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Easy Pasta Salad

A delicious and healthy pasta salad perfect for meal prep, featuring fresh vegetables, chickpeas, and a delightful dressing.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Salad
Cuisine: Healthy, Mediterranean
Calories: 350

Ingredients
  

Pasta and Vegetables
  • 3 cups uncooked fusilli pasta
  • 2 heaping cups halved cherry tomatoes
  • 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
  • 2 cups arugula
  • 1 cup Persian cucumbers (sliced into thin half moons)
  • 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • 1 cup fresh basil leaves (torn)
  • 0.5 cup minced fresh parsley
  • 0.5 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
  • 0.25 cup toasted pine nuts
Dressing
  • 0.25 cup extra-virgin olive oil (plus more for drizzling)
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 3 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence or dried Italian seasoning
  • 0.25 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 0.75 teaspoon sea salt

Method
 

Cooking the Pasta
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the uncooked fusilli pasta and cook according to the package directions, or until it's slightly past al dente.
Preparing the Dressing
  1. While the pasta is boiling, prepare the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, herbes de Provence, red pepper flakes, and sea salt.
Cooling the Pasta
  1. Once the pasta is done cooking, drain it and toss it with a little olive oil to prevent sticking. Allow it to cool to room temperature.
Combining Ingredients
  1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled pasta, halved cherry tomatoes, chickpeas, arugula, sliced cucumbers, crumbled feta cheese, torn basil leaves, minced parsley, chopped mint leaves, and toasted pine nuts.
Dressing the Salad
  1. Pour the dressing over the pasta salad and toss everything together to coat. Taste and adjust with more lemon juice, salt, pepper, or a drizzle of olive oil if desired.
Serving the Salad
  1. Enjoy the pasta salad right away or chill it in the refrigerator for a while before serving.

Notes

Make ahead tips for Easy Pasta Salad: Prepare components in advance for a quicker meal. Store separately for freshness. Also, this pasta salad can be frozen separately before mixing, avoid freezing fresh vegetables.