Who doesn’t love a good ol’ pasta salad? This one comes together in a pinch, and is made flavorful by all of the tasty Mediterranean inspired ingredients.
Here’s a quick dish that comes together using a combination of fresh ingredients and pantry staples. The flavors are bright and Mediterranean inspired, and will leave you feeling satisfied. This would make a great dish to bring to a post-quarantine BBQ!
Notice that I said post-quarantine BBQ? Yep, we’re still in that stage of life. But that’s a good thing! Because, the quicker we get hold of coronavirus, the quicker we can get back to “normal” or the new normal. In the meantime, you can just polish up on your cooking skills and be prepared to wow your guests at your post-quarantine BBQ!
Ingredients
This dish really is easy to put together, with it’s combination of pantry staples and fresh ingredients. The only fresh ingredients you’ll need are cherry tomatoes, basil, spinach, and a lemon. If you have a summer garden going, you might likely have many of these things growing!
I also mention using pre-cooked artichoke and sun-dried tomato chicken sausage links. I know that’s pretty specific, but the Mediterranean flavors in those links work so well with this dish! However, if you can’t find those, and pre-made sausage links with similar flavors will do! I think an Italian seasoned one, or a simple garlic flavored one, would work well here. I like the pre-cooked ones because it cuts down on cooking time. Also, I’m always up for avoiding touching raw meat.
The artichoke hearts that I use are usually the ones that are canned in water. However, if you have ones that are in a jar with oil, those would also taste great and add some extra flavor. If you do use those, just be sure to pat the oil off.
And finally, the pasta. I like how the farfalle (bow tie) pasta holds pockets of dressing and goes well together with the other ingredients. Spiral pasta noodles would also work well here! I’m particular to using specific pasta shapes in specific recipes, but this can be pretty flexible if you don’t really care about that.
If you really want to impress guests, or impress hosts for those post-quarantine BBQs, serve this pasta salad alongside my Mediterranean Snack Board with Roasted Garlic and Rosemary Hummus! You’ll be the hit of the party!
Mediterranean Sausage Pasta Salad
A delicious side dish that comes together quickly and effortlessly.
Ingredients
Pasta Salad
- 1 lb. farfalle pasta
- 1 Tablespoon oil
- 4 links pre-cooked artichoke and sundried tomato chicken sausage links (such as Aidell’s brand), thinly sliced
- 1 handful fresh basil, roughly chopped
- 1 1/2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 can artichoke hearts, drained
Dressing
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
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Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add the pasta and cook until desired tenderness, or 7-10 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool. Meanwhile heat the tablespoon of oil in a medium pan. Add the sliced chicken sausage links and brown on each side. Once the sausage is browned, add the spinach and cook until wilted. Remove the sausage and spinach from the pan and transfer to a large bowl. To the bowl, add the remaining pasta salad ingredients (pasta, basil, tomatoes, and artichoke hearts). Stir to combine. Whisk together the dressing ingredients (or add to a small jar and shake until combined) and pour over the pasta salad. Stir to fully coat the pasta salad with the dressing and cool for at least an hour before serving. Serve chilled.