Greek Pasta Salad

This is a dinner idea that I came up with because I had leftover whole wheat pasta and I wanted to create a fresh healthy dish. I had each of these ingredients already in my kitchen so the pasta salad came together quite easily. The only ingredient that I didn't have on hand was cucumber but it would make a very nice addition to this salad and I will definitely include it next time. This pasta salad makes 4-6 servings and a delicious lunch the next day!

 

Recipe:

½ pound cooked whole wheat pasta

1 can artichoke hearts, quartered

1 can white beans

½ jar Kalamata olives, halved

15 cherry tomatoes, halved

½ red onion, diced

crumbled goat cheese

shaved Parmesan cheese

extra-virgin olive oil

balsamic dressing

salt and pepper

1. Combine pasta, artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives, tomatoes, red onion and goat cheese in a large bowl. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over everything and combine well. Sprinkle a fair amount of salt and pepper over pasta salad for seasoning.
2. Dress pasta salad with balsamic dressing. Drizzle only enough to coat the ingredients, too much will sit at the bottom of the bowl. Stir well and top with a small amount of shaved Parmesan cheese. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
3. Serve over a bed of arugula.

A couple notes:

As I mentioned above, cucumber would be a great addition to this salad if you have it on hand.

Feta cheese would be a great substitute for the goat cheese in this dish.

Store leftovers in an air-tight container and enjoy for lunch the next day!

Enjoy!