Bowtie Pasta Salad
This pasta salad is great as a side or main dish. It’s cool for a hot summer day and filling because of the pasta.
My mother made this for me (following my recipe) when I was recovering from surgery sometime around 2001, so it brings back memories. I remember coming home after my in-patient night and bounding up the stairs to my 2nd story apartment. The IV they gave me made me feel like Wonder Woman and I needed to be reminded that I would rip my stitches if I don’t slow down. I remember laying on my stomach, watching TV for days while my visitors did my laundry. That part really sucked.
Gather your ingredients:
- Pasta
- Lettuce
- Ham
- Cheese
- Tomatoes
- Mayo
- Sour Cream
- Green Onion
- Cucumber
- Garlic & Oregano
Always wash your fresh veggies – lettuce should be washed at least twice. Check inside the leaves and see – you might find dirt, moths, or fruit flies from the garden. I don’t like bugs, generally, but it’s good practice to wash them well.
Prep your Salad Parts
- Salad Base
- Dressing
- Tomato Topping
This recipe calls for some chopping & shredding, so make sure you have a decent sharp kitchen knife, or slicing & dicing tools. Speaking of, I could use some new cutting boards like these (though I don’t know if they’re made in the USA):
You can dice up your cucumber as small as you like, but I like mine about 1/8″. To save on cutting, I also buy the diced ham cubes, but you could use a ham steak or thick cut ham.
The pasta salad base layers are: lettuce, pasta, cheese, ham.
Be sure to rinse the pasta under cold water, and let it drain before assembly.
Make your dressing mix:
- Mayo
- Sour Cream
- Diced Cucumber
- Sliced Green Onions
- Seasoning
Dish up your Pasta Salad
- Salad Base
- Dressing
- Diced Tomato Topping
This salad is best served with sliced & buttered French bread.
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Bowtie Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz bowtie (Farfelle) pasta
- ½ head iceberg lettuce
- 1 c cubed ham
- ½ c cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 tomatoes, diced
Salad 'Dressing'
- ⅓ c mayo
- ⅔ c sour cream
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 1 cucumber, diced
- 1 t garlic salt
- 1 t oregano
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions, in salted water. Rinse in cold water and set aside to cool.
- Combine "Dressing" ingredients, adding onion and cucumber last.
- Cut cleaned lettuce in thin strips and layer in shallow salad dish with lid (about 14 c./ 3L capacity).
- Add the pasta layer, then ham & cheese.
- Serve with dressing and top with tomato.
Storing Leftovers
- Store lettuce mix, dressing, and tomatoes in separate containers.
Notes
