Greek Pasta Recipe
We make some variant of Greek pasta salad at least three or four times a month. So it wasn’t long before we grew bored with the store-bought Greek dressing we had been using to our own decidedly zestier homemade one. Making your own dressing from scratch is really easy to do, tastes much better and is far healthier for you than the ones so popular in the supermarket.*
In an effort to mix up one of our favorite meals/sides/snacks, we’ve experimented with all kinds of different pasta; we tried farfalle, gemelli and spaghetti but settled on Wacky Mac Veggie Shapes for a long time because apparently we’re seven years old. This recipe calls for spaghetti but really, just use your favorite pasta. We’ve actually graduated to another, more adult-oriented, vegetable-based pasta lately ourselves — the rotini from Ronzoni Garden Delight. Now at least, I don’t have to justify my pasta choices to the cashier at Kroger’s.
The recipe for the dressing is designed to be as easy as possible, but feel free to substitute any fresh herbs you have on hand — just remember that since dried herbs are so much more potent than fresh herbs, you’ll need about three times the amount of fresh for dried. I tend to stick with the dried herbs but some fresh parsley, mint or dill can really make a difference.
Also as a final note, be sure to use a bold, high-quality olive oil for this salad dressing, not the fusty, adulterated oil the supermarket sells on the cheap. Believe me, it’s worth the few extra bucks for a dressing that doesn’t taste like zesty lamp oil.
*As we quickly learned when looking into homemade dressings, the store-bought stuff is basically a bottle of industrialized fats that are terrible for you and artificial “flavors”, chemical preservatives and toxins that aren’t quite poisonous enough to be banned. The food industry and the FDA may think that titanium dioxide nanoparticles are a great addition to my salad, but I think maybe they should just stay in my sunscreen and house paint.
But then, we may disagree about what makes a great salad dressing. I like blue cheese and vinaigrettes, they like propylene glycol (which in addition to your salad dressing, you’ll find in antifreeze, engine coolant, brake fluid, paint, enamel and varnish) and a whole host of known or suspected carcinogens like sodium benzoate, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose and petroleum-based dyes. There are many more, but basically, the food industry is mustering as much supervillain science it can to ensure your dressing enjoys a very long, shelf-stable life. If however, you would like to live a long, healthy life, make your own dressings at home or buy organic brands whose ingredient label doesn’t require a dual major in chemistry and marketing to understand.
Image: ForkingSpoon
Greek Pasta Recipe
A delicious Greek pasta salad that skips the unhealthy supermarket salad dressing for a zesty homemade Greek dressing made with real feta cheese and black olives.
Ingredients
Instructions
Prepare the Greek dressing
In a blender on low speed, combine the red wine vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, basil, oregano, mint (if using), onion powder, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the entire cup has been added. Transfer to an airtight container (a mason jar with a lid works great) and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. If the oil separates in the jar just shake it vigorously for 30 second or so.
Make the pasta salad
In a large mixing bowl, toss the cooked spaghetti (or the pasta of your choice) with the red onion, cucumber, tomatoes, olives and cheese with the Greek dressing. Serve chilled. Garnish with the hot pepper flakes (if desired).
Notes
I try to leave about 1/3 of a cup of the dressing aside so I can freshen up any pasta leftovers the next day. Pasta salads tend to dry up when refrigerated and that little bit of extra dressing goes a long way to restoring that zesty kick.
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the Greek dressing
In a blender on low speed, combine the red wine vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, basil, oregano, mint (if using), onion powder, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the entire cup has been added. Transfer to an airtight container (a mason jar with a lid works great) and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. If the oil separates in the jar just shake it vigorously for 30 second or so.
Make the pasta salad
In a large mixing bowl, toss the cooked spaghetti (or the pasta of your choice) with the red onion, cucumber, tomatoes, olives and cheese with the Greek dressing. Serve chilled. Garnish with the hot pepper flakes (if desired).
DISCLOSURE Hey there! Just so you know, this post might contain links to Amazon or other trusted affiliates where we make a small commission on qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. We’ve also hand-picked some products for this recipe we thought our smart (and attractive) readers might enjoy : ) Learn more about our affiliate linking policy.
