in the other, the broccoli.
- Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and dice the cheese.
- Add the spiral pasta and chopped broccoli to a bowl. Then, add the cheese, tomatoes, and olives. Make sure to add the olives last.
- To dress this salad, add a pinch of salt, a drizzle of olive oil, and a little vinegar.
Pasta salad with cucumbers and light sauce
This second suggestion for a pasta salad is one of the lightest versions that you’ll find. The most caloric ingredient is the pasta, as cucumbers are mainly composed of water. To dress it, we use a light sauce, with a fresh cheese base, that you can use for any salad.
Ingredients for two people:
- 5 ounces of spiral pasta
- 2 cucumbers
- 1 tablespoon of cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon of vinegar
- Salt
- Olive oil
- Skimmed milk
Procedure:
- Begin by cooking the pasta. It’s better to do this by leaving enough time in advance to ensure that the pasta is cold when it’s time to eat it. If you don’t have enough time, you can cool it under water, although it will lose some of its flavors.
- Then, cut the cucumbers into cubes and let them rest in a bowl with salt. Place a plate underneath to collect the water. After half an hour, wash the cucumber to remove any bitterness.
- To make the sauce, mix together the cream cheese, salt, and two tablespoons of olive oil. When these ingredients are combined, gradually add the skimmed milk, until it you achieve the desired texture.
- Lastly, mix the sauce with the salad, and put it all together on a plate. You can add other ingredients to this recipe, such as tuna, fresh cheese, olives, or crab sticks.
