It’s officially summer y’all! Although it’s been feeling this way for a few weeks now, the summer solstice has finally come! One of my favorite parts about summer is all the opportunities for picnics, bbqs and being outside. No longer does the family have to be cooped up inside, we can play bocce ball in the backyard, meet in the park for a run or sit outside and load up on Vitamin D! One of my favorite items for picnics has always been pasta salad. I’m sure everyone has had some form of it, the different spiral colored noodles, ham or salami, sometimes fresh veggies, sometimes weird dehydrated stiff, and all of it doused in Italian dressing. I decided there HAD to be a healthier version of this so I decided to experiment!
While there are plenty of faux noodles you could use for this, I decided to go with spaghetti squash because it was the easiest. I love spiral noodles but sometimes they are a pain in the butt, especially when you don’t have a spiral-izer! Plus I just love the taste of spaghetti squash! However, if you don’t have any autoimmune issues, you can always sub in gluten free noodles as well! In my opinion, the best part about this salad is the dressing! There are plenty of clean dressing options out there (Tessemae’s, Primal Kitchen, along with plenty of other choices at Thrive Market) but there’s something extra delicious about homemade dressing. Fresh Italian seasonings mixed with our favorite, Kasandrino’s olive oil, is the perfect base for this paleo pasta salad! My other favorite thing about this salad is its versatility. Don’t like tomatoes? Sub in cucumbers? Don’t like peppers? Sub in zucchini. So on and so forth for all your favorite veggies!
Speaking of zucchini, did you see these zucchini pancakes with Tzatziki sauce?! Delish! Remember to subscribe to our newsletter for recipes like these delivered straight to your inbox. Now plan your next picnic and get to work on this paleo pasta salad!
- 1 large spaghetti squash
- 3-4 oz applegate salami
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1/2 cup carrots, chopped
- 1/2 bunch of broccoli, chopped
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 yellow pepper, diced
- For italian dressing;
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- 1 1/2 tsp basil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp dried mustard
- Heat oven to 450F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
- Cut spaghetti squash in half and place face down on baking sheet. Bake for 25-30mins.
- Once spaghetti squash is cooked, set aside to cool.
- While spaghetti squash is cooking, cut up veggies and prepare italian dressing.
- To make italian dressing, combine apple cider vinegar and olive oil then spices and whisk to combine.
- When spaghetti squash is cool enough to handle, use fork to scoop out squash.
- Toss all ingredients in the same bowl as the spaghetti squash and mix to thoroughly combine.
- Place in fridge and serve cold!
More recipes with veggie noodles!
[…] Paleo Pasta Salad […]