Spring Vegetable Pasta Salad with Creamy Lemon Dressing

Spring Vegetable Pasta Salad with Creamy Lemon Dressing is a dish you’ll want to serve all summer long. Perfect for potluck parties and backyard cookouts.

This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BBQWeek. I received product samples from Michigan Asparagus to use in creating recipes. However, all opinions are mine alone.

We have come to the end of #BBQWeek. So many great recipes have been shared this week and I hope you’re enjoying them. I’m sharing a side dish that I’ve not made in a very long time because, well, I just forgot about it. Do you have any recipes you just forget about because you don’t make them regularly? Or just make them seasonally?

I can tell you my family was happy I made this spring vegetable pasta salad with creamy lemon dressing. My oldest son loves lemon. The lemon is not too overpowering in this dressing. If you prefer more lemon, increase the amount, a little at a time, but continue to taste the dressing so you don’t add too much.

The day I made this it was pouring outside so I used my grill pan and made it indoors. I have now made it both indoors and on the grill outdoors. How ever you choose to make it, just watch it so it doesn’t burn. You just want it a bit charred and soft. What I love about Michigan asparagus is that I don’t need to cut the ends off because it’s all hand snapped when harvested.

While you can certainly use any shape pasta, I like the bowties because it holds the dressing in the nooks. I recommend a pasta shape rather than angel hair or spaghetti because the latter also make it more difficult to eat. You could certainly substitute some sun-dried tomatoes for the roasted red peppers.

Spring Vegetable Pasta Salad with Creamy Lemon Dressing

Yield: 4 - 6 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Make spring vegetable pasta salad with creamy lemon dressing for your next backyard gathering.

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Ingredients

• 12 ounces bowtie shaped pasta
• 1/2 bunch of Michigan asparagus
• 1/2 cucumber, sliced
• 1/4 cup sweet onion, diced
• A few slices of roasted red pepper from a jar, diced
• 1/4 cup cucumber, sliced

Creamy Lemon Dressing

• 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Draining and rinsing when cooked. Transfer to a bowl.
2. Grill Michigan asparagus until soft and tender. Cut into bite sized pieces and add to pasta. Add onion, cucumber, and diced red pepper. Gently toss together.
3. Make the Dressing:
4. In a jar with a lid, mix all the ingredients and shake until well blended.
5. Toss with pasta and vegetables. Add 1/4 to 1/2 of dressing and toss pasta salad. Reserve remaining dressing to use when serving. Refrigerate pasta and dressing until ready to serve.

Notes

Total time does not include refrigeration time.

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